Why Have Turkey and Saudi Arabia Taken Different Paths on Religious Extremism?

Turkey and Saudi Arabia have followed very different religious and political paths. Saudi Arabia’s historic alliance with Wahhabi/Salafi clerics, its role in funding religious institutions abroad, and its conservative legal tradition are often discussed in debates about the spread of extremist ideas. Turkey, by contrast, has a secular constitutional tradition and a state-controlled religious authority, Diyanet. Its dominant Hanafi-Maturidi heritage is often viewed as more open to contextual interpretation, while official sermons and mosque administration are closely regulated. However, it is inaccurate to suggest that Islamist terrorism has been absent from Turkey. The country has faced attacks and recruitment linked to groups such as ISIS, alongside other forms of political violence. Nigeria’s experience with religious extremism also has multiple causes, including governance failures, poverty, insecurity, regional politics and extremist ideology. Can stronger religious education, better governance and credible counter-extremism efforts help Nigeria resist violent interpretations of religion?

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