JEDDAH: Poverty, unemployment and poor education are alienating young people and driving them into the arms of terrorist groups, according to experts.

Saleh bin Ali Abu Arrad, professor of Islamic education at King Khaled University in Asir, said terrorism has become a major problem in modern societies. “It is spreading everywhere and has taken different forms. It is a subject worth in-depth study and analysis because it is worrying for individuals and societies,” he said.

Terrorism has a huge impact on people because it undermines their basic need for security and stability, with a resultant rise in panic and fear, he said.

Abu Arrad said that young people who are neglected, victims of domestic violence and have poor family ties are most vulnerable to recruitment by terror groups.

He said factors such as poverty, unemployment and lack of access to education also play a major role in alienating young people and giving them a sense of being treated in an unjust manner.

“If an individual is unemployed, he is likely to be more easily recruited by terrorist organizations.”

The poor social conditions of these youngsters are used by terror groups as reasons for launching attacks, he said.

Ali Alhazmi, a terrorism expert, said many studies have shown that terrorist attacks are likely to increase in future if action is not taken by governments in cooperation with religious and civil society organizations.

“The religious establishment, security agencies, education institutions and families all have a role to play. They must instill positive values in the minds of young people. But the most crucial of all is the political process in the country because it is the pivotal and guiding factor for all the other roles,” he said.