Roots of Hate: Fascist and Fundamentalist Narratives & Actors in South-West Asia and North Africa Regions

In this mapping, we see fascist and fundamentalist narratives act as iterations that harness economic crises, neoliberal policies and social fractures to cement their fascist and fundamentalist power. Militarism, as it manifests across SWANA, is not only the overt presence of armed forces but a pervasive ideology that infiltrates every facet of life, intertwining with national identity and economic survival. It transforms the state into a perpetual war machine, justifying its existence through the continuous production of enemies, both within and beyond its borders. This militarized logic and narrative extend into the civilian sphere, where the lines between governance and warfare blur, turning populations into both subjects of control and instruments of violence, all in service of maintaining a homogenized, compliant society. At the same time, we see digital fascism operating as the algorithmic extension of state power and the invisible hand that shapes state narratives, turning data into weapons of social control, and making the machinery of repression both flexible and invasive.

This mapping is designed to support movements in their political interventions. It is just the starting point. We hope this report will be of help to movements that have been developing brave, solid and collective strategies that confront these threats head-on, offering us all a vision for collective liberation.

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About the researcher

Nada Wahba is the co-director of the Anti-Racism Movement (ARM), based in Beirut . She holds an MA in Social Anthropology of Development from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and has over a decade of experience working in local and international civil society organizations in both programmatic and research capacities. Her research interests lie at the intersection between gender and economic justice, anti-rights movements, and sexual and reproductive health and rights.

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