The Next Phase of Islamist Lawfare
May 19, 2008
By Brooke Goldstein and Aaron Eitan Meyer
The phenomenon known as Islamist “lawfare,” or the use of Western legal systems to achieve the goals of radical Islam, has taken a variety of forms during its rise over the past ten years. Generally, lawfare may be roughly divided into two categories: 1) small-scale attempts to silence individuals who write critically about Islam, terrorism and terrorist funding; and 2) attempts by regional and global organizations to redefine [read: curtail] freedom of speech.On Tuesday, May 19, the Legal Project at the Middle East Forum – which was created by Daniel Pipes as a direct response to lawfare – the Federalist Society, the Center for National Security Law and the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression, are holding a conference to analyze the issue. Entitled “Libel Lawfare: Silencing Criticism of Radical Islam,” the conference will address lawfare tactics in the United States and tactics and strategy employed in Canada, the European Union, and the United Nations.