Paper Example on History of Terrorism

Introduction

Terrorism is not a twenty-first-century phenomenon. It is one of the ancient forms of human conflict. It has its roots in the early resistance and political movements. As such, the early terrorist organization was the Sicarii. They were a Jewish organization founded in the first century AD whose primary goal was to overthrow the Romans living in the Middle East (Roser, et al., 2013). Judas was a significant influence on the Sicarii. He was the leader of the Zealots and believed that the Jews should be ruled only by God and that armed resistance was necessary.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Unlike the Zealots, the Sicarii embattled other Jews they considered to be traitors to the cause. The techniques used by the Sicarii were described in the historian Josephus around 50 AD. They would disappear into the crowd carrying short daggers under their clothes which they used to stab their enemies. And when their enemies fell, the murderers would join in the indignation and through this behaviour, no one discovered their acts.

There are numerous other examples of terrorism in history before the modern terrorism of the twentieth century. An example of an early terrorist plot was when Guy Fawkes attempted to reinstate a Catholic monarch. This plot was motivated by religion though he failed in his motive. Another example of state terrorism is the Reign of Terror that took place during the French revolutions.

Modern Terrorism

In recent years, the use of terrorist activities to enhance a political cause has accelerated. As such, modern terrorism came into the limelight after the WWII with the increase of nationalist movements in the ancient empires of the European powers. These ancient anti-colonial movements recognized that terrorism has the capacity to generate both publicity and to influence global policies. The head of Centre of Security Studies at the University of Georgetown, Bruce Hoffman wrote that "the ability of these groups to rally external support out of their theatres of operation has taught a powerful to distressed people somewhere else. This development was the starting point of global terrorism in the 1960s.

Types of Terrorism

Today, it is normal for people to hear about terrorism and the first thing that comes to mind is Al-Qaeda or other Islamic radicals. While Islamic radicalism is the cause of certain terrorist activities, there exist other forms as well, all with their own features and challenges for policymakers. Typically, these types of terrorism intersect to define single terrorist organizations but are helpful in providing a way to differentiate the target groups and what motivates them. Highlighted below are some of the most common types of terrorism, their examples and countermeasures that can be employed to combat them.

State Terrorism

This the systematic use of terror by a government administration to control its citizens. In this case, terrorist acts are entirely carried out by the government of the day and not a sponsored by the non-governmental institution (Grothaus, n.d.).It is the novel form of terrorism. The French Revolution that took place in 1793 is often cited as the first instance of state terrorism. However, leaders have been plausibly using it for years to control their subjects.

Examples: The French Revolution mentioned above is the most prominent illustration, though state terrorism is widespread. Arguably, nearly every dictator in history has employed the use of state terrorism to control his or her people. A contemporary example is the use of violence by one Sadam Hussein against the Kurds or the conquest of democratic activists in Syria.

State Sponsored Terrorism

Some countries often resort to violence as a way to control their citizens. National government administrations have become accustomed to using terror to accomplish their objectives. In state-sponsored terrorism, the government deliberately uses terrorist organizations as a tool against other countries or group of people. In the case, the state supports the terrorists through funding, weapon provision, training as well as a sanctuary.

Example: Since the 1979 hostage crisis in Iran, one of the most significant trademarks of the Iranian government has been its customary use of terrorism against America and its associates worldwide and its connections to terrorist groups. Additionally, Iran has committed terrorist attacks by proxy through militias in Iraq, Syria, and the Gulf among others Moreover, Iran has a long terrorism history against the United States and other Western nations, carrying out bombings, kidnappings as well as hijackings.

Religious Terrorism

Terrorism can be driven by religious beliefs and protests. Notably, religious terrorism is dangerous because of the zeal of those practicing it and their will to sacrifice themselves for what they deem a worthy cause. Terrorists in this group are likely to use all techniques including suicide bombings. Regrettably, these actions are encouraged by religious teachings in order to validate this kind of self-sacrifice. AL-Qaeda is possibly the most known group that can be characterized as religious terrorists. Also, religious radicalism has been witnessed between the conflict of Catholic and Protestants in Ireland. In addition, religious terrorism is also seen in the Muslim and Hindu tensions in Pakistan as well as India.

Right Wing Terrorism

This type of terrorism is aimed at combating liberal administrations and to preserve outdated social orders. It is normally characterized by Territorial Army and gangs. Many at times these group of terrorists is motivated and their aim is to marginalize the minority group within a country. Examples include the Klux Klux Klan and the Neo-Fascists terrorist groups. Such groups are inexistent not only in the United States but also in other countries such as Germany.

Left Wing Terrorism

This group of terrorists seek to take-over capitalist democracies and created socialist administrations in their place. The intention is to overthrow the current system in order to get rid of class distinction. While they are still in existent, this group of terrorists is not as common as they were during the Cold War. Examples include the Turkish Revolutionary Liberation Party and the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces.

Pathological Terrorism

Pathological terrorism describes a group of terrorists who use terror strategies just for the sheer joy of petrifying other people. These group of terrorists often operate alone and are not considered true terrorists since they lack clearly defined political motives. This kind of terrorism is often witnessed in school shootings and other serial killing scenarios. An example is the shooting that happened at Columbine High School. They sought to use violence in order to satisfy their own pleasure.

Issue-oriented Terrorism

This kind of terrorism is done for purposes of advancing specific issues. Many at times, these are social concerns or issues that are environmental related. Examples include the attacks on abortion clinics and whaling ships. One of the best-documented examples of this group of terrorists is the Environmental Liberation Front because of their terrorist attacks on ski resorts and logging operations.

Separatist Terrorism

The aim of these group of terrorists is to fragment a nation and establish a new state. It is common with the minority group within a country who desire their own usually because of marginalization from the majority group. An example is the Tamil Tigers found in Sri Lanka.

Narco-Terrorism

The term is used to describe an organization that gains fund by selling drugs. These groups can resort to violence to make the sale of their drugs easier. Examples are the Mexican cartels who have killed numerous people resulting in a mass burial. These acts of violence are meant to intimidate the public to avoid cooperating with the authorities. During this reign, Pablo Escobar assassinated some of the Colombian politicians as a means to intimidate the government to stop meddling in his drug trafficking activities.

Terrorism Picture

The dreadful acts in the nineties are what shaped the world in which we live in. The 2001 bombing that happened in the World Trade Center in New York has cast a long shadow over the beginning of the twenty-first century. So much that we can comprehend in the present times can be traced back to that horrendous act. The most recent happening of the nineties looks back at some of those terrorist attacks and how they shaped the terrorism concept.

1993 World Trade Center US Bombing

Nearly eight years before the WTC towers were hit by stolen planes, the tower was the site for another invasion by terrorists. A truck bomb exploded beneath the North Tower killing six people and injuring more than a thousand. Though the bomb did not cause as much harm as Al-Qaeda had envisioned, their intention was to collapse both towers. This was a clear indication that the acts of Islamic radicals would occur on American soil.

1995 Oklahoma Bombing

The nineties witnessed a rapid increase in the fundamental right who were driven by their mistrust of the government resulting in the greatest acts of domestic terrorism in the history of the United States. The attack at the city of Oklahoma killed one hundred and sixty-eight people and injured hundreds more. It was quite shocking to the U.S since it was done by one of their own. This would not the last time American citizens took the matter into their own hands.

1996 Centennial Olympic Stadium Attack

Just when Ted Kaczynski was arrested in 1996, another long-running terrorist Eric Rudolph was responsible for series of attacks at the Olympic Games in Atlanta. Driven by an anti-abortion and anti-homosexual agenda, he made it clear that the days of terrorist alignment were long gone.

1998 Simultaneous attacks at two US Embassies

On 7th August 1998, truck bombs detonated at the Tanzanian and Kenyan U.S embassies. Orchestrated by the terrorist group Al Qaeda, the attacks were part of an arranged effort that crossed international borders and was managed by men like Osama bin Laden.

1999 Columbine High School Massacre

That decade came to an end with a school attack that established that not all terrorist actions are politically driven. The attack by teenagers on their fellow students and staff members is still unclear. Given that their initial plan was to plant homemade pipe bombs that did not detonate, they still qualify to be called terrorists. The definition of terrorism has currently expanded to include non-political actions of murder.

Terrorism Regime

Introduction

In its broadest sense, terrorism is the deliberate use of violence to instil fear among groups of people with the aim of achieving political, religious or financial objectives. As terror attacks often occur without prior warning, people worldwide are encouraged to stay vigilant and take proactive measures to increase their security, particularly while traveling. Before planning any kind of trip, it is vital to read travel warning and alerts on specific pages. This is because terrorist organizations are committed to attacking citizens around the world. These extremists may resolve to use conventional or non-conventional arms to strike people (US Department of State, n.d.).However, many of them are progressively using less sophisticated techniques to effectively attack crowds. Some of these target places include high profile events such as political rallies and celebratory get-togethers, places of worship, shopping malls, learning institutions, hotels and holiday resorts among others.

Terrorism has been practiced by different institutions, including political organizations, nationalistic groups, religious groups as well as revolutionaries just to mention a few. Because of the inherent ferocity associated with it, terrorism as a term has develop...