The course explores how democratic societies can counter multifaceted security threats—from the rise of ISIS, far-right extremism, and new technological challenges including AI, to recent escalations in the Middle East such as the October 7th Hamas attack on Israel—by examining both offline and online responses, particularly against domestic and transnational violent extremism. It evaluates historical and contemporary UK initiatives in counter-terrorism, scrutinizes the balance between security measures and civil rights, and investigates why terrorism takes root in democracies, including factors that drive extremism and political violence, while also assessing diverse strategies like emergency legislation, militarization, counter-terrorism financing, community policing, transitional justice, and peace-building initiatives. The course also delves into the roots and evolution of the Irish conflict—tracing the independence movement, the partition of Ireland, and subsequent sectarian violence—to illustrate how societal divisions and security challenges evolve, culminating with an exploration of current security landscapes and governmental responses in London.