9/11’s Children: “Chasing Martyrdom”

Abstract

Adecade after the arrest of the Benbrika Jama’ah, the issue of Australian Muslim men involved in politically motivated terrorist violence has grown exponentially. Australians fighting in Iraq and Syria have been involved in suicide bombings and many of the worst atrocities including murders, beheadings, and the sexual enslavement of minority women. Importantly, by world standards, Australia is considered to have provided the highest per capita contribution of fighters of any English-speaking nation and amongst the highest of any Western nation alongside Belgium. Coupled with domestic terrorism threats and sectarian violence, it becomes clear that the Benbrika Jama’ah were a precursor to an ongoing challenge encompassing hardline young Muslim men for whom Islam is conflated with aggression and a willingness to use deadly force. This chapter focuses upon the emergence of young men raised in the post-9/11 world who have embraced Salafi jihadi politics. The chapter aims to engage with the social influences shaping what appears to be an emerging and concerning trend of young Australian Muslim men participating in suicide attacks post the 9/11 decade.