In the rugged terrains of Pakistan's tribal belt, and increasingly in the digital corridors of our cities, extremist groups like the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) are running what is arguably one of the most sophisticated marketing campaigns of our time. They are not just peddling guns and violence - they are selling an idea, a myth, a cause. Their methods are psychological, symbolic and deeply emotive. And disturbingly effective.

Let us not fool ourselves. Extremist groups do not rise in a vacuum. They carefully curate a narrative that speaks to alienation, pain, and a deep sense of historical grievance. And in doing so, they market four powerful myths to disillusioned youth.

They glorify the past. The lost grandeur of the Islamic world - its empires, caliphates and conquests - is repackaged as a paradise lost, stolen by colonialism and corruption. This myth creates a romanticised sense of victimhood, where Muslims are always righteous but perpetually wronged. History becomes a blunt instrument to stoke resentment, not a mirror for introspection.........

© The Express Tribune