Concepts, Dynamics and Open Questions. Background Paper accompanying the EU Knowledge Hub Conclusion Paper

This background paper provides an analytical introduction to Nihilistic Violent Extremism (NVE) as an increasingly visible form of digitally mediated violence. It argues that NVE is best understood not as a coherent ideology or fixed organisational form, but as a digitally mediated violence ecosystem in which recognition, coercion, fragmented ideological references and psychosocial vulnerability interact. The paper complements the EU Knowledge Hub Conclusion Paper by offering conceptual orientation for prevention, policy and multi-agency responses, drawing on the EU Knowledge Hub process and recent research by the Center for Monitoring, Analysis, and Strategy (CeMAS).