Islamic Activism in Exile: Reconfiguring Political Engagement Across Transnational Arenas

Abstract

How does Islamic activism transform at the transnational level? Drawing on multi-sited fieldwork in Europe and North America, this article examines the trajectories of Islamist activists in exile and the arenas through which they sustain political engagement from abroad. Adopting an arena-based approach, it identifies four hybrid arenas in which Islamist-linked players interact with secular actors, organizations, and policy networks. Across these arenas, activists frequently participate in causes not explicitly framed in Islamic terms, including anti-authoritarian protests, humanitarian action, democratic advocacy, and policy debate. Rather than signaling ideological dilution, such engagement reflects processes through which earlier Islamist political commitments are translated and adapted to the normative frameworks of transnational civic environments. The findings show that exile-based activism enables Islamist actors to sustain ideological continuity while reworking their repertoires of engagement within hybrid arenas that target political transformation not only in their countries of origin but also in host countries and transnationally.