Understanding and Preventing Radicalisation in European Prisons Webinar

Introduction

Radicalisation in prisons can continue to pose an evolving challenge for prisons across Europe. While past concerns focused largely on jihadist-inspired extremism, new and emerging radical movements—including violent far-right and left groups, eco-extremist factions, and other sovereign-citizen/anti-state networks—are increasingly visible. These movements exploit polarisation and echo chambers, making prisons potential incubators or networking spaces if left unaddressed.

Moderated by EuroPris’ Executive Director, Gustav Tallving, and presented by three experts in the field, this webinar provided an up-to-date overview of radicalisation threats within European prisons and explored how prison services can identify, prevent, and respond to these risks. It also highlighted the work of the EU Knowledge Hub on Prevention of Radicalisation (formerly the Radicalisation Awareness Network – RAN), which serves as a central platform for knowledge-sharing, practitioner support, and evidence-based policy guidance.

The key focus areas were:

Present the current landscape of radicalisation in European prisons, highlighting both persistent and newly emerging threats.
Share practical approaches and tools used by prison services to detect early warning signs, assess risk, and manage radicalised or at-risk individuals.
A focus on building international cooperation and capacity – example from the Holistic Radicalisation Prevention Initiative (HOPE).
Showcase how the EU Knowledge Hub on Prevention of Radicalisation operates and how they are supporting Member States in strengthening prison-based prevention and rehabilitation strategies.

In case of questions, please contact the EuroPris secretariat at [email protected]

Speakers

Nadya Radkovska:
Since 2004, Ms Nadya Radkovska has worked for the General Directorate “Execution of Sentences” in Bulgaria, initially on the introduction of probation. In 2020, she became Commissioner and Head of International Cooperation and Staff Training, and Chair of the Council for Penological Co-operation (PC-CP) at the Council of Europe, contributing to key guidelines such as the European Prison Rules and CM/Rec(2018)8 on Restorative Justice. She has participated in UNODC missions across Central Asia and Iraq on prison radicalisation and serves as a Council of Europe consultant in Moldova and the Western Balkans. Elected to the ICPA Board of Directors in 2024 and the CEP Expert Group on violent extremism, Ms Radkovska was appointed Chair of the EU Knowledge Hub’s Thematic Panel on Prison Rehabilitation and Reintegration in 2025. She is also an Associate Researcher at the Military Academy’s Centre for the Study of Extremism and Terrorism in Sofia.
Dr. Emanuel Banutai:
Dr. Emanuel Banutai is a Senior Official, Head of International Cooperation at the Slovenian Prison Administration, Slovenian coordinator. He is an experienced professional with demonstrated history of 20+ years working in the Criminal Justice and Security industry at national and international level (internal affairs, justice, prison, probation & academia). He is also a short-term international consultant to CoE (Enhancing Penitentiary Capacities in Addressing Radicalisation in Prisons in Western Balkans under Horizontal Facility II for the Western Balkans and Türkiye 2019 – 2022 among six WB Beneficiaries; AL, BiH, KOS*, MN, NM and SRB | Preparing Needs Assessment Report on the training needs of the prison staff working with the violent extremist prisoners (VEPs) in BiH) and UNODC (Capacity Building of P&P Officers on Management of High-risk Offenders including VEPs & FTFs as well as their Post-release Supervision in Kazakhstan). He is the Slovenian coordinator within the international HOPE project (Holistic Radicalisation Prevention Initiative), led by IPS – Innovative Prison Systems (Portugal). Being a member of (former) RAN WGs Prison & Probation and RAN Rehabilitation, he is now currently member of EU Knowledge Hub on Prevention of Radicalisation (TP 2 – Prisons, Rehabilitation and Reintegration) as well as member of Slovenian Inter-Sectoral WG on Radicalisation Prevention.
Torben Adams:
Torben Adams is Head of Division at the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs in Bremen, Germany, where he leads initiatives on radicalisation prevention (CPVE), international cooperation, and training for correctional and probation officers. He also serves as Germany’s national contact point for correctional matters. Starting his career as a correctional officer in 1997, Mr Adams later became Governor of a juvenile detention facility. Since 2002, he has worked internationally with the EU and UN as a team leader, expert, and mission evaluator across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. He co-chaired the EU’s Radicalisation Awareness Network (RAN) from 2017 and served as a scientific expert to the Council of Europe’s Penological Council (PC-CP). From 2020 to 2024, he directed the UNODC’s global Returning Foreign Fighters in Detention Programme. Mr Adams is also a Human Resources Expert within the European Penitentiary Training Academy Network (EPTA), supporting staff development and capacity building across Europe. His work focuses on strengthening correctional systems through training, cooperation, and innovation in rehabilitation and security.

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Introduction

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