Strategic Communications in FTF Repatriation & Reintegration: Guiding Principles for Policymakers & Practitioners

Abstract

With the recent surge in the number of countries willing to repatriate and reintegrate their citizens from camps in Iraq and Syria, policymakers and practitioners around the world are revisiting their approaches to the management of foreign terrorist fighter (FTF) returnees and their families. FTF management policy and practice has significantly evolved in the last decade driven by a growing body of empirical research and a greater awareness of best practices. Despite these advancements, the role of strategic communications in FTF repatriation and reintegration is too-often absent or, at best, underappreciated, by scholars, policymakers, and practitioners alike. Yet, interviews with policymakers and practitioners in this field reveals that they are often directly (e.g. as spokespeople) and/or indirectly (e.g. advising to public figures) engaged in public messaging. Without appropriate policy cover and practical guidance, public messaging risks becoming an inadvertent amplifier of policy missteps, public misunderstandings, and malign influence activities. This policy paper argues for an approach to strategic communication in FTF management that is multidimensional, integrated, adaptable, and crosscutting. To these ends, it offers a framework of guiding principles for strategic communication in FTF management that is relevant for both policymakers in government and practitioners in non-government roles.