Across Europe and further afield, counterterrorism agencies are grappling with a new generation of young people who are being radicalized online and consuming ultraviolent content produced by extremist groups and their supporters.

After his arrest, investigators found the 12-year-old had been gorging on videos of decapitation and torture, including 1,739 jihadi videos and bomb-making tutorials.

The boy’s descent began with Quran searches and led to encrypted chats and ultraviolent propaganda from extremist groups like Islamic State. French prosecutor Paul-Edouard Lallois warned he risked becoming a “completely dehumanized soldier.”

Across Europe, minors are increasingly appearing on terror radars, with France’s anti-terror unit charging 19 minors in 2023 alone.

Extremist content is just a click away, with radicalization sometimes beginning through violent pornography or a fascination for gory images, leading to jihadi decapitations.

  • IAmLamp
    3•3 days ago

    You needn’t take it any further, sir. You’ve proved to me that all this ultraviolence and killing is wrong, wrong, and terribly wrong. I’ve learned me lesson, sir. I’ve seen now what I’ve never seen before. I’m cured! Praise god!