The recent terror attack on a Christmas market in Berlin, where a 23-year-old Pakistani asylum seeker was wrongly arrested, will have major spillover effects on the refugee community in Germany, as well as in wider Europe. We will have to be careful of, and equip ourselves against, the risk of “reciprocal radicalisation”, also known as ‘”cumulative extremism”. Reciprocal radicalisation occurs when right-wing extremist groups and Islamist organisations feed off each other, occasionally escalating into violence against what each group perceives as the “other”.

The space in which reciprocal radicalisation occurs is most clear when we examine each group’s attitude towards refugees. Both Islamist extremist groups and far right groups benefit from the “refugees as terrorists” conspiracy theory. For Islamist extremists, refugees are traitors for leaving a Muslim “state” or country (“dar al-Islam”) to escape to the “dar al-kufr” or “the land of infidels”. Propaganda released by Isis regularly advocates for the punishment and abuse of traitors who have left the “caliphate”. Any refugees trapped in countries of first refuge and exhausted by the political institutions that fail to protect them will find their bad experiences deserved in the eyes of extremists.

Moreover, right-wing groups use the graphic images and videos released by groups such as Isis, which can depict children committing beheadings or women being abused, to justify why refugees are not welcome. This can spiral into violent protests against immigrants or near refugee camps. A key example of this is the gunman who shot three at an Islamic Centre in Zurich, which came shortly after the attack in Berlin. Eyewitnesses reported that the man shouted for those praying to “go back to where they came from” before opening fire.

Any violence against refugees by far right groups is then re-absorbed by Islamist extremists as a justification for why people escaping the “caliphate” will be severely punished for doing so, and this creates mutually reinforcing cycles of tension and extreme violence. In both cases, refugees are rebuked and exploited for crimes they have not committed, and do not want to be associated with.

Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Show all 18 1 /18 Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Several people have been killed after a lorry drove into crowds at a Christmas market in Berlin REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch Berlin Christmas market lorry attack 'At least nine' people have been killed and more than 50 injured. AP Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Emergency Services rush a Berlin market victim to an ambulance Associated Press Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Police cordoned off the square at Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church following the incident REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Rescue workers inspect the lorry that crashed into a Christmas market close to the Kaiser Wilhelm memorial church in Berlin EPA Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Emergency crews inspect the lorry that ploughed into a Berlin Christmas market, killing at least nine people AFP Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Fire crews attend the scene of the attack AFP/Getty Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Armed police secure the site of a lorry attack at a Christmas market in Berlin REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Crushed debris is visible beneath the wheels of the vehicle REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack An injured man is pushed to an ambulance REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Medics attend an injured person after the lorry attack which killed at least nine and injured more than 50 people AFP/Getty Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Firefighters examine the lorry which was rammed into a Berlin Christmas market REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack A person is carried into an ambulance REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack View of the lorry that crashed into a Christmas market in Berlin, killing at least nine and injuring at least 50 people AFP/Getty Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Rescue workers push a person on a stretcher to an ambulance Getty Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Firefighters assess the damage after the lorry rammed the Christmas market, killing 'at least nine', and injuring more than 50 people AP Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Firefighters stand beside a toppled Christmas tree at the site of the suspected terrorist attack in a Berlin Christmas market AP Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Damaged stalls at the scene of the incident at a Berlin Christmas market where at least nine people have been killed EPA

Last week, a 12-year-old boy was arrested for his second attempt to detonate a bomb in another Christmas market in Western Germany. Although of Iraqi descent, the child is German, and we must therefore be careful not to stigmatise entire communities rather than focus on the background factors, such as youth and vulnerability, that might make an individual susceptible to joining violent extremist networks.

In the case of radicalisation, prevention is easier than cure. It is important to safeguard young and vulnerable individuals from extremist rhetoric, whether it is far right hatred or Islamist extremist conspiracy. To do this, we must raise awareness of such content and its reinforcing nature amongst frontline workers and practitioners working with refugees.

For refugee youth, practitioners must focus on potential smuggling networks where juveniles can be exploited or radicalised. There must also be educational content freely available for, and accessible to, refugees to teach them how to oppose and be resilient to extremist content.

Berlin's Muslim community sends message of peace and solidarity after Christmas market attack

For host communities, the focus must be on messaging based on facts and figures, not conspiracy theories, as well as empowering local actors to integrate others, rather than alienate them. This will create an environment where grievances and concerns can be aired in an open and non-hostile way. It is only through inclusive communication and interaction that we can highlight similarities between refugee communities and their host societies, without going to extremes.