A Somali-American gas station manager from Minnesota, USA, has an innovative strategy to counter radicalisation at its very inception – using cartoons to reach out to kids. Mohamed Amin Ahmed has created a series of animated messages which use logical arguments and excerpts from the Quran to expose fallacies in extremist ideologies.

Average Mohamed, the central character in his videos, is a simple Muslim devotee who dispels misconceptions about Islam. He speaks on various issues such as identity, killing, slavery and freedom of speech. The idea is to take an average person who can represent the vast majority of Muslims around the world.

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The video above addresses a conflict that many Muslims may face in the West. It tries to guide young people in integrating the religious traditions followed at home with the differing world outside. Average Mohamed encourages young Muslims to be the bridge between the two worlds, giving them a better and broader sense of identity. “You do not need to pick,” he says, dismissing the claims of extremist groups.

Extremist organisations, especially the Islamic State, have been mobilising children at an unprecedented rate. The participation of children in major roles has, in fact, been widely highlighted by the groups themselves.

Moreover, the Internet has become a major tool for recruitment. According to a Huffington Post article, the Islamic State and its supporters are churning out at least 90,000 tweets a day, apart from the many videos that are posted regularly.

An effort like Ahmed’s, which uses the same platforms and educates the same audience with reasoning is a small but significant step in countering radicalisation.