Why Turkey's high unemployment rate may mean more terror attacks
The youth unemployment rate in Turkey’s conflict-torn southeast has shot up to nearly 25% in some areas, offering fertile ground for recruitment to Kurdish and Islamist terrorist groups.
ANKARA, Turkey — The rising wave of terrorism in Turkey’s big cities has sparked debates on the various aspects of the attacks, committed on what appears to be on a rotating basis by the Islamic State (IS) and the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK), a radical offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). The discussion has focused on the reasons that made Turkey a playing field for terrorists and the security and intelligence failures behind the attacks. Another crucial topic, however, is the recruitment methods of terrorist groups and how young people are cajoled into becoming suicide bombers.
After the car bomb that the TAK detonated in the heart of Ankara on March 13, authorities identified the female suicide bomber as 23-year-old university student Seher Cagla Demir, which further fueled discussion on how young people are drawn to terrorist groups and the economic conditions that facilitate their recruitment.
