Many people probably believe that anyone who plans a terrorist attack in which their own death is assured (i.e. a suicide bomb) is mentally suspect. And yet research has shown that most terrorists are as ‘normal’ as you or me. But are they?
Borealis is joined by Norwegian practitioner Atle Mesoy to discuss these matters.
If the ins and outs of terrorism, extremism, national security and public safety are of interest to you, subscribe to receive free content by former Canadian intelligence analyst and author Phil Gurski on these issues.
Canadian Intelligence Eh
In a world of multiple voices and opinions it can be very hard to know where to turn. One choice is to look to those who actually worked in counter-terrorism in the national security world. In these half-hour podcasts, 30-year Canadian intelligence veteran Phil Gurski is joined by a fascinating array of individuals with something meaningful to say about these issues as they provide insight into what they mean and what we need to do about them.
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About my guest Atle Mesoy
Atle is the founder of U-Turn, an Oslo-based NGO working to prevent violent extremism. U-Turn is based on research and fieldwork within terrorism and political violence and consists of experts from different backgrounds providing a holistic and critical approach to CVE (Countering Violent Extremism)

About the host Phil Gurski
Phil Gurski is the President and CEO of Borealis Threat and Risk Consulting Ltd. and Programme Director for the Security, Economics and Technology (SET) hub at the University of Ottawa’s Professional Development Institute (PDI). He worked as a senior strategic analyst at CSIS (Canadian Security Intelligence Service) from 2001-2015, specializing in violent Islamist-inspired homegrown terrorism and radicalisation.
Listen to more episodes:

The jihadi threat moves further into West Africa
Episode 343 – Is Cote d’Ivoire the next nation to fall to the scourge of Islamist extremism?…

Looks like the Taliban have made an enemy
Episode 342 – When you are as bad as the Taliban it should come as no surprise…

Iran and the Houthis and the war in the Persian Gulf
Episode 341 – A close relationship may be under some stress Iran really likes to sponsor Shia…

PTSD among our protectors needs to be addressed
Episode 340 – First responders and those who deal with bad actors are exposed to very serious…
