Terrorism: The Complex Definition and Its Impact Worldwide - Research Paper

Introduction

Although there is no clear or universal definition of terrorism, the term is used to refer to the application of methods of measures that are meant to create fear through violence or coercion with the aim of achieving political or ideological goals. This has mainly been used as the basic definition of acts of violence perpetrated by groups in different parts of the world, especially after the 9/11/2001 attack on the world trade centre by the al-Qaeda. However, there are many perspectives to tourism as can be gathered from the vast range of research conducted on the topic. Terror organization can be evaluated based on their motive/motivation, operational complexity, strength and strategy adopted. Different problems that arise in society create opportunities on which terrorist organizations thrive. These conditions/problems include poverty, religious conflicts, political disputes, ethnic/tribal conflicts, alienation, corruption, among other issues. Terrorist/militant bodies use the issues as a justification for their actions and to attract more followers and fighters. However, it has been argued that most of the times, the problems/challenges/conflicts are created by terrorist organizations for their benefit. The revolutionary forces of Colombia(FARC) and ISIS are examples of military outfits that have been labelled as a terrorist organization by various security and law enforcement bodies throughout the world. FARC was listed by the united states as a foreign terrorist organization in October 1997; the group is also on the list of foreign terrorist organizations in the European union list2. The group has since been removed from the list of EU FTOs in 2017 after it disarmed following a peace agreement with the government of Colombia was made in 2016. On the other hand, ISIS has been the radar of international and domestic security agencies since 2004. The group has since been designated as inactive, although there is widespread speculation that the group is still active and seeking to regroup.

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There are many differences and similarities between the two militant organizations in terms of history, leadership, operational strategy, weaponry, financing, among others. This essay aims to compare FARC and ISIS based on the aspects mentioned above and to suggest the best methods of countering terrorist threats.

FARC

The revolutionary forces of Columbia, commonly abbreviated as FARC was designed and founded in 1964-1966 to be a military wing of the communist part of Columbia. The membership of the group that has been fighting the national government of Columbia for more than four decades now stands at 18000 and is currently led by Manuel Marulanda. The central political ideology that the militant group adopts is the Marxist Leninist goals and also uses the liberation of southern America by Simon bolivar from Spanish colonialists in t5he 1800s. The main reason why the guerrilla group was formed was to protect the rights of the rural civilians after the Columbian civil war between 1948 and 19584. The group's initial aim was to overthrow the national government. This fete required a lot of financial resources for the supplies and connections. This is the reason why group ensured that it controlled several activities such as drug trafficking, kidnapping, money laundering and extortion, and also illegal mining operations.

History of FARC

The combined efforts of Manuel Marulanda, then a member of the Columbia Communist Party (PCC), and Jacobo Arenas led to the formation of a guerilla military group known as the revolutionary armed forces of Columbia, translated from the Spanish name Las Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarios de Colombia (FARC). This was prompted by the decade long civil war, a period that was commonly referred to as la Violencia. After the civil war, members of the Columbian Communist Party who felt that the national government had neglected them rallied members of their communities who made settlements across the countryside. The group led by Marulanda settled in Marquietalia, Tolima. Their goal was to ensure they were in a position to voice their concerns to the national government and ensure that they are followed.

The armed conflict between FARC and the Columbian government began in May 27th 1964 when the government armed forces attacked Marulanda's camp prompting the 48 members of the militant group to fight back. On July 20th, the same year, all the guerilla communities united and together they declared themselves the southern bloc. The bloc jointly advocated for land reforms and sought to defend the rights of its followers in the rural areas against oppression by the national government. The guerilla group continued to expand through the better part of the 1960s to the 1980s. When the group still at its initial stages of expansion, the fighters mainly focused on ambushing military convoys and raiding farms of those who did not support them5. Their main goal was to seize crucial military equipment, tools, looting foodstuffs, taking hostages and also punishing informers. The FARC ensured that all its activities were constrained around the region in which it operated rather than other economic hubs of the country. The group's strategy of limiting its insurgencies to one geographical region was meant to ensure its survival in the face of the implementation of stricter means of eliminating them by the government.

FARC started organizing itself into a military unit later in the decade when its started wearing military uniforms and started enforcing strict laws that ensured certain crimes such as banditry, betrayal, and crimes of passion were severely punished to discourage other fighters from committing them again in the future4. This is also similar to the strategy of the ISIS that ensured strict rules and regulations were set up to ensure fighters obeyed orders and conducted themselves in the expected code. Those who were found in violation of the laws and regulations received severe punishment to serve as a warning to potential violators. Punishment involved death through decapitation or hanging, incarceration or detention, dismissal from the militant groups among other punitive measures.

History of ISIS

One cannot understand how ISIS came to be without delving into the history of al-Qaeda and how they relate. The story of al-Qaeda begins with the invasion of Afghanistan by the Soviet Union in 1979. The Muslim world was able to rally around 20,000 fighters from other countries to help them in their bid of fending off the Russian army. It is during this time of resistance that Osama bin Laden met other Islamist radicals, who would later become the principal founders of al-Qaeda. The Soviets withdrew their forces in 1988 but left a weak puppet government that could not withstand the ferocity of the attacks from the al-Qaeda allied jihadists. Later in 1989, Ahmad Fadhil Nazzalal-Khalaylah, a Jordanian national joined the fighting in Afghanistan. The Jordan who would then become known as Abu Musab al Zarqawi founded the terrorist group ISIS, that has wreaked havoc across the world.

According to Anne Weaver, an Atlantic magazine author, Zarqawi was not a stout Islamist when he travelled to Afghanistan in 1989. He was indoctrinated by a man named Sheikh Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi7. An individual who was renown across the world as a proponent of Islamist violence and jihadism. After his indoctrination, Zarqawi continued building his network of Islamists before he even met bin laden. The difference between Zarqawi and laden is that they both came from different backgrounds. Zarqawi did not have a university degree like bin laden and came from a poor background. Also, most followers of Zarqawi were people from poor backgrounds without proper education, while those of bin laden came from middle-class backgrounds. Another notable difference between the two Islamists is that Osama did not agree with Zarqawi's perception of takfir. Takfir justifies the execution of other Muslims by Muslims if they are found guilty of heresy.

Zarqawi later returned to in 1999 to form Jama'at Al-Tawid Wal-Jihad, a military group that was composed of Sunni Muslim fighters. The group gained more popularity after it pledged its allegiance to Osama bin Laden, and was renamed Alqaeda in Iraq (AQI) in 2004. The group recruited many of its fighters from the large number of militants who had been left jobless and vulnerable after the united states and allied forces disbanded the national army after the ouster of Saddam Hussein. The army which was predominantly composed of Sunni fighters worked well with AQI goal of becoming a renown Sunni military group. The militant group had gained enough power such that by 2004, the mujahideen shura council which was comprised of jihadists from different parts of the region declared Iraq an Islamic state by the year 2006.

Intending to build an Islamic state outside of Iraq, the militant group sent the al Nusra front to fight in the Syrian civil war. The outcome of this was an increase in their dominance over regions inhabited by Sunni Muslims. However, the power struggle within al-Qaeda hampered the ability of IS to capitalize on what it had achieved throughout the region. This prompted the group to declare itself independent from al-Qaeda in 2013. They declared a caliphate and installed Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi as the caliph.

ISIS Ideology

From a layman's point of view, the approach adopted by ISIS in the interpretation of the guidelines from the Quran regarding Salafi-jihadism looks indistinguishable from that of al-Qaeda(AQ). However, there are some differences and similarities in their ideologies. Both militant groups agree that the Islamic State and Islam as a religion are intertwined. That governance of the state and policymaking should all be based upon the strict interpretation of the sharia law. The difference occurs in several issues related to Aqidah and Manhaj. AQ differed with ISIS regarding the way the latter was interpreting takfir (ex-communication of fellow Muslims on allegations of heresy), the approach adopted by ISIS in the process of establishing the caliphate, and the widespread use of end-time narratives. These are the main reasons why ISIS and AQ split.

Sunni Muslims who were predominant in ISIS despised Shia Muslims because they claim that their religious practices bear no precedence from prophet Mohammad. Zarqawi proliferated the use of takfir against Shia Muslims terming the Muslim faction as an innovation in the religion. He further claimed that the fact that the faction's alteration of the Quran is equivalent to the denial of its initial perfection. The leaders of the ISIS despised common Shiite practices such as self-flagellation and worshipping at the graves of imams citing the fact that such practices have no basis in the Quran. According to the ideology of the militant group, all Shia Muslims and leaders of predominantly countries who promote man-made laws above sharia law should be excommunicated or killed because they defy the will of Allah.

The ideology of takfir is the motivating factor behind all the operations of ISIS. Although initially, the group's fighters rallied together to resist the domination of foreign powers such as the Soviet Union and the united states, the political motivations of the groups have become more complex. The group aims to cleanse the world through the killing of all people who do not follow the laws of Islam as provided in the holy Quran. ISIS political strategy involved expanding its territory all around Iraq, extending to Africa. Many people who were considered infidels by the militant group lost their lives. The group then spread the propaganda on social media to instil fear in public and to force some nations to meet their demands. This was all meant to make the extent of their slaughter known to the world. From...