Tackling Inappropriate Use of Islamic Literature by Extremists in Prison

Abstract

This article proposes a new approach to “tackling the availability and source of extremist literature,” one of the recommendations published in the Acheson Review in August 2016. Apart from the contents of sections 6.13 and 7.13 of the Prison public protection policy framework (PPPPF), much of the implementation policy, guidance and assessments relating to banned materials are classified as “official”/“sensitive” and are therefore not discussed here. Instead, the article proposes a fresh approach that combines specialist Islamic librarianship and scholarship with experience in working in a high-security prison, as a chaplain, while remaining, at the same time, focused on safety and security

Keywords: Islamic Literature for prisoners - Counter-extremism - Muslim prisoners - Muslim chaplains working in prisons

Introduction

The urgency of finding practical solutions to the influence of Muslim extremists on fellow Muslims in prisons was highlighted in May 2025 when Prof Ian Acheson warned that “The proximity of a murder of a prison officer on duty is closer […] than at any time in the last 10 years.” Just over three months later, that prediction almost came true, except that the target was not an officer.

In addressing the need for solutions, this article proposes a new approach to “tackling the availability and source of extremist literature,” one of the recommendations published in the Acheson Review in August 2016. In doing so, it avoids going over what has been attempted since the review. With the exception of what appears in sections 6.13 and 7.13 of the Prison public protection policy framework (PPPPF), much of the implementation policy, guidance and the assessments relating to banned materials retain an “official – sensitive” classification and are hence inappropriate to discuss in an open-access journal. Instead, the article proposes a fresh approach founded on decades of professional experience that combines specialist Islamic librarianship and scholarship with a high-security prison chaplain’s vocational drive and pastoral responsibility to protect others from falling into error, whilst remaining focused on safety and security.