Dr. Thomas Hegghammer (Norwegian Defence Research Establishment, Oslo

What do jihadis do when they don't fight? Why do hunted militants spend precious time reading poetry and interpreting each others dreams? And why is the epithet he who weeps a badge of honour in al-Qaida? We know much about the military activities and ideological views of jihadis, but little about their socio-cultural practices. This talk will take a closer look at daily life inside militant Islamist groups and reflect on what it tells us about jihadism in particular and clandestine activism in general.