The Political Impact of the Rising Salafi-Wahhabi Influence in Bosnia-Herzegovina

This thesis examines the political impact of Salafi-Wahhabism in contemporary Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH) since the El Mujahed Brigade of mujahedeen introduced this puritanical Saudi form of Islam during the 1992-1995 War that broke apart the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFROY). This study employs tenets of the English School of International Relations and utilizes a historical analytic approach to identify durable features of Bosnian Muslim religious economic activity, Bosnian education, and Bosnian political processes to answer the research question: what kind of influence has Salafi-Wahhabism had on BiH society and government since the end of the 1992-1995 Balkan War? Emergent evidence captured by these variables suggests a momentum of Salafi-Wahhabism influence is developing that may undercut the sovereignty of BiH and possibly impede its European Union membership bid. As a result of this rising Wahhabi influence in several facets of Bosnian society, the aggregate level of Islamism in the country is also likely increasing.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts

Level thesis:degree_level

masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Political Science

Department dc:contributor.department

Political Science

Grantor dc:publisher

Virginia Tech

Year dc:date.issued

2015

Author dc:creator

• Panos, Nicholas Christopher

Chairs dc:contributor.committeechair

• Pourchot, Georgeta V.
• Stivachtis, Yannis A.

Committee member dc:contributor.committeemember

• Newswander, Lynita K.

• Bosnia and Herzegovina
• International Society
• Wahhabi
• Extremism
• English School of International Relations
• Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Statement dc:rights

• In Copyright

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Dc Identifier Other

vt_gsexam:5042

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/52346