33Received 30.10.2024. Revised 24.11.2024. Accepted 02.12.2024.
Abstract. Despite the heavy damage inflicted on transnational jihadist terrorist networks in the 2010s and 2020s, extremist groups acting under the banner of “global jihad” (primarily the Islamic State and Al-Qaeda) have not only survived, but also demonstrate the ability to adapt to new conditions and still pose a huge threat at different levels in various parts of the world. Terrorist networks have temporarily retreated into the shadows, trying to regroup their forces and find new fields and opportunities for their extremist activities. There are reasons to fear that we may be talking about the “calm before the storm”. A characteristic feature of modern transnational Islamist networks is the expansion of geography, primarily at the expense of African countries. Also, the “Afghan branch” of the Islamic State group (ISKP), which is not limited to the territories of Afghanistan and the countries bordering it, is showing special operational and propaganda activity. The expansion of the geography of terrorist networks is reflected in the evolution of their internal structure (which is especially evident in the example of the development of the management system of the “branches” of the IS network). The article also examines the impact of the war in the Gaza Strip on the activities of transnational jihadist networks. The author concludes that as long as the causes contributing to the growth of religiously motivated extremism and terrorism remain, global jihadist networks will continue to exist using various forms of hybrid warfare (terrorist acts, sabotage and guerrilla activities, seizure of territories for more or less long periods, propaganda war, recruitment activities, undermining public peace, etc.). It is also logical to assume that transnational Islamist terrorist networks will continue to skillfully combine their global ambitions with a purely local agenda, which poses a threat to a number of specific regions. And an equally alarming sign is the ability of adherents of the “global jihad” to use international conflicts for their own purposes.
Keywords: Islamism, jihadism, extremism, terrorism, Islamic State, ISIS, IS, Al-Qaeda, glocalism, Gaza war, ISKP
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