BY ALEXANDER MELEAGROU-HITCHENS  

Hello to all the readers of the new Standpoint blog.

This particular blog will focus on the issues surrounding Islamist activity both in the UK and abroad.  Islamism, also known as political Islam, is not to be confused with Islam the religion. The former is a political ideology rooted in a literal and puritanical interpretation of the latter (specifically Saudi Arabia's Wahhabi-Salafi creed), usually devoted to creating a ‘perfect Islamic society' under sharia law. 

It is the ideology of Islamism which is the primary root cause of jihadist terror, and the proponents and apologists of this ideology must be discredited and resisted in a liberal and just manner. This can be difficult, because those who dare to do so are often branded as ‘Islamophobes'.

I have a special interest in Islamist pressure groups, which seek to move the discourse on terrorism and radicalisation towards discussions of how liberal democracies can adapt themselves to Islamist ideals, and alter their policies in order to appease terrorism. 

Through this blog, I hope to expose and analyse both how various Islamist groups operate and also the approach taken by the government in either supporting or opposing them.  I will also cover in particular the two prototypical Islamist groups, the Jamaat e-Islami and the Muslim Brotherhood, and attempt to  give readers a good grasp on why these groups are a threat and how they can be opposed.