Neoliberalism and 21st Century Neo-Jihadism: Capitalising on Anti-Capitalist Sentiments

This thesis examines how the neo-jihadist organisations, Al Qaeda and Islamic State, have interacted with the late modern capitalist paradigm of neoliberalism. Drawing from philosophical and political-economic ideas, it investigates the extent to which these organisations share a dialectical relationship with neoliberalism, which entails contradiction, and is evidenced by their anti-capitalist propaganda and quasi-capitalist financial practices. While the nature of this dialectic is multifaceted, entailing causation, reflexivity, and mirroring, the dual-pronged approach to the investigation reveals that dialectical relationships exist between the neo-jihadist organisations in question and their counterterrorist opposition, and with the broader political-economic environments in which they operate.