Unpicking extremism and counter extremism - one conversation at a time. This new Counter Extremism Project podcast series is presented by Ian Acheson - professor, author, former prison governor, criminal justice system leader, and counterterrorism expert - and Edmund Fitton-Brown - former UK ambassador to Yemen and coordinator of UN sanctions and threat assessment.

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Ian and Edmund discuss the disaster averted aboard a flight bound for Israel; the incident at RAF Fairford and the subsequent arrests; the attack on a counterterrorism police compound in Kohat, Pakistan and the involvement of the Taliban and Al Aqada; and the continuing controversy over whether alumina from Ireland’s Russian-owned Aughinish refinery is entering supply chains linked to Russian attack drones.

S7 E4: Israel flight incident; RAF Fairford; Pakistan and the Taliban; and Ireland's Aughinish refinery.

https://s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/pod-public-media-files/2026/9/9/15/fe02beb2-0ebb-443f-af63-15ac65d72bcc_counterpod_s7_e3_final_audio.mp3

Ian and Edmund discuss the recent masked migrant protests in the UK; the 25th anniversary of 9/11; the death of &#39;the Butcher of Bosnia&#39; Ratko Mladić; and Argentina&#39;s renewed interest in the Falkland Islands.

S7 E3: UK migrant protests; 9/11 25th anniversary; Ratko Mladić; and the Falkland Islands.

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Ian and Edmund examine the latest targeting of Hamas commanders in Gaza and what it means for the conflict and wider regional dynamics. They also ask whether familiar counter-terrorism messaging such as “See It, Say It, Sorted” actually works; assess the renewed offensive against the Houthis and their continuing threat to regional security; and explore what the interception of an alleged New IRA bomb reveals about dissident republicanism.

S7 E2: Hamas; counter terrorism messaging; the Houthis; and the IRA

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Ian and Edmund are back to discuss problems with the U.K.’s Prevent program counter-terrorism strategy; what&#39;s next from the Iranian regime and the Houthis, including implications for the U.K.; Ireland&#39;s new national strategy on terrorist financing aimed, in part at disrupting the enablers; and the implications of U.S. sanctions on the Muslim Brotherhood.

S7 E1: U.K. Prevent program; Iran and the Houthis; Ireland's strategy on terrorist financing; and the Muslim Brotherhood.

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Ian and Edmund discuss U.S. negotiations on Iran and Ukraine-Russia; the British government’s approach to freedom of speech; Marco Rubio’s speech at the Munich Security Conference; and youth radicalization by ISIS and other terror groups.

S6 E3: U.S. peace negotiations; freedom of speech; Marco Rubio; and youth radicalization.

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Ian and Edmund discuss CEP’s ARCHER project and recent concert in Washington D.C. featuring music composed during the Holocaust; their concerns about the situation in Syria and ISIS detainees; U.K security issues and the Cyber Security Bill; and options for the new U.S. Board of Peace.

S6 E2: CEP initiatives on combating antisemitism; ISIS detainees in Syria; U.K. security issues; and the U.S. Board of Peace initiative.

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In the first episode of Season 6, Edmund and Ian discuss Hamas financial networks; the shocking fallout from the UK West Midlands Police ban on Maccabi Tel Aviv fans; the crackdown on the Iranian protests and proscribing the IRGC; and how legacy legislation is exposing veterans in Northern Ireland to lawfare.

S6 E1: Hamas financing; West Midlands Police; Iranian street protests; and lawfare in Northern Ireland.

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In an end-of-year special Ian Acheson and Edmund Fitton-Brown unpack four major security and extremism issues: the Operation Kenova findings on the IRA agent “Stakeknife” and what they reveal about Northern Ireland’s dirty war; the renewed U.S. effort to designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a Foreign Terrorist Organization; the fallout from the banning of Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from a UK football match and what it says about intelligence-led policing; and the latest stage of the Gaza peace plan, including who might govern Gaza and the future of Hamas.

S5 E7: IRA agent 'Stakeknife'; designating the Muslim Brotherhood; Maccabi Tel Aviv ban; and the Gaza peace plan.

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In this episode Edmund and Ian assess new UK police advice on revealing the ethnicity of suspects to quell community tensions; the impact of calls for the recognition of a Palestinian state; Palestine Action as a terrorist organzation; and Mexican drug cartels.

S5 E6: UK policing; a Palestine state; Palestine Action; and Mexico's drug cartels.

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In this episode Ian and Edmund discuss stability in Colombia; Epping illegal immigration protests and policing in the UK; trade deals and the terrorist insurgency in the Sahel; and the recent spotlight on the UK’s definition of Islamophobia.

S5 E5: Colombia; UK illegal immigration protests; terrorist insurgency in the Sahel; and Islamophobia.

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In this episode Edmund and Ian discuss the UK&#39;s 9/11 - the 7/7 terrorist attacks on their 20th anniversary; the current proposals for Gaza following Benjamin Netanyahu&#39;s visit to Washington; the proscribing of Palestine Action as a terrorist group in the UK; and the &#39;lovely&#39; UN Charter 80 years after its creation.

S5 E4: 7/7 London bombing anniversary; proposals for Gaza; Palestine Action proscribed; the UN Charter at 80.

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Edmund and Ian discuss Iran, Israel, the U.S. and the ’12-day war’ and ask - who’s in charge: Trump or Netanyahu? They also assess the fallout from Glastonbury; Syria and sanctions; and CEP’s report on Islamist antisemitism.

S5 E3: Iran-Israel-U.S.; Glastonbury; Syria; and Islamist antisemitism.

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Ian and Edmund discuss violent unrest in Ballymena, Northern Ireland; the conflict between Israel and Iran; Ian’s high-profile review of security in U.K prisons; and the tenth anniversary of the Islamic State terrorist attacks in Tunisia - ending on an optimistic note.

S5 E2: Ballymena unrest; Israel-Iran conflict; extremism in UK prisons; and Tunisia terror attacks anniversary.

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S5 E1 Ian and Edmund kick-off the new season with a look at incidents involving football crowds in Liverpool and Paris; the Houthi threat to Red Sea shipping; Ian’s rapid review (<a href="https://www.counterextremism.com/press/ian-acheson-warns-escalating-violent-extremism-threat-uk-prisons" rel="nofollow">published by the Counter Extremism Project</a>) of prison security the growing threat from ideology; and last month’s flare-up between India and Pakistan.

S5 E1: Football crowd incidents; the Houthis and Red Sea shipping; security in UK prisons; and the India-Pakistan conflict.

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In this season&#39;s finale, Ian and Edmund discuss why the US State Department may drop bounties on Taliban leaders; the anniversary of the Islamist terrorist truck attack in Stockholm; options for the US-Iran nuclear talks; and the release from a UK mental hospital of a convicted terrorist connected to the London 7/7 bombings.

S4 E6: US State Department and the Taliban; Stockholm truck attack anniversary; Iran nuclear deal; and release of 7/7 convicted terrorist.

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Ian and Edmund discuss the Oklahoma City bombing on its 30th anniversary; the murder of Ronan Kerr, a police officer in Omaha, Co. Tyrone; antisemitism in Australia; and the association of music and anti-extremism - but they start with flatulence laws versus gun legislation - and it isn’t even an April Fool’s.

S4 E5: Oklahoma City bombing anniversary; the murder of Ronan Kerr; antisemitism in Australia; and music and anti-extremism.

https://s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/pod-public-media-files/2025/3/27/21/40c0278a-3c76-4cf7-b1c4-953c45583243_counterpod_s4e4_mp3.mp3

This week Ian and Edmund question Oman’s role as a mediator; discuss a U.K. report from the Commission for Countering Extremism; assess the protests in Gaza by citizens opposed to Hamas; and explain the National Crime Agency’s Annual Threat Assessment.

S4 E4: Oman’s role as a mediator; ideology drives extremism; protests in Gaza; and ‘Com Networks’ in the U.K.

https://s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/pod-public-media-files/2025/3/20/20/10cbd6d0-a655-455e-9ac5-54373a1b5697_counterpod_s4e3_mp3.mp3

Ian and Edmund discuss the importance of a new report on October 7 by a House of Lords group; the debate in the U.S. over Mahmoud Khalil; the boycott of St Patrick’s Day by Sinn Fein and others; and the implications of the U.S. airstrikes on the Houthis.

S4 E3: UK Report on October 7; Mahmoud Khalil; St Patrick’s Day boycott; U.S. strikes on Houthis.

https://s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/pod-public-media-files/2025/3/13/22/8ca85d0d-b6fd-4292-8289-573379ffa03c_counterpod_s4_e2_mp3.mp3

Edmund and Ian discuss Pakistan’s extradition of Mohammad Sharifullah to US on terrorism charges; the arguments for and against changing the UK’s definition of terrorism; the latest and worrying developments in Syria; and the UK’s vulnerability to vehicle-ramming as a means of terrorism.

S4 E2: Extradition of Mohammad Sharifullah; UK’s definition of terrorism; developments Syria; and cars as a weapon of terror.

https://s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/pod-public-media-files/2025/3/5/20/758b7419-b845-49a0-8622-4c270d33a247_counter_pod_s4_e1_final_mp3.mp3

Edmund and Ian are back for a new season and to probe the UK&#39;s approach to defining Islamophobia; discuss the Russian security service shooting of an IS-inspired terrorist; explain UK and Irish government exploratory talks to engage dissident Republican terrorists; and consider diplomacy in the era of Donald Trump.

S4 E1: UK definition of Islamophobia; terrorism in Russia; engaging Northern Irish dissident terrorists; Trump era diplomacy.

Unpicking extremism and counter extremism - one conversation at a time. This new Counter Extremism Project podcast series is presented by *Ian Acheson* - professor, author, former prison governor, criminal justice system leader, and counterterrorism expert - and *Edmund Fitton-Brown* - former UK ambassador to Yemen and coordinator of UN sanctions and threat assessment.