Lecture: From Wahhabism to ISIS: How did Saudi Arabia export global terrorism to Europe's youngsters?, Amsterdam

As the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) demolishes nation states, ISIS's obscene savagery seems to epitomize the violence. Some will see the group's ferocious irredentism as proof of Islam's chronic inability to embrace modern values. Although ISIS is an Islamic movement, it is neither typical nor mired in the distant past, because its roots are in the Salafi practice of Wahhabism, a form of Islam practiced in Saudi Arabia that developed only in the 18th century. The European Parliament identified Wahhabism as the main source of global terrorism. As more youngsters in Europe find solace in Salafism and join the ranks of ISIS the question arises: How did Saudi-Arabia's Wahhabis export global terrorism to Europe's youngsters?

Our first speaker will be Drs. Paul Aarts. Drs. Aarts is a lecturer in International Relations at the department of Political Science at the University of Amsterdam. He is a specialist on the Middle East in general and the Gulf states in particular. He has researched the political dynamics of Saudi Arabia extensively.

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