This book uses the Red Army Faction (RAF) as a case study to examine the spread and evolution of radical ideas. Though the RAF dissolved in 1998, its legacy continues to influence left-wing, right-wing, and jihadist groups in Germany and beyond.
Through a detailed analysis of the RAF's history, media coverage, and recent occurrences such as the 2024 arrest of Daniela Klette and discussions surrounding climate activism, the book reveals patterns in the radicalization of individuals. The book compares past and present extremist tactics, revealing that different ideologies often employ similar strategies.
Drawing on research, data, and primary sources, the author argues that today's threats are shaped by mixed ideologies and emotional atmospheres. This book will appeal to scholars, students, and researchers of political science and related fields, as well as policymakers and anyone interested in preventing extremism in today's complex world.
Chapter
1. Introduction.
Chapter
2. How Violence Develops And Where It
Can Lead.
Chapter
3. The Red Army Faction: Trajectory of Violence.
Chapter
4. Media, Myth, and Memory. The RAF in German Public Discourse.
Chapter
5.
Radicalization Across the Spectrum. From Left-Wing to Jihadist Milieus.-
Chapter
6. Conclusions: Patterns and Parallels. Implications for Countering
Violent Extremism (CVE).
Katarzyna Maniszewska is an expert at the Terrorism Research Centre in Warsaw, Poland, and a lecturer at Civitas University in Warsaw and the University of Bialystok. She holds a PhD from the University of Warsaw. Her research and teaching focus on the evolution of terrorism, extremism prevention, and the interdependence of security threats.
As a visiting scholar, she has delivered lectures at West Virginia University, the Philippine Public Safety College, and the Indonesia Military University (UNJANI), among others. In 2024, she was awarded the Kosciuszko Foundation Fellowship, under which she conducted research within the Program on Extremism at George Washington University. In 2025, she received the Fulbright-NATO Security Studies Award.
She is the author of Towards a New Definition of Terrorism: Challenges and Perspectives in a Shifting Paradigm (Springer, 2024) and serves as an expert for the EU Knowledge Hub on Prevention of Radicalisation.
