As well-publicized bouts of violence, from civil war to suicide bombings, plague the Middle East, Africa and South Asia, concern about Islamic extremism is high among countries with substantial Muslim populations, according to a new survey by the Pew Research Center. And in the Middle East, concern is growing. Lebanese, Tunisians, Egyptians, Jordanians and Turks are all more worried about the extremist threat than they were a year ago.
Meanwhile, publics hold very negative opinions of well-known extremist groups, such as al Qaeda, Hamas and Hezbollah.
In Nigeria, the vast majority of respondents, both Muslims and Christians alike, have an unfavorable view of Boko Haram, the terrorist group that recently kidnapped hundreds of girls in the restive north of the country. And a majority of Pakistanis have an unfavorable view of the Taliban.
Few Muslims in most of the countries surveyed say that suicide bombing can often or sometimes be justified against civilian targets in order to defend Islam from its enemies. And support for the tactic has fallen in many countries over the last decade. Still, in some countries a substantial minority say that suicide bombing can be justified.
These are the main findings of a new Pew Research Center survey conducted among 14,244 respondents in 14 countries with significant Muslim populations from April 10 to May 25, 2014. The survey was conducted prior to the recent takeover of Mosul and other areas of Iraq by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).1
Middle East Concerns about Islamic Extremism Grow
Majorities in most of the nations polled are concerned about extremism. And in most Middle Eastern countries, concern about extremism has increased in the past year.
In Lebanon, which shares a long border with conflict-ridden Syria, 92% of the public is worried about Islamic extremism, up 11 points from the already high figure of 81% in 2013. Lebanese Christians (95%), Shia Muslims (95%) and Sunni Muslims (86%) all share high levels of concern.
Eight-in-ten in Tunisia express anxiety about extremism in their country, up from 71% in 2013 and 65% in 2012. Three-quarters in Egypt are also concerned, slightly increased from the 69% measured in 2013.
In the Palestinian territories, 65% worry about extremism, with much greater concern in the Gaza Strip (79%) than in the West Bank (57%).
Concerns have increased significantly over the last two years in Jordan and Turkey, both of which share a border with Syria. Roughly six-in-ten Jordanians (62%) are concerned about extremism in their country, up 13 percentage points since 2012. Just half of Turks hold this view, but this is up 18 percentage points from two years ago.
More than eight-in-ten Israelis (84%) express worries about Islamic extremism, although this view is more common among Israeli Jews (87%) than among Israeli Arabs (66%).
In Asia, strong majorities in Bangladesh (69%), Pakistan (66%) and Malaysia (63%) are concerned about Islamic extremism. However, in Indonesia, only about four-in-ten (39%) share this view, down from 48% in 2013.
In Nigeria, 72% of the public is concerned about Islamic extremism, similar to the seven-in-ten who said this in last year’s survey, before the most recent spate of terrorist attacks and kidnappings in its northern provinces. Both Nigerian Muslims (76%) and Nigerian Christians (69%) express high levels of concern.
Only 46% Senegalese are worried about extremism, down from the three-quarters registered in 2013 when unrest in neighboring Mali led to fears about extremists crossing the border. (In fact, 91% of Senegalese approved of France’s intervention against anti-government rebels in Mali, the highest support for the military action among the African and Middle Eastern nations surveyed).