what is terrorism essay

Terrorism Essay for Students and Teacher

500+ words essay on terrorism essay.

Terrorism is an act, which aims to create fear among ordinary people by illegal means. It is a threat to humanity. It includes person or group spreading violence, riots, burglaries, rapes, kidnappings, fighting, bombings, etc. Terrorism is an act of cowardice. Also, terrorism has nothing to do with religion. A terrorist is only a terrorist, not a Hindu or a Muslim.

Types of Terrorism

Terrorism is of two kinds, one is political terrorism which creates panic on a large scale and another one is criminal terrorism which deals in kidnapping to take ransom money. Political terrorism is much more crucial than criminal terrorism because it is done by well-trained persons. It thus becomes difficult for law enforcing agencies to arrest them in time.

Terrorism spread at the national level as well as at international level. Regional terrorism is the most violent among all. Because the terrorists think that dying as a terrorist is sacred and holy, and thus they are willing to do anything. All these terrorist groups are made with different purposes.

Causes of Terrorism

There are some main causes of terrorism development or production of large quantities of machine guns, atomic bombs, hydrogen bombs, nuclear weapons, missiles, etc. rapid population growth, Politics, Social, Economic problems, dissatisfaction of people with the country’s system, lack of education, corruption, racism, economic inequality, linguistic differences, all these are the major elements of terrorism, and terrorism flourishes after them. People use terrorism as a weapon to prove and justify their point of view. The riots among Hindus and Muslims are the most famous but there is a difference between caste and terrorism.

The Effects Of Terrorism

Terrorism spreads fear in people, people living in the country feel insecure because of terrorism. Due to terrorist attacks, millions of goods are destroyed, the lives of thousands of innocent people are lost, animals are also killed. Disbelief in humanity raises after seeing a terrorist activity, this gives birth to another terrorist. There exist different types of terrorism in different parts of the country and abroad.

Today, terrorism is not only the problem of India, but in our neighboring country also, and governments across the world are making a lot of effort to deal with it. Attack on world trade center on September 11, 2001, is considered the largest terrorist attack in the world. Osama bin Laden attacked the tallest building in the world’s most powerful country, causing millions of casualties and death of thousands of people.

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Terrorist Attacks in India

India has suffered several terrorist attacks which created fear among the public and caused huge destruction. Here are some of the major terrorist attacks that hit India in the last few years: 1991 – Punjab Killings, 1993 – Bombay Bomb Blasts, RSS Bombing in Chennai, 2000 – Church Bombing, Red Fort Terrorist Attack,2001- Indian Parliament Attack, 2002 – Mumbai Bus Bombing, Attack on Akshardham Temple, 2003 – Mumbai Bombing, 2004 – Dhemaji School Bombing in Assam,2005 – Delhi Bombings, Indian Institute of Science Shooting, 2006 – Varanasi Bombings, Mumbai Train Bombings, Malegaon Bombings, 2007 – Samjhauta Express Bombings, Mecca Masjid Bombing, Hyderabad Bombing, Ajmer Dargah Bombing, 2008 – Jaipur Bombings, Bangalore Serial Blasts, Ahmedabad Bombings, Delhi Bombings, Mumbai Attacks, 2010 – Pune Bombing, Varanasi Bombing.

The recent ones include 2011 – Mumbai Bombing, Delhi Bombing, 2012 – Pune Bombing, 2013 – Hyderabad Blasts, Srinagar Attack, Bodh Gaya Bombings, Patna Bombings, 2014 – Chhattisgarh Attack, Jharkhand Blast, Chennai Train Bombing, Assam Violence, Church Street Bomb Blast, Bangalore, 2015 – Jammu Attack, Gurdaspur Attack, Pathankot Attack, 2016 – Uri Attack, Baramulla Attack, 2017 – Bhopal Ujjain Passenger Train Bombing, Amarnath Yatra Attack, 2018 Sukma Attack, 2019- Pulwama attack.

Agencies fighting Terrorism in India

Many police, intelligence and military organizations in India have formed special agencies to fight terrorism in the country. Major agencies which fight against terrorism in India are Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), National Investigation Agency (NIA).

Terrorism has become a global threat which needs to be controlled from the initial level. Terrorism cannot be controlled by the law enforcing agencies alone. The people in the world will also have to unite in order to face this growing threat of terrorism.

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528 Terrorism Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

⁉️ how to write a terrorism essay: do’s and don’ts, 🏆 best terrorism topic ideas & essay examples, 🥇 most interesting terrorism topics to write about, ⚡ shocking terrorism essay topics, 📌 simple & easy terrorism essay titles, 👍 good essay topics on terrorism, 💡 interesting topics to write about terrorism, ❓ terrorism essay questions.

Current-day problems, from global warming to human rights, continue to be a topical subject, urging students to address acute issues.

However, this relatability means that you, as an essay writer, may find yourself faced with conflicting facts and circumstances, which your inherent bias may affect.

Thus, a terrorism essay becomes not merely an academic endeavor, but an attempt to immerse yourself in contemporary issues with a multitude of opinions.

Research and outline your subject beforehand. This process will not only save your time but also help you structure your thoughts and arguments coherently.
Use tools, such as topic sentences and brainstorming techniques, in the prewriting phase of your paper. Doing so will help you understand how you would like to develop your central theme.
Start compiling a bibliography early on. When many different viewpoints exist, creating a structured argument in favor of a particular approach may require a wide array of supporting book and journal titles.
Give a historical overview of your issue. For example, if you are writing about global terrorism, then it is apparent that a worldwide network of violent radicals did not come into existence overnight. Acknowledge and explain the origins of your assigned issue.
Read other’s sample essays. This action will help you gain a better understanding of what works and what does not in terrorism essay topics.
Use terrorism essay quotations. Since this is a contemporary issue, then there are bound to be many people involved in activities to counter terrorism, survivors of attacks, and general onlookers. Utilize their perspectives and memories to give your essay a unique touch.
Remain respectful throughout your paper. Recognize the gravity of your essay and understand the privilege you have when writing about ideas that you may not have experienced.
Write your essay with no references. Despite watching TV coverages, listening to critics, and reading tabloids, none of us are experts on war or terrorism. Always cite the sources of your information to uphold the integrity of your work.
Plagiarize from the work of others. While you may read essays written by your peers or those that are available online, directly copying from them is an academic offense.
Go off point. If you are writing about the history of Al Qaeda, do not disintegrate your work into a how to stop terrorism essay. However, you may give some points in your conclusion on how the overall situation may be amended.
Write controversial terrorism essay titles. While your title should be catchy and grab your readers’ attention, you should not resort to cheap tactics to make your headings memorable by shock value. Remember that your audience may perceive this tactic as making light of your subject, thus destroying your hard-earned credibility.
Try to advocate for a pro-terrorist approach. While it is a sound idea to subvert some essay topics, this is not the case in such papers and your work should always be against terrorism.
Integrate examples from unreliable sources. While readers are often less informed than the essay’s writer is, the opposite may also occur. Therefore, always check the facts, which you include in your work, to avoid embarrassment.
Draw out your essay to stress the seriousness of the subject. Use your instructor’s specified word count as a measure for how much you should write. Your readers will not appreciate a long-winded paper, as they are hoping instead to get a quick and concise introduction to an important problem.

Want to get more inspiration on terrorism essay topics? Head over to IvyPanda!

“To Any Would-Be Terrorists” by Naomi Shihab Nye While trying to address the extremist audience, the writer resorted to the strong methods of personification to be able to talk straight to each reading the letter. Despite the character of the text, the writer […]
Cause and Effect of Terrorism There are several effects of terrorism that are destructive in the nature. The effects are destruction of properties, loss of lives and decline in the economy of a country.
Analyzing the Concept of Terrorism It is worth noting that a clear definition of terrorism is mostly subjective and is rarely objective due to the fact that it is an act of political violence.
Terror in “The Dumb Waiter” Play by Harold Pinter Pinter exemplifies the existential view of the absurd and the non-existence in The Dumb Waiter in the same manner as that employed in Waiting for Godot by Beckett.
An Analysis of Terrorist Activities The main terrorist attack of al Qaeda was the 9/11 Bombing of the World Trade Centers, claiming the lives of thousands of people and leading to the beginning of the War on Terror.
Human and Technical Intelligence in Countering Terrorism The application of technical intelligence for the public good has to prioritise on several factors including human welfare in assisting the authorities in detecting and combating terrorism.
Eco-Defense and Kinds of Ecological Terrorism Two basic practices of tree spiking exist; spiking the tree at the bottom of the tree trunk, and spiking the tree way above the trunk, as high as one can reach.
The Psychological Explanation of Terrorism Therefore, most psychologists argue that in the quest to underpin the possible causes of terrorist activities, there is the need to discriminate between the motivations for joining, being retained, and disserting terrorist factions.
What Makes Terrorism Different From Other Forms of Violence The purpose of this paper is to define terrorism and identify the crucial features that distinguish terrorism from different types of abuse.
Analysis of a Domestic Terrorist Group and Homeland Security Policies The Boogaloo Movement is a severe menace, and the government must take all necessary measures to put a stop to it, it is concluded.
Suspected Terrorist Interrogation and Use of Torture Regardless, torture is still popular across the globe, and it has elicited a new debate questioning whether it is immoral and unacceptable to use torture in the case of efforts to fight terror in the […]
Terrorism, Corruption, and Climate Change as Threats Therefore, threats affecting countries around the globe include terrorism, corruption, and climate change that can be mitigated through integrated counter-terror mechanisms, severe punishment for dishonest practices, and creating awareness of safe practices.
Problems the US Faced in the Prosecution of the International Terrorists Differentiating a potential extremist from the rest of the population has been challenging because most international criminals interact with civilians and become part of them.
Terrorist Impact on Maritime Transportation Security Notably, the United States established the Transportation Security Administration under the Department of Transportation, which was soon transferred to the newly formed Homeland Security Department.
International Terrorism: Waves and Countermeasures The concept of modern terrorism emerged in Russia, and after a decade, it spread to Western Europe, the Balkans, and Asia.
The Nexus of Homeland Security and Terrorism The Department of Homeland Security is one of the several bureaucracies formed to tackle the issues of rising insecurity due to external powers and potential facilitators within the US.
The Future and Change of Terrorism As a result, even if terrorists get their hands on these weapons, they might hesitate to use them on individuals because of the associated implications.
The Terrorist Attack Recovery Process Terrorism response strategies and the recovery process vary according to the scope of damages and the implications of the methods used in the terror attacks.
Preparing for a Potential Terrorist Attack The ultimate aim of preparedness is to limit exposure to adversities during and after a terrorist attack. Thus, a recommended approach to limiting the potential security hazard of terrorist attacks is assessing its attributes and […]
Role of Terrorism in Russo-Ukrainian War Due to this factor, one of the most influential and widespread typologies of terrorism is the New Terrorism that emerged after the tragedy of 2001 in the USA.
Anti-Terrorism Clarification Act of 2018 Therefore, the current policies are a response to existing problems, and as the problem inside the country has become smaller, the reaction has also decreased.
Role of Media in Terrorism and Its Force Multipliers The following passages describe the role of the media in terrorism, how terrorists use laws to their advantage, the concept of asymmetrical warfare, and force multiplier as they apply to terrorism.
Anti-Terrorism Security Complex for Civil Aviation It is expected that the increase in the number of flights in the absence of a strengthened anti-terrorist culture should also lead to an increase in the number of unintended consequences of such flights – […]
Terrorism: Goals and Strategies Their main purpose can range from changing the direction of the politics in the state to overthrowing the exciting government and establishing control over the population.
Religious Terrorism: Ideologies and Methods of Al Qaeda and ISIS Strict adherence to the recorded practices and sayings of the Prophet in the letter of the Koran is emphasized. It endorses the rationalization of terrorism and violence in the efforts to fight against infidels.
Principles of Leadership and Future of Terrorism At the present time, leadership is presented in various forms; however, the primary objectives of the model generally include the improvement of organizational performance and the enhancement of the relationships between the members.
The 2012 Tel Aviv Bus Bombing and Crisis Management Musa was the manufacturer and detonator of the bomb, which he used Mafarji to deliver inside the Tel Aviv-based commuter bus.
Terrorism: The Role of Social Media This paper will discuss the role of the internet in terrorist activities, with a focus on social media. In the electronic age, terrorists use social media for recruitment, training, public terror, and action.
The Role of the Military in Domestic Terrorism Acts The video focuses on the issue of domestic terrorism in the U.S.in light of the January 6th attack on the Capitol.
Addressing Challenges of Religious Terrorism The various methods used in religious terrorism are spiritual scriptures to justify the violent acts and the use of apocalyptic images of destruction to justify the actions.
Terrorism and Changes in Police Management Firstly, the police and organizations related to the population’s safety prioritized the prevention of terrorism to minimize the damage. Organizing in the police station involves the creation of organizational structure, points of authority, and responsibilities.
Terrorists’ Minds and Radicalization Processes Moreover, the models agree that radicalization is a stepwise process in which one stage or step leads to another and eventually reaches the act of terrorism.
The Terrorism and Oil Industry Relationship Since terrorism is a source of political instability in the world, there is expected to be a positive correlation between oil prices and terrorist attacks. The purpose of this research was to examine the relationship […]
Understanding the Definition of WMDs and the Constraints on Terrorist Acquisition The most known WMD a nuclear weapon is limited in numbers and difficult to create. The most probable WMD for terrorists to acquire are chemical weapons.
Online Interventions Addressing Terrorism and Radicalization The study will also identify that the Sakinah campaign can be considered a suitable example of how it is possible to address Internet terrorism and radicalization.
A Terrorism Attack in the Middle East Countries in the Middle East are prone to terrorist attacks rendering it one of the unsafest regions in the world. The importance of this study is to understand the purpose of terrorist attacks in the […]
Behavioral Factors of Individual Terrorists The behavior of individual terrorists is dictated by the group dynamics, their mental health, and well-being, as well as the underlying incentives for joining a terrorist organization.
The Ways Terrorists Raise and Move Money Moreover, the government has put into action the freezing orders and blocking of united states individuals who are presumed to have a hand in terrorist activities.
Terrorism and Transnational Organized Crime as Threats to Homeland Security The US is among the nations that have suffered some of the worst terrorist attacks worldwide and it is also a hub of international criminal activities due to its wealth of resources and powerful economic […]
Planning for Terrorist Events: Case Study To review the response of France’s forces and evaluate its efficiency To provide several recommendations for the prevention of attacks during the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar Terrorist attacks that took place across Paris […]
Global Impact of 9-11 Events on Terrorism Prevention Many people resorted to religion and faith, and the majority reported that they were praying more frequently. Moreover, it stimulated the intervention in Iraq and Afghanistan to fight terrorist groups.
September 11, 2001 Attacks: What We Have Learned About Terrorism Since 9,11 The world has remembered one of the most tragic attacks in the USA in 2001, and the consequences of this event stay one of the most discussed.
Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy One of the most serious problems of modern political society is the threat of terrorism, which, due to globalization, requires the unification of the international community.
The Case of Saudi Arabia’s Soft Counter-Terrorism Strategy Therefore, this assessment is essential for government agencies, consulting organizations, and society in general, since innocent people suffer from the consequences of terrorism.
Terrorism Prevention: Operation Geronimo Intelligence briefings had been vital in this operation, and there was sufficient evidence to show that the wanted terrorist was in the compound. In conclusion, the operation was a necessary undertaking in ensuring international peace […]
Trump Tells Story About Killing Terrorists With Bullets Dipped in Pigs’ Blood The text reflects on Donald Trump’s recollection of the myth that terrorists were killed before the bullets used were dipped in pig blood.
US Strategy From the Cold War to the Post-Global War on Terrorism Before the collapse of the United Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, the United State’s strategy during the Cold War era had been one of deterrence to the potential threats of the USSR and its allies […]
Analysis of the Terrorist Organizations: “Red Brigades” and “Boko Haram” The most famous action in the organization’s history is the abduction and murder of the former Prime Minister of Italy Aldo Moro in the spring of 1978.
Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism in the US The very first section of this act is devoted to strengthening the internal security of the population of the States in the framework of countering terrorism.
Countering Terrorism Through Innovative Approaches The vital issue of this meeting became the issue of the technological development of international terrorism, its rapid growth in the online world, and acquaintance with the most recent technologies.
Iran’s Involvement in Sponsoring Global Terrorism Due to the particular features of the theocratic regimes, in the case of Iran, the inclination towards terrorism can be explained by two pillars of the Islamic doctrine underlining the constitution.
Criminalistics: Forensic Science, Crime, and Terrorism These writings can be on the second, third, and so on pages, depending on the pressure on the writing subject, that is, a pen or pencil.
Terrorism: the Victim of Terrorism and of Mechanisms to Combat It The Concept of Terrorism: Unlawful act Broad interpretations Threatening lives Generic term of terror Caused by forces opposed to the state Sociopolitical
Countering Terrorism and Preventive Measures Considering the events of the past century, including the first and 9/11 bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993 and 2001, United States Embassy in Beirut and Kuwait bombing, and many other attacks, the […]
Why Terrorism Is Not a Serious Threat to International and National Security We accept the existence of this threat, but we are still sure terrorism narrative as an existential threat is doing more damage to a larger amount of people than local terroristic attacks.
Biowarfare and Bioterrorism: History and Origin According to Edmond and William, the dawn of bioterrorism dates back to the nineteenth century, when Louis Pasteur and Robert Koech studied and understood the basics of microbiology. Moreover, another application of biological weapons is […]
Response to a Hypothetical Terrorist Event Prior to explicit action, the first thing to do in such a situation is to assess the environment depending on the location of terrorists and the type of attack and to outline the civilians that […]
Biological Warfare and Agro-Terrorism However, the most important thing from which those infected with botulism die is paralysis of the respiratory muscles and the respiratory failure that follows. The bacteria Bacillus Anthracis, which causes anthrax, is one of the […]
Terrorism Impacts on Policing in Belgium Nevertheless, when studying the world experience of countries facing the threat of high extremist activity and falling victim to attacks by militant fanatics at the beginning of the 21st century, the Belgian government has strengthened […]
Researching of Morals of Terrorists Terrorism attacks are a form of violence, and the moral implication is death in the form of revenge. Realism is a form of acceptance that everyone on the battlefield is a civilian with their families.
The Structures, Motivations, and Qualities of Terrorist Groups This implies that the structures of terrorist groups are determined by the capacity and character of the government and society where they operate.
The Functionalism Theory Assumptions of Terrorism The functionalism theory echoes the candid assumptions of terrorism and further resonates with the evolving terrorism threat. As Barkan outlines, the functionalism perspective postulates that terrorism creates social bonding and solidarity within societies at war.
Terrorism: Cargo and Passenger Screening To avoid such events, security systems need to be improved by the management both in the field of technological equipment and in the training of professionals.
The United Kingdom’s Strategy for Countering Terrorism The objectives of this strategy are the prevention of radical manifestations in the fields of labor, law, politics, science and education, culture and sports, communication, and healthcare. In addition, it is characterized by legal information […]
Motivations of Lone-Wolf Terrorists The phenomenon of lone-wolf terrorism is an interesting one because it challenges one to attempt to understand the motivation of a person to commit a violent criminal act knowing of the severe consequences.
Public Policy Issue: Domestic Terrorism At the same time, proponents of the policy argue that the rise of domestic terrorism is due to the failure of holding accountable and confronting the perpetrators by the responsible authorities and not a case […]
Radicalization and Terrorism in the United States The individuals or self-proclaimed bombers are one of the major threats that the USA will have to be on the lookout for most of the time.
America: Racism, Terrorism, and Ethno-Culturalism The myth of the frontier is one of the strongest and long-lived myths of America that animates the imagination of the Americans even to this day.
Domestic, Transnational, and Maritime Terrorism All types of terrorism are based on the forcible imposition of a worldview, ideology, morality, politics using violence, threats of murder or other forms as the primary means of achieving goals.
“Terrorism” Is a Biased Term According to Bin Ladin, the bombing of the World Trade Center was an intimidation technique targeting the Americans due to the violence against the Islamic community.
Terrorism and Data Mining Algorithms However, this is a necessary evil as the nation’s security has to be prioritized since these attacks lead to harm to a larger population compared to the infringements.
Cyber-Terrorism and International Interventions Most of the cyber-attacks that have occurred involve the direction of the malware and attacks to specific critical systems and Information Technology infrastructures.
Terrorism and Media Coverage In that regard, the issue of media coverage is specifically important to consider in situations involving hostages, as the media either covering a news report or responding to the terrorists’ demands is in a position […]
Airfreight Security Breaches and Terrorism The majority of terrorist attacks happened after the 1990s, thereby indicating the deterioration of the security system and breaches in it.
Terror and Religion One of the common religious terror activities has been on martyrdom, the practice of causing death to oneself on the basis of being a witness to ideological and theological perspectives and beliefs.
Encryption, Stenography & Cyber Criminal Terrorist The internet and the ICT system as a whole are vulnerable to cyber attacks. This is the method of using to trademark to protect our images and copyright on our intellectual properties.
Radicalization and Terrorism Phenomena A precursor to radicalization and terrorism is the lack of proper socio-political integration of certain communities in countries. Radicalization lies at the heart of terrorism and plays a central role in the propagation of ideas.
Boko Haram Terrorist Organization: History and Facts Since the inception of the organization in 2002, the primary goal of Boko Haram has been to impose Islamic rule in Nigeria by promoting a version of the religion that forbids participation in any social […]
Local Efforts to Counter the Terror Threat in New York City The program encompasses a series of both current and future policy efforts that are associated with the private sector security as well as counterterrorism in the state.
Cyber-Terrorism and Healthcare Information Systems – Past, Present, and Future The cyber appliances in the health sector then again sustain correspondence amongst shareholders and service providers and as well support resources management.
Bioterrorism Response by Healthcare Organizations Bioterrorism is a frequently used term that proves human responsibility on the development of its outcomes and effects on people and other living beings on Earth.
Response to Terrorist Attacks: The Role of Military and Public Sector Entities Nevertheless, to understand the basis of such partnership, one has to understand the actions that the public sector takes and has taken to respond to terrorism in the United States and globally.
Terrorism: What Is It and How to Counter It? Counterterrorism is one of the goals of international cooperation and is an activity aimed at preventing and combating terrorism. One of the most important areas of action is also to prevent the radicalization of both […]
Emergency Operations in Case of Radiological Terrorism An excellent example of an explosion that profoundly affected the Americans is the 9/11 attack that led to the destruction of the Twin Towers and the Pentagon.
Command Structure of Sharing the Information About Possible Acts of Terror Following the infamous events of 9/11, the government of the United States introduced new strategies and roles that have continued to reshape the roles and involvement of law enforcers in cases of terrorism.
Bio-Terrorism: When Microbes Become a Threat to Human Existence In general, due to the cooperation of scientists, policymakers, and public agencies across the globe, the international community has recognized the potential of biological weapons and is prepared for the majority of threats.
How Terrorism Impacts the Human Experience From the point of view of modern definitions or attempts to define these phenomena, the difference is most often established in the globality of the character, duration of the act, and the number of actors […]
Annotated Bibliography About Terrorism This is a book review article written by Khanna on the book “Terrorism as a war” written by Walter Laqueur and published by Continuum Books.
Cyberterrorism, Competing Factions, and Possible Course of Action Various aspects can be analyzed concerning cyberterrorism, competing factors, and possible course of actions in corporations to show that cyberterrorism is a legitimate option for the expression of grievances by terrorists.
Importance of Emergency Response to Terrorist Attack According to the scenario presented, it makes sense to involve the DoD since the terrorists, supposedly AWOLs, pose an extreme threat to the lives of civilians and the military.
National Response to Terrorism & Natural Disaster The National Response Framework governs the national security and crisis response to dynamic emergencies and natural disasters that occur in the community.
Terrorism: Definitions, Features Shared by Terrorists However, since there is no agreed-upon definition of a terrorist attack, it is possible to state that some incidents were omitted from the statistics. Terrorism is difficult to combat and requires the input of international […]
Alienation and Solidarity: The Logic of Suicide Terrorism Pape’s “The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism” discusses the growing prevalence of suicide attacks in the arsenal of terrorist movements from 1980 onward.
Terrorists and Their Rights Under US Laws The key problems of the research are the ways in which Islamists are protected by the US legislation and society, where the threat comes from, and what the consequences might be.
Anti-Terrorism Protocol and Counter-Terrorism Units The 1995 Tokyo sarin attack is a case in point because it proved the real possibility of such a scenario and was used as the reference for the L.A. First of all, as shown in […]
Oklahoma City Bombing as Domestic Terrorist Act The federal building housed the offices of various government agencies, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, which was directly involved in the Waco debacle. The attack allowed McVeigh to send a message to […]
Foreign Fighters and Contemporary Terrorism Finally, recruiters have received access to the vulnerable groups directly, which is demonstrated in the book In the Skin of a Jihadist written by an investigative journalist Anne Erelle.
Terrorist Attacks: Paul Hanson vs. Patrick Crusius He made some preparations in the form of stockpiling weapons and researching the locations in which they reside. Crusius was more discrete in his information gathering, though it was still the failure of the FBI […]
Terrorism Liaison Officer’s Responsibilities The analyst was involved in the assessment of the case and contributed to false-positive reporting regarding the journalist and other civilians being terrorists.
Domestic Security Agencies and Cyberterrorism Thus, it can be concluded that terrorism and cyberterrorism have become one of the many global challenges, and for this reason, they should be the object of close attention to the world community.
Terrorism in the United States of America The group might disintegrate in the future because of its dwindling number of followers, leadership wrangles, and a lack of finances to fund its activities.
Identifying Terrorism-Related Situations In the selected setting of Philadelphia, the general environment appears to be in control, yet further measures may need to be undertaken to prevent the instances of protests from reaching a state of havoc.
Task Force and the Fusion Center: Terrorism Prevention Thus, it can be argued that the main task of JTTF in targeted violence prevention is crime investigation and intelligence generation.
Fusion Centers: The Role in Terrorism Prevention Boston Globe reports that the information-sharing system currently in use is not efficient in preventing terrorism, highlighting the fact that the FBI and the CIA probes of Tamerlan Tsarnaev were unbeknown to Massachusetts counterterrorist units.
DHS and Intelligence: Terrorism The organization of the fight against terrorism requires a comprehensive approach to the analysis of the sources and subjects of terrorist activity, a clear definition of the functions and areas of responsibility of each item […]
The Molly Maguires as a Domestic Terrorism Group It is these origins of the Molly Maguires terrorist group that gave them their thirst for blood and led to the killing of a myriad of Irishmen until the group was exterminated in the proximities […]
Australian Anti-Terrorism Laws In the quest to protect citizens, some governments have gone to the extend of inflicting torture on terror suspects in need to obtain some information from the suspect, which raises concern about the suspect’s civil […]
Bioterrorism Preparedness and Public Health Response Therefore, the current state of the preparedness cannot be estimated as high or sufficient, and the approach needs to be elaborated.
Aggressive Behavior Among the Al-Shabaab Terrorists The former are the underlying sources that propel susceptible individuals to radicalization, while the latter are the incentives that the terrorist groups offer to attract and retain recruits.
War on Terrorism: Budget and Policy Discussion The discussion of the specific Acts and Policies directed at USA security is going to be considered with the purpose to follow the changes which occurred in the USA after 9/11 attacks.
Criminology: Terrorism–Security Policy for Large Events This attack proved to the government the vulnerability of the state concerning external threats, especially because, prior to the attack, the customary means of attack had been the use of military force as evidenced in […]
Causes of Terrorism Terrorism is defined as violent actions that are aimed at instilling fear to people as a means of coercing them to submit to ideologies of a certain group.
Violent Resistance and Terrorism The following study is an attempt to establish the root causes of violent resistance, the challenges facing the world due to violent resistance, and possible remedies to the problem citing specific cases that are helpful […]
Terror Groups – Abu Nidal Organization Abu Nidal is the Arabic meaning of ‘father of the struggle.’ The terror group was named after its leader and founder Sabri al-Banna who was born in Palestine to a land owning family. Among the […]
Impacts of Terrorism on Police Mission in the U.S. The incidence of September 11 2001 has remarkably transformed the police force in the U.S. There is an increase in the level of monitoring of international travels and boundaries by the police force.
Homeland Security: Digital Crime and Terrorism Activities However, the US law enforcement system is characterized by the activities of different agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigations, Department of Homeland Security, Secret Service, Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Understanding the Basics of Terrorism On the other side of the rail is another man lying flat on the ground with a sniper rifle in his hands ready to wreak havoc.
“Policing Terrorism” by Waddington He is of the argument that case-specific policing is focused on the outcome of court verdicts. He points out an incident in which the palace security was breached, and the commissioner of police reacted to […]
Definite Paths to Terrorism: Main Dimensions This assimilation is enforced by the use of violence to instil discipline and loyalty in the participants. In conclusion, there are other dimensions of the Islamic terrorism namely Al-Qaeda and Hezbollah.
War on Terror: Propaganda and Freedom of the Press in the US There was the launching of the “Center for Media and Democracy”, CMD, in the year 1993 in order to create what was the only public interest at that period. There was expansive use of propaganda […]
Terrorism and U.S. National Security Thomas Jefferson was the author of the Statute of Virginia for religious freedom in the year 1777 as well as the author of the famous United States Declaration of independence in the year 1776.
Domestic Terrorism Trends: Challenges of the Coming Years Under the provisions of the US PATRIOT act, acts of domestic terrorism entail dangerous acts that pose a threat to human life and amount to a violation of various criminal laws of the US and/or […]
Organizations Convincing to Become a Suicide Terrorist One of the underlying tenets taught to candidate suicide bombers is: “Islam is the answer and jihad is the way”. Pathological altruism refers to any behavior or personal tendency in which ‘the goal or motivation […]
Bioterrorism: Term Review According to Meinhardt, “water supplies and water distribution systems represent potential target for terrorist activity in the United States because of the critical need for water in every sector of our industrialized society”.
US & UK Human Rights While Countering Terrorism The threat of terror and the further legal reactions of the nations to the problem were considered as challenging, and it is necessary to examine differences and similarities associated with the promotion of human rights […]
Organizational Change: Models Influencing American Terrorism This paper seeks to discuss the three models of terrorism, the effects of international terrorism locally, and the impacts of international terrorism on local cell groups.
The Goal of a Terrorist Attack This objective is being accomplished by the mean of exposing people to the graphic accounts of terrorist acts-in-making, as was the case with the attacks of 9/11.
Local Response to Terrorism Local response to terrorism involves using the resources and the law enforcement officers at the state and county level to detect and prevent acts of terror.
Adjusting to Terrorism: The Issue of Detention Without Trial The country also needs to train more prosecutors and legal experts so that justice is disseminated to suspected terrorists who continue to be held at Guantanamo Bay without trial.
Biological Terrorism: Dealing With the Threat It is therefore the responsibility of the recipient of this information to take action to secure his/her life against the potential lethality of the agent in question.
The Maritime Terrorism Risk and Liability The research describes in detail aspects of maritime terrorism but does not clearly state the research question to be explored. However, in the summary part of the research paper there is several questions implied as […]
Bioterrorism Preparedness in Healthcare Organizations It is also necessary to carry out a test on the public health emergencies for this would help the department to be aware of the strengths and weaknesses which are in the system.
Adjusting to Terrorism In the US, the Department of Homeland Security is the primary body that deals with all matters of homeland security, including the prevention of terrorism. As such, the department needs to address it as a […]
Impact of Terrorism on the Economy The premise of the essay is to evaluate the nature and the nature and the severity of the risks posed by terrorism on IFAD a United Nations specialized agency.
A Criminal Justice Approach to Suppressing Terrorism The threat of terrorism substituted communism as the rationale which was used for justifying the state of emergency in America prior to 1990s.
Comparison Between Organized Crime And Terrorism Organized crime refers to unlawful activities conducted by members of highly organized gangs and associations. Its defined by members and activities of a group.
Boilover: Fire Aspects of the World Trade Center Terrorist Attacks Analysis These includes the intensity of the incident heat on the burning object, the composition of the burning fire, the ability of air that supports combustion to reach the burning fire, the mass of the burning […]
Secure Transportation System Against Global Terror The good news is that cooperation, coordination, and new technology can be used to secure the global transportation system and halt the activities of terror groups.
Sharing Terror Data: Criminal Analysis The FBI continuing investigation of the attacks to identify the hijackers and their sponsors, codenamed “PENTTBOM,” represents the largest investigation ever in the history of the agency.
Torture and War Towards Terrorism An example of mental torture can be explained by the following; Y is a friend to X, they have been caught in the same crime act, Y is then taken to a separate room adjacent […]
Women and Terrorism Relations The role of women in secular terrorist organizations has been more pronounced in history due to the conservative nature of religious terrorist movements, which often exclude women from their ranks.
Investigation Methods: Terrorism and Cyber Crime The question on whether the investigations in these areas of cyber crime and terrorism to remain incident driven or to adopt strategic approach are still is of great concern to the security agencies and the […]
Terrorism: Assessing the Past to Forecast the Future The terrorists groups all over the world, having the knowledge of lethargic weapons held by their enemies, are engaged in the discoveries of how the rapidly growing technology may improve the lethargy of their current […]
Terrorism Response Strategy The preliminary assessment is performed on the basis that before implementing any rescue operations, the hazards that are contained in the area must be positively identified and the resources available or necessary to deal with […]
Homeland Security and Terrorism The important root causes of terrorism are mainly two: a perceived sense of social & political injustice such that the group seeks to right the wrong and, the view that violence is the only way […]
Terrorism Preparedness and Response The third and most important step to take is to switch off the available electrical gadgets to prevent the spread of fire. Of importance to prevent such catastrophes is cooperation from citizens, media, and the […]
Terrorism Mitigation and Risk In order to avert the danger of possible portable nuclear attacks, it is important to assess the possibility and impact of attacks in the first place.
Terrorism Risk Assessment: Threat of Al Shabaab and Hezbollah to the USA Attacks such as those that happened outside the US and more are likely to occur due to what Hezbollah perceives as the US posing a threat to its ties with Iran.
Four Priorities of Action for Combating Terrorism on Our Shores There is therefore the need to employ new pragmatic foreign policy steps that promote the national interest within the broader values of international peace and security if any gains are to be realized in the […]
The Cyber Terrorism Plan and Counter Strategy The news of hacking the website of the Pentagon will immediately get the attention of the media and this message will spread everywhere at the speed of light.
The Potential for State Sponsored Terrorism Also, he mainly tries to bring all the enemies of the United States together and he believes that the United States is a devilish country.
Bioterrorism and Biosecurity The epidemiology of the infection is spread in the world evenly though in some of the parts there is only one form of Anthrax, for instance in the United States of America and therefore our […]
Bioterrorism and Biosecurity – Aum Shinrikyo The Aum Shinrikyo began their attacks in 1994 in Matsumoto where they used the refrigerator truck to release sarin near the homes of three judges who were overseeing a lawsuit that was predicted to go […]
Terrorism: A Definition and Analysis The Federal Bureau of Investigation defines terrorism as the perpetration of violence and force unlawfully against people or property with a sole aim of intimidating or coercing the government or the targeted population or any […]
International Political Economy, Democratization, and Terrorism IPE describes the global power dynamics that control international trade and finance, fuel globalization, and wealth distribution across the globe. Sachs argues that globalization and the emergence of political economics have led to the increased […]
Terrorism Definition at the National Level The development of a unified definition of terrorism at the global level is challenging because the domestic laws of several countries differ significantly.
War and Terrorism in the Modern World They are used to frighten the public and pursue political goals, for example, to change the government in the country. For instance, acts of terrorism are meant to inflict fear and intimidation to put pressure […]
Sociology. Terror and Violence Impacts A comparison between theory and the actual case is made in order to promote the claim that terror leads to mental health issues that will pursue the victims for the whole life, but such consequences […]
US and Terrorism Relations Overview The US and its allies intensified attacks on ISIS bases and areas of control, assassinated ISIS leaders, reclaimed regions captured by the group, cut off their supply of funds, and imposed restrictions on travel to […]
Agro-Terrorism: Definition and Impacts The ultimate objective for agro-terrorism is to cause economic damage and lead to loss of confidence among the population in the government. It is the responsibility of the FDA and DHS Agro division to monitor, […]
Terrorism and Trauma in American Literature
War on Terror: The Battle Continues
Terrorism Nowadays: Islamic State of Iraq and Syria
How Terrorism Affects Airline Security
Terrorist Networks as a Threat to the United States Today
Consequence Management and Terrorist Attacks Analysis
Terrorist Groups’ Establishment: The Theory of Four-Wave Terroristic Groups
Homeland Security: Terrorism Issue
Domestic & Global Terrorism and Its legal Aspects
Crime Myths and Domestic Terrorism
Terrorist Attacks in Paris, 13th November 2015
Hue Newton: A Terrorist and a Thinker
Impact on Terrorist Activities of Regional Governments
Regional Terrorism: The Bali Bombing, Australian and Indonesian Responses
How to End Terrorism: Diplomacy or Military Action?
Terrorism: Methods and Weapons
Terrorism: Analysis of Definitions
Screening for Terrorist for Aviation Security
The Role of Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in the Fight Against Terrorism
Terrorist Event Countering: First Responders Risk
Financing Terrorism: Challenges and Solutions
Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and Terrorism
Domestic Terrorism: Burning Social Issue
Al Shabaab: An Intriguing Example of Islamist Terror
Causes and Motivations of Terrorism
Ali Al-Timimi’s Case of Terrorism
“The Lessons of Terror: A History of Warfare Against Civilians” by C. Carr
Biological and Chemical Terrorism: Preparedness and Response
Legislation Related to Bioterrorism
Israel’s Response to Munich Terror Attack
Bioterrorism and Its Harmful Consequences
Domestic Terrorism in USA
The Evolution of Terrorism on the World Stage
Terrorism and Liberal Democracy: What We Should Know
Michael Collins and His Terrorist Method
Biological Weapon and Bioterrorism
War and Terrorism in Algeria
Is Terrorism Still the Most Important Security Issue for Australia?
Primoratz’ Definition of Terrorism
War on Terror and Its Effect on Individual Right
Terrorism and Modern Society
Terrorism: An Objective Definition
Crimes Against the State: Terrorist Attacks and Death Penalty
“Nuclear Terrorism: Risks, Consequences, and Response” by Jim Walsh: Stimulating Ideas, Logical Organization, Engaging Voice
Origins of Terrorism and Solutions
Terrorists R’ Us: Different Perspectives, the Real Meaning
Middle-East and Africa Terrorist Movements
Terrorism in Western Europe: Finland, Denmark and England
Most Effective Anti-Terrorist Tactics, Organizations in the World
The History of Ku Klux Klan: A Terrorist Organization Founded in the Southern States After the American Civil War
The Use of Counter-Terrorism Attacks During the Algerian War of Independence From F.L.N.
History and Financing of Terrorism: From Time Immemorial to Nowadays
Comparison Between Secular and Religious Terror
The Origins of Modern Terrorism
Cultural Reaction of English Civilians Against Terrorist Situations in Their Country
Political Violence and Terrorism. Crowd Behavior
Domestic Terrorism: The Forgotten Threat
Is Terrorism an Act of War?: Different Types of Terrorism
Types of Terrorism: Centers Establishment
Sociology of Terror: Contemporary Sense
Anti-Terrorists Tactics and Organizations
Understanding the War on Terror in the United States
Foreign Policy Challenges Created by the War on Terror
The Threat of International Terrorism in Modern World
Middle-Eastern and African Terrorist Movements
Terrorist Organizations and Funding
Terrorist Recruitment Process: Who Joins and Why
Should the U.S. Use Torture on Terror Suspects?
Nigeria – Preventing Nuclear Terrorism
Terrorism Impact on Global Business Environment
Bioterrorism: Impact of Science and Technology
Terrorism. Irish Republican Army
Community Policing and War on Terror
Biosecurity and Bioterrorism
Terrorism Today and Its Definition
Religious Violence. Terror in the Mind of God by Juergensmeyer
Terrorism and U.S. Foreign Policy by P. R. Pillar
Palestinian Islamic Jihad: Radical Terrorism
Money Laundering and Terrorist Finance
Pakistan’s Double Game in the War on Terror
Eradicated Terrorism in the World
The Interrelation Between Terrorism and Technology
War on Terror & Violation of Constitutional Rights
Media and the War on Global Terrorism
Is the Geneva Convention Applicable to War on Terror?
Adjusting to Terrorism in Modern World
Death Sentence to Muslim Terrorists: Should We Murder People Who Had Done the Same Before?
How the US is Dealing with Terrorism?
Terrorism and Security Issues Review
“Terrorism in Latin America” by Mark Sullivan
How Terrorist Have Financial and Recruitment Growth Since 1980
Effects of the September 11, 2001 Terror Attacks on Sino-American Relations
Recent Developments in the History of Terrorism
War on Terrorism: Role of Law Enforcement
Current Issues in Iraq and Terrorism
War on Terror. 42-Day Detention: An Equitable Solution?
Early Response to Weapons of Mass Destruction Terrorism
Terrorism and the Affects on American Way of Living
Counter Terrorism Measures in the UK
The War on Terrorism in the United States
United States & EU Efforts to Fight Terrorism
Global Terrorism and State Security Measures
American Governmnet Against the Threat of Terrorism
Terrorism: 9/11 Conspiracy Theories
Trends in Global Terrorism. Conflict Resolution and Iraq
“Terrorism and Economic Security” by Robert L. Hutchings
The War on Terror Cannot be Won
Bioterrorism and Health Care Delivery
Terrorism and Weapons of Mass Destruction
Terrorism: Countering and Responding to the Treat
Crimean Crisis and Russian State Terrorism
Cyberterrorism as a Global Concern
The United States and Terrorism
Anti-Terrorist New York City Police Department Shield
Terrorist Ideologies: Selecting a Target
A Terrorist Attack on Atlanta, Georgia
How Counselors Assist Survivors of Terrorism
Fraud, Money Laundering, and Terrorism Financing
Comprehensive Terrorist-Related Screening Procedures
Terrorism and National Security
Terrorism and Security Dilemma After 9/11
International Law: Extradition of Terrorists
The Functioning of Terrorist Groups
Suicide Terrorism and Its Psychological Factors
Terrorist Organization: Euskadi Ta Askatasuna (ETA)
The Great Terror in the Factories, 1935–1938
Workers During “The Great Terror” by R. Conquest
“Terror and Democracy at the Age of Stalin” by Goldman
Female Gender Role in “The Terrorist” Film
Terrorism Studies and Framing Concept
Terrorism as Spectacle: Extremist Propaganda
Terror in the Mind of God by Mark Juergensmeyer
Counter Terrorism and Public Awareness Plan
Terrorist Organization Hezbollah: Tactics and Strategies
The Hezbollah Terrorist Organization
Terrorism, Social Activism and Political Violence
“Faces of State Terrorism” by Laura Westra
Organized Terrorism Against Government Leaders
War on Terror and Its Victory Meaning
Terrorism Definitions by the Global Community
Islamic Terrorism in Ridley Scott’s “Body of Lies”
Can Terrorism Only Be Defeated by Military Means?
Terrorism Impact on Tourism Industry After 2015
Terrorist Attack: Contemporary Social or Cultural Issues
Poverty as a Factor of Terrorist Recruitment
War on Drugs and Terror and American Promise
Hazard Vulnerability Analysis and Terrorism
Terrorist Participation and Its Motives
The UAE Against Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing
Cyberterrorism as the Greatest Risk for the US
Cultural Miscommunication and Hostility Against Muslims
Domestic Terrorism and Homegrown Extremism in America
The Rise of Terrorist Organisations in Post-Invasion Iraq
Factors That Motivate to Terrorism
Domestic Terrorism in the United States of America
State-Sponsored and Non-State Terrorism
Terrorism, Human Trafficking, and International Response
Internet Crimes and Digital Terrorism Prevention
Vietnam War vs. War on Terror in the Middle East
Immigration Services Against Crime and Terrorism
Ideology and Terrorism: Rights from Wrongs?
Islamic and Christian Religion and Terrorism
American War on Terror and Operational Strategies
Death Penalty for Murder by Terrorism
Local Operational Planning for Potential Terrorist Threats
Preventing Terrorism: Strategies and Challenges
Terrorism, Hate Crimes and Racial Profiling
Terrorism Preventive Measures in the United States
Aum Shinrikyo Terrorist Group’s Activity
Bioterrorism Attacks and Nursing Countermeasures
Intelligence, Civil Law, and Terrorism Investigations
Terrorism Prevention on the International Level
Psychological Profiling in Terrorism Prevention
Terrorism Definitions and Controversies
Violent Extremism and Suicide Terrorist Attacks
Al-Qaeda Emergence, Ideology, and New Terrorism
Terror Attacks and Intelligence Community in the US
Distressed Terrorism: Politics, Religion and Ideology
Terrorism or Hate Crime: Similarities and Differences
War on Terror: Critical Terrorism Studies’ Views
Egyptian Tourism Industry and Terrorism Effects
Terrorism and US Activities in the Middle East
Islamic State Global Terror Threat Countermeasures
War on Terror in Saudi Arabia and Arab Gulf States
Saudi Arabian Lone Wolf Terrorism in 2011-2016
Terrorist Groups: Critical Discourse Analysis
War on Terror in Central Asia and the Caucasus
US Intelligence to Prevent Terrorist Attacks
Terrorism: Power of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria Power
Female Terrorism: Causes and Features
Terrorism: the Evolution of ISIS
Cyber Security’s and Counter Terrorism’ Intersection
What Are the Global Impact of Terrorism in Business Domain?
East African Community Counter-Terrorism Vision
Terrorism and Torture: History and Arguments
How Does Modern Terrorism Operate?
Digital Media Usage to Recruit and Promote Terrorism
Modern Terrorism and Globalization
Stereotyping Terrorists and Mental Sanity
Homeland Security Changes: Adjusting to Terrorism
Propaganda: Terrorist, Government, State, Non-State
Paternalist Terror in China in 1950-1953
China in 1950-53: “Paternalist Terror” by J. Strauss
Terrorist and Government Propaganda in Media
Human Trafficking as a Terrorist Activity
Coping with Terrorism in the USA
Terrorism in the Middle East
Contemporary Terrorism: The American Army Special Forces
Conventions on Terrorism in the 21st Century
Countering Terrorism: The US Intelligence Community
Terrorism and Its Organisations: Al Qaeda and ISIL
First Responders to Terrorist Attack
Violence and Terror Definition Comparison
The Westgate Terror Attack in Kenya
Fighting Terrorism: “Iraqi Freedom” and “Enduring Freedom”
Terrorist Organizations: Al-Qaeda and ETA
Current Hurdles in Combating Terrorism
Ethnic, Racial and Religious Profiling in Terrorism
Halal Food and Terrorist Organizations in Australia
Osama Bin Laden’s Role in Terror
Hospitals Security Upgrade: Terrorist or Criminal Actions
Homeland Security: Basque ETA Terrorist Organization
International Counter Terrorism’ Elements
Terrorism: Aspects, Approaches and Implications
Use of Torture Against Terror Suspects
Bioterrorism: Biological Agents as Weapons
Different Methods Against Terrorism: Israel and Palestine
Terrorism: The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
Terrorism: Post-9/11 Maritime Security Initiatives in the USA
Bio-Terrorism Preparedness and Response
Jonathan Moreno: Bioethics After the Terror
What is the Best Way for Fighting Terrorism According to Mortenson?
The Advanced Community Planning in Response to the Potential Threat of Terrorism
The Impacts of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 on the National Intelligence Community
War on Terrorism: How to Cope With the Global Threat?
Terrorism and the Global Economies
The Primary Causes of Terrorist Political Violence
Terrorism as a Serious Threat
Rumsfeld’s Memo & The War on Global Terrorism
Terrorism Handling in Our Life
Defense Imperatives: “Thwarting Terrorism & Bringing Terrorists to Justice”
Understanding the Failure of the Global War on Terrorism and Suggestions for Future Strategies
Counter-Terrorism and the Patriot Act
Al-Qaeda as a Terrorist Organization
Financial Markets After Terrorist Assault and The Enron Financial Outrage
Terrorism, Counter-Terrorism, and Intelligence
Torture as a Counter-Terrorism Tool in 21st Century
Lessons From the Mumbai Terrorist Attacks
Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons to Rogue States and International Terrorists
Does Poverty Lead to Terrorism?
Terrorism and Jihadist Movement
US Exceptionalism in Constructing and Conceptualizing a Terrorist
American Exceptionalism in Constructing and Conceptualizing a Terrorist
History of Cyber Terrorism
“Monsters, Inc.” and the War on Terror
Economic Concerns in the Aftermath of Terrorism
Terrorism in International Relations
Terrorism in Israel and Palestine
Local, State, and Federal Partnerships: Terrorism
Hezbollah: A Terrorist Organisation?
United States Domestic Terrorism
Impacts of the ‘War on Terror’ on Human Rights
International Terrorism: The Challenge to Global Security
Salafist Takfiri Terrorism
Anti Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism
Weapons of Mass Destruction: The Terrorist Threat
Terrorists’ Usage of Chemical or Biological Agents
Cyber Security Threat Posed by a Terrorist Group
The Effect of Terrorism on Human Rights: The Clash Between the Human Rights Advocates and Victims of Terrorism
Eliminating Terrorism at the Domestic Level
Terrorism, Poverty and Financial Instability
United States War on Terror Policy
The Real Cause of Terrorism in Palestine
Terrorism: Searching for a Definition
Industrial Terrorism in Modern World
Terrorist Cells and Groups Within the Northern Region of Africa
Terrorism as a Communication Strategy
How the U.S. Can Combat the Terrorist Threat in Africa?
Hypothetical Scenario of a Terrorist Attack
NYPD Counterterrorism Program
Terrorism Before and After the September 11 Attacks
U.S. War in Afghanistan: Pros and Cons
Orientalist Constructions of Muslim Bodies and the Rhetoric of the «War on Terror»
Jemaah Islamiyah Terrorist Group
The U.S. Government Strategies Against the Terrorist Threats
How Readily Terrorists Can Acquire Nuclear Weapons
Post September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks
Civil Liberties, Habeas Corpus and War on Terror
Concept of Terrorism Phenomenon in Modern World
Handling of Bio-Terrorist Threats
The Spectacle of Terror
Foreign Policy: United States and Fight with Terrorism
Law Enforcement and Terrorism
What New Demands on Policing Have Resulted From the International ‘War on Terror’?
Leila Khaled: Freedom Fighter or Terrorist?
Religious and Secular Terrorism: Analyzing Differences and Points of Intersection
“Arabic Islamic Culture” and Terrorism: Inherent Concepts or Not?
Terrorist Acts Prevention and Aftermaths Minimization
Torture During the Algerian War and Its Relevance on the War on Terror
The Definition of Terrorism
International Terrorism: The Operations of the Hezbollah
The Kurdish Conflict in the Middle East
The US Anti-Terrorism Efforts Are Failing
The Media and Terrorism
Terrorist Groups in Turkey
Terrorism: The United States’ Involvement
Terrorism: Can Terrorism Ever Be Justified?
America’s War on Terrorism
Terrorism, Its Groups and Categories
Terrorism in Political Protest
Impact of Terrorism on Italian Economy
“What Is the Definition of Terrorism? And Why Is the White House Afraid of Using the Term?” by Timothy Kelly
Habeas Corpus and the War on Terror
Civil Liberties, Habeas Corpus and the War on Terror
Benefits of Preparing for Emergencies and Terrorism
Preparing for Incidents of Terrorism at the Local Level
Domestic Terrorism in the Post 9/11 Era
Bush Doctrine, Explanation of the Administration and War on Terror
Moral Convictions of Terrorists
Why Terrorism is a Contested Concept
Presidential Powers and the War on Terror
Agro-Terrorism: The Lessons to Learn
Terrorism: The War on Iraq
Stereotyping Comparison: All Italians Are in a Mob, All Jamaicans Smoke Weed, All Muslims Are Terrorists
The Al-Qaida Terrorist Group’s Recent Happenings
The Fight Against Terrorism by Christian and Islam Leaders
Is Terrorism Ever Justified?
The War on Terrorism
The Terrorist Attacks in the United States
The Problems of Terrorism in Modern World
Counter-Terrorism Plans Development
Consequence Management After the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks
Intelligence Reform and Terrorist Prevention Act
Terror and Terrorism
September 11: Terror Attack and Huge Casualties
The Concept of Terrorism
Homeland Security: Collecting Information about Terrorism
Terrorists and the Left and Right: Definitions & Examples
Should the USA Use Drones to Combat Terrorism?
How Are Terrorists Financing Their Acts of Terrorism?
What Can History Teach Us About Terrorism?
Why Do Americans Feel More Sympathy for Western Terrorism?
How Can the United States of America Better Defend Itself Against Terrorism?
Can the U.S. Prevent Future Acts of Domestic Terrorism?
What Has Been the Effect of Globalization on Terrorism?
How Can Businesses Cope With Terrorism?
Can Democracy Stop Terrorism?
Should the U.S. Government Be Scared of Cyber Terrorism?
Why Does Western Europe Experience More Terrorism Than America?
Are Terrorism and Globalization Linked to Politics?
What Are the Causes of Terrorism, and How Can It Be Stopped?
Are Muslim Communities Affected by Counter-Terrorism Legislation?
Does American Foreign Policy Cause Terrorism?
Does the Media Encourage Terrorism?
Does the Terrorism Act Infringe Upon Our Human Rights?
What Challenges Are Posed by International Terrorism to Democracy?
How Can the Digital World Lead to a New Type of Terrorism?
Whose Support Matters for the Occurrence of Terrorism?
How America Prevents Terrorism?
Does Higher Education Decrease Support for Terrorism?
Can Foreign Aid Dampen the Threat of Terrorism to International Trade?
Should Americans Fear Urban Terrorism?
Can Illegal Immigration Lead to Terrorism?
Does Distinguishing Domestic Terrorism From International Terrorism Help?
Will the American Economy Benefit From the War Against Terrorism?
Are Some Rights Negotiable When It Comes to Fighting Terrorism?
Why Has Terrorism Become Such an Important Issue Over the Last 40 Years?
Will Terrorism Lose Its Significance?
Chicago (A-D)
Chicago (N-B)

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Before the terrorist attacks in the United States on 11 September 2001, the subject of terrorism did not loom large in philosophical discussion. Philosophical literature in English amounted to a few monographs and a single collection of papers devoted solely, or largely, to questions to do with terrorism. Articles on the subject in philosophy journals were few and far between; neither of the two major philosophy encyclopedias had an entry. The attacks of September 11 and their aftermath put terrorism on the philosophical agenda: it is now the topic of numerous books, journal articles, special journal issues, and conferences.

While social sciences study the causes, main varieties, and consequences of terrorism and history traces and attempts to explain the way terrorism has evolved over time, philosophy focuses on two fundamental—and related—questions. The first is conceptual: What is terrorism? The second is moral: Can terrorism ever be morally justified?

Philosophers have offered a range of positions on both questions. With regard to the problem of defining terrorism, the dominant approach seeks to acknowledge the core meaning “terrorism” has in common use. Terrorism is understood as a type of violence. Many definitions highlight the experience of terror or fear as the proximate aim of that violence. Neither violence nor terror is inflicted for its own sake, but rather for the sake of a further aim such as coercion, or some more specific political objective. But there are also definitions that sever the conceptual connection of terrorism with violence or with terror. With regard to the moral standing of terrorism, philosophers differ both on how that is to be determined and what the determination is. Consequentialists propose to judge terrorism, like everything else, in light of its consequences. Nonconsequentialists argue that its moral status is not simply a matter of what consequences, on balance, terrorism has, but is rather determined, whether solely or largely, by what it is. Positions on the morality of terrorism range from justification when its consequences on balance are good, or when some deontological moral requirements are satisfied, to its absolute, or almost absolute, rejection.

Philosophers working in applied philosophy have also sought to complement the discussions of terrorism in general with case studies—studies of the role and rights and wrongs of terrorism in particular conflicts, such as “the Troubles” in Northern Ireland (George 2000; Simpson 2004; Shanahan 2009), the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (Ashmore 1997; Gordon and Lopez 2000; Primoratz 2006; Kapitan 2008; Law (ed.) 2008), and the bombing of German cities in World War II (Grayling 2006; Primoratz 2010).

1.1.1 The reign of terror

1.1.2 propaganda by the deed, 1.1.3 the state as terrorist, 1.1.4 terrorists and freedom fighters, 1.2.1 violence and terror, 1.2.2 wide and narrow definitions, 1.2.3 some idiosyncratic definitions, 2.1 complicity of the victims, 2.2.1 terrorism justified, 2.2.2 terrorism unjustified, 2.3.1 basic human rights and distributive justice, 2.3.2 supreme emergency and moral disaster, 2.3.3 terrorism absolutely wrong, books, book chapters, and articles, special journal issues, other internet resources, related entries, 1. the conceptual issue.

The history of terrorism is probably coextensive with the history of political violence. The term “terrorism”, however, is relatively recent: it has been in use since late 18th century. Its use has repeatedly shifted in some significant respects. Moreover, in contemporary political discourse the word is often employed as a polemical term whose strong emotional charge occludes its somewhat vague descriptive meaning. All this tends to get in the way of sustained rational discussion of the nature and moral standing of terrorism and the best ways of coping with it.

1.1 “Terrorism” from the French Revolution to the early 21st century

When it first entered public discourse in the West, the word “terrorism” meant the reign of terror the Jacobins imposed in France from the fall of 1793 to the summer of 1794. Its ultimate aim was the reshaping of both society and human nature. That was to be achieved by destroying the old regime, suppressing all enemies of the revolutionary government, and inculcating and enforcing civic virtue. A central role in attaining these objectives was accorded to revolutionary tribunals which had wide authority, were constrained by very few rules of procedure, and saw their task as carrying out revolutionary policy rather than meting out legal justice of the more conventional sort. They went after “enemies of the people”, actual or potential, proven or suspected; the law on the basis of which they were operating “enumerated just who the enemies of the people might be in terms so ambiguous as to exclude no one” (Carter 1989: 142). The standard punishment was death. Trials and executions were meant to strike terror in the hearts of all who lacked civic virtue; the Jacobins believed that was a necessary means of consolidating the new regime. This necessity provided both the rationale of the reign of terror and its moral justification. As Robespierre put it, terror was but “an emanation of virtue”; without it, virtue remained impotent. Accordingly, the Jacobins applied the term to their own actions and policies quite unabashedly, without any negative connotations.

Yet the term “terrorism” and its cognates soon took on very strong negative connotations. Critics of the excesses of the French Revolution had watched its reign with horror from the start. Terrorism came to be associated with drastic abuse of power and related to the notion of tyranny as rule based on fear, a recurring theme in political philosophy.

In the second half of the 19th century, there was a shift in both descriptive and evaluative meaning of the term. Disillusioned with other methods of political struggle, some anarchist and other revolutionary organizations, and subsequently some nationalist groups too, took to political violence. They had come to the conclusion that words were not enough, and what was called for were deeds: extreme, dramatic deeds that would strike at the heart of the unjust, oppressive social and political order, generate fear and despair among its supporters, demonstrate its vulnerability to the oppressed, and ultimately force political and social change. This was “propaganda by the deed”, and the deed was for the most part assassination of royalty or highly placed government officials. Unlike the Jacobins’ reign of terror, which operated in a virtually indiscriminate way, this type of terrorism—as both advocates and critics called it—was largely employed in a highly discriminate manner. This was especially true of Russian revolutionary organizations such as People’s Will or Socialist Revolutionary Party (SR): they held that it was morally justified to assassinate a government official only if his complicity in the oppressive regime was significant enough for him to deserve to die, and the assassination would make an important contribution to the struggle. Their violence steered clear of other, uninvolved or insufficiently involved persons. Some instances of “propaganda by the deed” carried out by French and Spanish anarchists in the 1880s and 1890s were indiscriminate killings of common citizens; but that was an exception, rather than the rule. The perpetrators and some of those sympathetic to their cause claimed those acts were nevertheless morally legitimate, whether as retribution (exacted on the assumption that no member of the ruling class was innocent) or as a means necessary for the overthrow of the unjust order. Accordingly, in their parlance, too, the term “terrorism” implied no censure. When used by others, it conveyed a strong condemnation of the practice.

The terrorism employed by both sides in the Russian Revolution and Civil War was in important respects a throwback to that of the Jacobins. The government set up in Russia by the victorious Bolsheviks was totalitarian. So was the Nazi rule in Germany. Both sought to impose total political control on society. Such a radical aim could only be pursued by a similarly radical method: by terrorism directed by an extremely powerful political police at an atomized and defenseless population. Its success was due largely to its arbitrary character—to the unpredictability of its choice of victims. In both countries, the regime first suppressed all opposition; when it no longer had any opposition to speak of, political police took to persecuting “potential” and “objective opponents”. In the Soviet Union, it was eventually unleashed on victims chosen at random. Totalitarian terrorism is the most extreme and sustained type of state terrorism. As Hannah Arendt put it, “terror is the essence of totalitarian domination”, and the concentration camp is “the true central institution of totalitarian organizational power” (Arendt 1958: 464, 438). While students of totalitarianism talked of terrorism as its method of rule, representatives of totalitarian regimes, sensitive to the pejorative connotation of the word, portrayed the practice as defense of the state from internal enemies.

However, state terrorism is not the preserve of totalitarian regimes. Some non-totalitarian states have resorted to terrorism against enemy civilians as a method of warfare, most notably when the RAF and USAAF bombed German and Japanese cities in World War II (see Lackey 2004). Those who designed and oversaw these campaigns never publicly described them as “terror bombing”, but that was how they often referred to them in internal communications.

After the heyday of totalitarian terrorism in the 1930s and 1940s, internal state terrorism continued to be practiced by military dictatorships in many parts of the world, albeit in a less sustained and pervasive way. But the type of terrorism that came to the fore in the second half of the 20th century and in early 21st century is that employed by insurgent organizations. Many movements for national liberation from colonial rule resorted to it, either as the main method of struggle or as a tactic complementing guerrilla warfare. So did some separatist movements. Some organizations driven by extreme ideologies, in particular on the left, took to terrorism as the way of trying to destroy what they considered an unjust, oppressive economic, social and political system. This type of terrorism is, by and large, indiscriminate in its choice of target: it attacks men and women of whatever political (or apolitical) views, social class, and walk of life; young and old, adults and children. It shoots at people, or blows them up by planting bombs, in office buildings, markets, cafes, cinemas, places of religious worship, on buses or planes, or in other vulnerable public places. It also takes people hostage, by hijacking planes and in other ways.

As “terrorism” has by now acquired a very strong pejorative meaning, no-one applies the word to their own actions or to actions and campaigns of those they sympathize with. Insurgents practicing terrorism portray their actions as struggle for liberation and seek to be considered and treated as soldiers rather than terrorists or criminals. They often depict their enemy—the alien government, or the agencies of the social, political and economic system—as the “true terrorists”. For them, the test of terrorism is not what is done , but rather what the ultimate aim of doing it is. If the ultimate aim is liberation or justice, the violence used in order to attain it is not terrorism, whereas the violence aiming at maintaining oppression or injustice, or some of the “structural violence” embodying it, is. On the other hand, governments tend to paint all insurgent violence with the brush of “terrorism”. Government spokespersons and pro-government media typically assume that terrorism is by definition something done by non-state agents, and that a state can never be guilty of terrorism (although it can sponsor terrorist organizations). For them, the test of terrorism is not what is done , but who does it. When a state agency uses violence, it is an act of war, or reprisal, or defense of the security of the state and its citizens; when an insurgent group does the same, it is terrorism. Under these circumstances, one person’s terrorist is indeed another’s freedom fighter, and public debate about terrorism is largely conducted at cross purposes and to little effect. Attempts of the United Nations to propose a definition of “terrorism” that could be accepted by all states and embedded in international law so far have been frustrated by the same sort of relativism. Islamic countries would accept no definition that allowed national liberation movements in the Middle East and Kashmir to be portrayed as terrorist, whereas Western countries would accept no definition that allowed for state agencies to be guilty of terrorism.

1.2 Two core traits of terrorism and two types of definition

The evaluative meaning of “terrorism” has shifted considerably more than once. So has its descriptive meaning, but to a lesser degree. Whatever else the word may have meant, its ordinary use over more than two centuries has typically indicated two things: violence and intimidation (the causing of great fear or terror, terrorizing). The dominant approach to the conceptual question in philosophical literature reflects this. Terrorism is usually understood as a type of violence. This violence is not blind or sadistic, but rather aims at intimidation and at some further political, social, or religious goal or, more broadly, at coercion.

That is how (political) “terrorism” is defined by Per Bauhn in the first philosophical book-length study in English:

The performance of violent acts, directed against one or more persons, intended by the performing agent to intimidate one or more persons and thereby to bring about one or more of the agent’s political goals (Bauhn 1989: 28).

Another good example of a mainstream definition is provided in C.A.J. Coady’s article on terrorism in the Encyclopedia of Ethics :

The tactic of intentionally targeting non-combatants [or non-combatant property, when significantly related to life and security] with lethal or severe violence … meant to produce political results via the creation of fear (Coady 2001: 1697).

Yet another example is the definition proposed by Igor Primoratz:

The deliberate use of violence, or threat of its use, against innocent people, with the aim of intimidating some other people into a course of action they otherwise would not take (Primoratz 2013: 24).

These definitions put aside both the question of who the actor is and the question of what their ultimate objectives are, and focus on what is done and what the proximate aim of doing it is. They present terrorism as a way of acting that could be adopted by different agents and serve various ultimate objectives (most, but perhaps not all of them, political). It can be employed by states or by non-state agents, and may promote national liberation or oppression, revolutionary or conservative causes (and possibly pursue some nonpolitical aims as well). One can be a terrorist and a freedom fighter; terrorism is not the monopoly of enemies of freedom. One can hold high government or military office and design or implement a terrorist campaign; terrorism is not the preserve of insurgents. In this way much of the relativism concerning who is and who is not a terrorist that has plagued contemporary public debate (see 1.1.4 above) can be overcome.

Beyond concurring that violence and intimidation constitute the core of terrorism, the definitions quoted above differ in several respects. Does only actual violence count, or do threats of violence also qualify? Must terrorist violence be directed against life and limb, or does violence against (some) property also count? Does terrorism always seek to attain some political goal, or can there be non-political (e.g. criminal) terrorism? All these points are minor. There is also one major difference: while Coady and Primoratz define terrorism as violence against non-combatants or innocent people, respectively, Bauhn’s definition includes no such restriction. Definitions of the former type can be termed “narrow”, and those of the latter sort “wide”. Philosophical literature on terrorism abounds in instances of both types.

Should we adopt a wide or a narrow definition? A wide definition encompasses the entire history of “terrorism” from the Jacobins to the present, and is more in accord with current ordinary use. A narrow definition departs from much ordinary use by restricting terrorist violence to that directed at non-combatants or innocent persons. Thus it leaves out most of 19th century “propaganda by the deed” and political violence perpetrated by Russian revolutionaries which they themselves and the public called terrorist.

For these reasons, historians of terrorism normally work with a wide definition, and social scientists do so much of the time. But philosophers may well prefer a narrow definition. They focus on the moral standing of terrorism and need a definition that is particularly helpful in moral discourse. Morally speaking, surely there is a difference—for some, a world of difference—between planting a bomb in a government building and killing a number of highly placed officials of (what one considers) an unjust and oppressive government, and planting a bomb in a tea shop and killing a random collection of common citizens, including children. While both acts raise serious moral issues, these issues are not identical, and running them together under the same heading of “terrorism” will likely hamper, rather than help, discerning moral assessment.

Narrow definitions are revisionary, but (unlike those discussed in the next section) not implausibly so. They focus on the traits of terrorism that cause most of us to view the practice with deep moral repugnance: (i) violence (ii) against non-combatants (or, alternatively, against innocent people) for the sake of (iii) intimidation (and, on some definitions, (iv) coercion). In highlighting (ii), they relate the issue of terrorism to the ethics of war and one of the fundamental principles of just war theory, that of non-combatant immunity. They help distinguish terrorism from acts of war proper and political assassination, which do not target non-combatants or common citizens. It does not matter very much whether the victims of terrorism are described as “non-combatants” or “innocent people”, as each term is used in a technical sense, and both refer to those who have not lost their immunity against lethal or other extreme violence by being directly involved in, or highly responsible for, (what terrorists consider) insufferable injustice or oppression. In war, these are innocent civilians; in a violent conflict that falls short of war, these are common citizens.

Talk of involvement of individuals and groups in injustice or oppression raises the question: is the injustice or oppression at issue, and thus the standing of those implicated in it, to be determined by some objective criteria, or from the point of view of those who resort to violence? Coady chooses the former option. He approaches terrorism from the standpoint of just war theory and its principle of noncombatant immunity. “Combatants” is a technical term designating agents of aggression or, more broadly, “dangerous wrongdoers” or “agents of harm”; they are legitimate targets of potentially lethal violence. All others are noncombatants, and enjoy immunity from such violence (Coady 2004). This approach may not be difficult to apply in war, where the wrong or harm at issue is either aggression that needs to be repelled, or systematic and large-scale violations of human rights that provide the ground for humanitarian intervention. Issues of injustice or oppression that arise in an internal conflict that falls short of war, however, tend to be highly contentious: what some consider an imperfect, but basically morally legitimate political and social order, others may see as the epitome of injustice and oppression that must be overthrown, if need be by violence. Under such circumstances, when a highly placed political official is killed by insurgents, that may be characterized (and condemned) by many as an act of terrorism, while the insurgents and those sympathetic to their struggle may reject this characterization and portray (and justify) the killing as political assassination.

In order to avoid this kind of relativism, Primoratz puts forward a view that in one important respect takes on board the standpoint of the terrorist. The direct victims of terrorism are innocent in the sense of not being responsible, on any credible understanding of responsibility and liability, for the injustice or oppression the terrorists fight against—not responsible at all, or at least not responsible to the degree that makes them liable to be killed or maimed on that account. The injustice or oppression at issue need not be real; it may be merely alleged (by the terrorists). Being responsible for a merely alleged great injustice or oppression is enough for losing one’s immunity against violence, as far as the type of immunity and innocence relevant to defining terrorism is concerned. According to the traditional version of just war theory one does not lose immunity against acts of war only by fighting in an unjust war, but by fighting in any war. Similarly, one does not lose immunity against political violence only by holding office in or implementing policies of a gravely unjust government, but by holding office in or implementing policies of any government: as King Umberto I of Italy said after surviving an assassination attempt, such risk comes with the job. Members of these two classes are not considered innocent and morally protected against violence by those attacking them; the latter view their acts as acts of war proper or of political assassination, respectively. If the terrorists subscribe to a credible view of responsibility and liability, then, when they attack common citizens, they attack people innocent from their own point of view, i.e., innocent even if we grant the terrorists their assessment of the policies at issue. (This is not to say that those who consider a government to be gravely unjust have a moral license to kill its officials, but only that if they do so, that will not be terrorism, but rather political assassination. We can still condemn their actions if we reject their judgment of the policies at issue, or if we accept that judgment, but believe that they should have opposed those policies by nonviolent means. But we will not be condemning their actions qua terrorism.)

On this account, not only real, but also merely alleged injustice or oppression counts in determining the innocence of the victims and deciding which acts are acts of terrorism; thus such decisions are not hostage to endless debates about the moral status of contested policies. Nevertheless, a residue of relativity remains. The account presupposes a certain understanding of responsibility and liability: a person is responsible for a state of affairs only by virtue of that person’s voluntary, i.e., informed and free, act or omission that has a sufficiently strong connection with that state of affairs, and thereby becomes liable to some proportionately unfavorable response. Provided the terrorists accept some such understanding of responsibility and liability, they kill and maim people they themselves must admit to be innocent. To be sure, some militant organizations resort to violence which we perceive as terrorist, yet object to the label. They profess a view of responsibility and liability based on extremely far-fetched connections between states of affairs and human choices and actions, and argue that entire social classes or nations are responsible for certain policies and practices and all their members are liable to be attacked by deadly violence (for more on this, see 2.1 below). Such arguments can only be regarded as preposterous. We should insist on viewing their actions as terrorist, although they reject this description. It is not clear how this residue of relativity could be removed (Primoratz 2013: 16–21).

Some object to defining “terrorism” as violence against non-combatants or innocent persons. They argue that doing so runs together the question of the nature of terrorism and that of its moral status, and begs the moral issue by making terrorism unjustified by definition. We should rather keep these questions separate, and take care not to prejudge the latter by giving a wrong answer to the former. What is needed is a morally neutral definition of terrorism, and that means a wide one (Corlett 2003: 114–20, 134–35; Young 2004: 57). But it is doubtful that “terrorism” can be defined in some morally untainted way. The wide definitions these philosophers adopt contain the word “violence”, which is itself morally loaded. A narrow definition is not completely morally neutral, as violence against the innocent is clearly morally wrong. But what is clear is that such violence is prima facie wrong. The definition implies a general presumption against terrorism, not its sweeping moral condemnation in each and every instance, whatever the circumstances and whatever the consequences of desisting from it. The definition does not rule out that in certain circumstances it might not be wrong, all things considered. Ethical investigation is not preempted: a particular case of terrorism still needs to be judged on its merits.

Another way of settling the issue of wide vs. narrow definition is offered by Georg Meggle. He adopts a wide definition of terrorism, and goes on to distinguish two different types: terrorism in the strong sense, which deliberately, recklessly, or negligently harms innocent people, and terrorism in the weak sense, which does not. Obviously, the moral assessment of the two types of terrorism is going to be significantly different (Meggle 2005).

The vast majority of cases almost anyone without an ax to grind would want to classify as “terrorism” exhibit the two traits implied in ordinary use and highlighted by mainstream philosophical definitions such as those quoted above: violence and intimidation. But philosophical literature also offers definitions that leave out one or the other core component.

Some seek to sever the connection between terrorism and violence. Carl Wellman defines terrorism as “the use or attempted use of terror as a means of coercion”. Terrorism is often associated with violence, but that is because violence is a very effective means of intimidation. Yet “violence is not essential to terrorism and, in fact, most acts of terrorism are nonviolent” (Wellman 1979: 250–51). The last claim seems false on any non-circular interpretation. There may be many acts generally considered terrorist that do not involve actual violence, but are meant to intimidate by threatening it; but that is not enough to support the notion of “non-violent terrorism”, which seems odd. So does Wellman’s example of “classroom terrorism”: a professor threatens to fail students who submit their essays after the due date, causes panic in class, and thereby engages in terrorism.

Robert E. Goodin offers a similar account, emphasizing the political role of terrorism: terrorism is “a political tactic, involving the deliberate frightening of people for political advantage” (Goodin 2006: 49). This, he claims, is the distinctive wrong terrorists commit. Whereas on Wellman’s account one can commit an act of terrorism without either engaging in or threatening violence, merely by making a threat in order to intimidate, on Goodin’s account one need not even make a threat: one acts as a terrorist by merely issuing a warning about the acts of others that is meant to intimidate. This, too, seems arbitrary, although it makes sense as a step in an argument meant to show that “ if (or insofar as ) Western political leaders are intending to frighten people for their own political advantage, then (to that extent ) they are committing the same core wrong that is distinctively associated with terrorism” (Goodin 2006: 2).

It has also been suggested that terrorism need not be understood as inducing terror or fear. According to Ted Honderich, terrorism is best defined as “violence, short of war, political, illegal and prima facie wrong” (Honderich 2006: 88). This definition might be thought problematic on several counts, but the idea of “terrorism” without “terror” seems especially odd. The two are connected etymologically and historically, and this connection is deeply entrenched in current ordinary use. Intimidation is not the morally salient trait of terrorism ( pace Goodin), but it is one of its core traits that cause most of us to condemn the practice. We might consider severing the connection if Honderich offered a good reason for doing so. But he supports his highly revisionary definition by the puzzling claim that to define terrorism as violence meant to intimidate is to imply that terrorism is particularly abhorrent and thereby “in effect … invite a kind of prima facie approval or tolerance of war” (Honderich 2006: 93).

2. The moral issue

Can terrorism be morally justified? There is no single answer to this question, as there is no single conception of what terrorism is. If we put aside definitions that depart too much, and for no compelling reason, from the core meaning of “terrorism” (such as those cited in 1.2.3), we still need to decide whether the question assumes a wide or a narrow understanding of terrorism. A narrow conception of terrorism seems to be better suited to ethical investigation (1.2.2). Moreover, philosophers who work with a wide definition typically hold that terrorism that targets non-combatants or innocent persons is much more difficult to justify than “selective” terrorism which attacks only those who cannot plausibly claim innocence of the injustice or oppression at issue (and which accordingly does not count as “terrorism” on a narrow definition of the term). The present discussion therefore focuses on terrorism understood as violence against innocent civilians or common citizens, intended to intimidate and thereby to achieve some further (political) objective or, more broadly, to coerce.

One might try to justify some acts or campaigns of violence of this kind in two ways. One could argue that the victims may be non-combatants or common citizens, but nevertheless are not innocent of the wrongs the terrorists are fighting against. Alternatively, one could concede the innocence of the victims and argue that attacks on them are nevertheless justified, either by their consequences on balance, or by some deontological considerations.

If the former line of argument is successful, will it prove too much? In showing that an instance of violence was justified because those targeted were not really innocent, we will have shown that the act or campaign of violence at issue was actually not a case of terrorism. This may be merely a matter of semantics. There is a much more damaging objection. A terrorist act is characteristically the killing or injuring of a random collection of people who happen to be in a certain place at a certain time. Arguments to the effect that those people are not innocent of the wrongs the terrorist fights against will therefore have a very wide reach, and accordingly will be based on some simplistic conception of collective responsibility. These arguments will be of the sort offered, for example, by the 19th century anarchist Emile Henry. He planted a bomb at the office of a mining company which, if it had exploded, would have killed or injured a number of people who did not work for the company, but lived in the same building. He also planted a bomb in a café that did go off, injuring twenty people, one of whom later died of his injuries. At his trial, Henry explained: “What about the innocent victims? […] The building where the Carmeaux Company had its offices was inhabited only by the bourgeois; hence there would be no innocent victims. The whole of the bourgeoisie lives by the exploitation of the unfortunate, and should expiate its crimes together” (Henry 1977: 193). When commenting on the second attack, he said:

Those good bourgeois who hold no office but who reap their dividends and live idly on the profits of the workers’ toil, they also must take their share in the reprisals. And not only they, but all those who are satisfied with the existing order, who applaud the acts of the government and so become its accomplices … in other words, the daily clientele of Terminus and other great cafés! (Henry 1977: 195)

This is an utterly implausible view of responsibility and liability. It claims that all members of a social class—men and women, young and old, adults and children—are liable to be killed or maimed: some for operating the system of exploitation, others for supporting it, and still others for benefiting from it. Even if, for the sake of argument, we grant the anarchist’s harsh moral condemnation of capitalist society, not every type and degree of involvement with it can justify the use of extreme violence. Giving the system political support, or benefiting from it, may be morally objectionable, but is surely not enough to make one liable to be blown to pieces.

Another, more recent example, is provided by Osama Bin Laden. In an interview in the aftermath of the attacks on September 11, 2001 he said:

The American people should remember that they pay taxes to their government and that they voted for their president. Their government makes weapons and provides them to Israel, which they use to kill Palestinian Muslims. Given that the American Congress is a committee that represents the people, the fact that it agrees with the actions of the American government proves that America in its entirety is responsible for the atrocities that it is committing against Muslims (Bin Laden 2005: 140–141).

This, too, is a preposterous understanding of responsibility and liability. For it claims that all Americans are eligible to be killed or maimed: some for devising and implementing America’s policies, others for participating in the political process, still others for paying taxes. Even if, for the sake of argument, we grant Bin Laden’s severe condemnation of those policies, not every type and degree of involvement with them can justify the use of lethal violence. Surely voting in elections or paying taxes is not enough to make one fair game.

Attempts at justification of terrorism that concede that its victims are innocent seem more promising. They fall into two groups, depending on the type of ethical theory on which they are based.

2.2 Consequentialism

Adherents of consequentialism judge terrorism, like every other practice, solely by its consequences. Terrorism is not considered wrong in itself, but only if it has bad consequences on balance. The innocence of the victims does not change that. This is an instance of a general trait of consequentialism often highlighted by its critics, for example in the debate about the moral justification of legal punishment. A standard objection to the consequentialist approach to punishment has been that it implies that punishment of the innocent is justified, when its consequences are good on balance. This objection can only get off the ground because consequentialism denies that in such matters a person’s innocence is morally significant in itself.

Those who consider terrorism from a consequentialist point of view differ in their assessment of its morality. Their judgment on terrorism depends on their view of the good to be promoted by its use and on their assessment of the utility of terrorism as a means of promoting it. There is room for disagreement on both issues.

Kai Nielsen approaches questions to do with political violence in general and terrorism in particular as a consequentialist in ethics and a socialist in politics. The use of neither can be ruled out categorically; it all depends on their utility as a method for attaining morally and politically worthwhile objectives such as “a truly socialist society” or liberation from colonial rule. “When and where [either] should be employed is a tactical question that must be decided … on a case-by-case basis … like the choice of weapon in a war” (Nielsen 1981: 435). Nielsen has a wide definition of terrorism, but his examples show that the innocence of the victims of terrorism makes no difference to its justification—that is, that his conclusions apply to terrorism in both the wide and narrow sense. In his view,

terrorist acts must be justified by their political effects and their moral consequences. They are justified (1) when they are politically effective weapons in the revolutionary struggle and (2) when, everything considered, there are sound reasons for believing that, by the use of that type of violence rather than no violence at all or violence of some other type, there will be less injustice, suffering and degradation in the world than would otherwise have been the case (Nielsen 1981: 446).

Historical experience, in Nielsen’s view, tells us that terrorism on a small scale, used as the sole method of struggle in order to provoke the masses into revolutionary action, is ineffective and often counterproductive. On the other hand, terrorism employed in conjunction with guerrilla warfare in a protracted war of liberation may well prove useful and therefore also justified, as it did in Algeria and South Vietnam. (For an earlier statement of the same view, see Trotsky 1961: 48–59, 62–65.)

Nicholas Fotion also uses a wide definition of terrorism. He, too, is a consequentialist (although some of his remarks concerning the innocence of many victims of terrorism might be more at home in nonconsequentialist ethics). But he finds standard consequentialist assessments of terrorism such as Nielsen’s too permissive. If some types of terrorism are justifiable under certain circumstances, such circumstances will be extremely rare. Terrorists and their apologists do not perform the requisite calculations properly. One problem is the “higher good” to be promoted by terrorism: more often than not, it is defined in ideological terms, rather than derived from settled preferences or interests of actual people. But for the most part Fotion discusses the issue of means. If a terrorist act or campaign is to be justified instrumentally, it must be shown (1) that the end sought is good enough to justify the means, (2) that the end will indeed be achieved by means of terrorism, and (3) that the end cannot be achieved in any other way that is morally and otherwise less costly. Terrorists not only, as a matter of fact, fail to discharge this burden; Fotion argues that, with regard to terrorism that victimizes innocent people, it cannot be discharged. All direct victims of terrorism are treated as objects to be used—indeed, used up—by the terrorist. But

in being treated as an object, the innocent victim is worse off than the (alleged) guilty victim. Insofar as the latter is judged to have done a wrong, he is thought of as a human. […] For the terrorist the innocent victim is neither a human in this judgmental sense nor a human in the sense of simply having value as a human being. Of course the terrorist needs to pick a human being as a victim … because [that] brings about more terror … But this does not involve treating them as humans. Rather, they are victimized and thereby treated as objects because they are humans (Fotion 1981: 464).

In reply, terrorists can claim that they advisedly sacrifice valued human beings for a higher good. But for this claim to carry any conviction, they would have to show that they have no alternative. Yet, Fotion argues, they always have the alternative of taking on the opponent’s military establishment, and often also have the option of going after government officials responsible for the wrongs they object to, instead of attacking innocent persons. That kind of terrorism may sometimes be justified, whereas terrorism that targets innocent people never is.

2.3 Nonconsequentialism

Within a nonconsequentialist approach to morality, terrorism is considered wrong in itself, because of what it is, rather than only because (and insofar as) its consequences are bad on balance. But this is not to say that this approach leaves no room whatever for morally justifying certain acts or campaigns of terrorism. Indeed, nonconsequentialist discussions of terrorism also present a range of positions and arguments.

A nonconsequentialist might try to justify an act or campaign of terrorism in one of two ways. One might invoke some deontological considerations, such as justice or rights, in favor of resorting to terrorism under certain circumstances. Alternatively, one might argue that the obvious, and obviously very weighty, considerations of rights (of the victims of terrorism) and justice (which demands respect for those rights) may sometimes be overridden by extremely weighty considerations of consequences—an extremely high price that would be paid for not resorting to terrorism. For the rejection of consequentialism is of course not tantamount to denying that consequences of our actions, policies, and practices matter in their moral assessment; what is denied is the consequentialists’ claim that only consequences matter.

Virginia Held operates with a broad notion of terrorism, but her justification of terrorism is meant to apply to terrorism that targets common citizens. Her discussion of the subject focuses on the issue of rights. When rights of a person or group are not respected, what may we do in order to ensure that they are? On one view, known as consequentialism of rights, if the only way to ensure respect of a certain right of A and B is to infringe the same right of C , we shall be justified in doing so. Held does not hold that such trade-offs in rights with the aim of maximizing their respect in a society are appropriate. Yet rights sometimes come into conflict, whether directly or indirectly (as in the above example). When that happens, there is no way we can avoid comparing the rights involved as more or less stringent and making certain choices between them. That applies to the case of terrorism too. Terrorism obviously violates some human rights of its victims. But its advocates claim that in some circumstances a limited use of terrorism is the only way of bringing about a society where human rights of all will be respected.

Even when this claim is true, that is not enough to make resort to terrorism justified. But it will be justified if an additional condition is met: that of distributive justice. If there is a society where the human rights of a part of the population are respected, while the same rights of another part of the population are being violated; if the only way of changing that and ensuring that human rights of all are respected is a limited use of terrorism; finally, if terrorism is directed against members of the first group, which up to now has been privileged as far as respect of human rights is concerned—then terrorism will be morally justified. This is a justification in terms of distributive justice, applied to the problem of violations of human rights. It is more just to equalize the violations of human rights in a stage of transition to a society where the rights of all are respected, than to allow that the group which has already suffered large-scale violations of human rights suffer even more such violations (assuming that in both cases we are dealing with violations of the same, or equally stringent, human rights). The human rights of many are going to be violated in any case; it is more just, and therefore morally preferable, that their violations should be distributed in a more equitable way (Held 2008).

It might be objected that in calling for sacrificing such basic human rights as the right to life and to bodily security of individual victims of terrorism for the sake of a more just distribution of violations of the same rights within a group in the course of transition to a stage where these rights will be respected throughout that group, Held offends against the principles of separateness of persons and respect for persons (Primoratz 1997: 230–31). In response, Held argues that

to fail to achieve a more just distribution of violations of rights (through the use of terrorism if that is the only means available) is to fail to recognize that those whose rights are already not fairly respected are individuals in their own right, not merely members of a group … whose rights can be ignored.

An argument for achieving a just distribution of rights violations is not necessarily about groups; it can be an argument about the rights of individuals to fairness (Held 2008: 89–90). (For further objections to Held’s argument, see Steinhoff 2007: 125–30; Brooks 2010; Nath 2011.)

In Held’s justification of terrorism, it is justice that requires that inescapable violations of human rights be more evenly distributed. There is a different way of allowing for the use of terrorism under certain circumstances within a nonconsequentialist approach to the ethics of violence. It could be argued that, as far as justice and rights are concerned, terrorism (or, in Held’s terminology, the kind of terrorism that targets the innocent) is never justified. Furthermore, considerations of justice and rights carry much greater weight than considerations of good and bad consequences, and therefore normally trump the latter in cases of conflict. However, in exceptional circumstances considerations concerning consequences—the price of not resorting to terrorism—may be so extremely weighty as to override those of justice and rights.

Michael Walzer offers an argument along these lines in his discussion of “terror bombing” of German cities in World War II. In early 1942, it seemed that Britain would be defeated by Germany and that its military could not prevail while fighting in accordance with the rules of war. Britain was the only remaining obstacle to the subjugation of most of Europe by the Nazis. That was “an ultimate threat to everything decent in our lives, an ideology and a practice of domination so murderous, so degrading even to those who might survive, that the consequences of its final victory were literally beyond calculation, immeasurably awful” (Walzer 2000: 253). Thus Britain was facing a “supreme emergency”: an (a) imminent threat of (b) something utterly unthinkable from a moral point of view. In such an emergency—a case of the “dirty hands” predicament that so often plagues political action (see Walzer 1973)—one may breach a basic and weighty moral principle such as civilian immunity, if that is the only hope of fending off the threat. So for more than three years, the RAF, later joined by the USAAF, deliberately devastated many German cities, killed about 600,000 civilians and seriously injured another 800,000 in an attempt to terrorize the German people into forcing their leadership to halt the war and surrender unconditionally. By early 1943 it was clear that Germany was not going to win the war, and all subsequent terror bombing lacked moral justification. But in its first year, in Walzer’s view, the terror bombing of Germany was morally justified as a response to the supreme emergency Britain was facing. Walzer then expands the notion of supreme emergency to apply to a single political community facing the threat of extermination or enslavement, and eventually to a single political community whose “survival and freedom” are at stake. For “the survival and freedom of political communities—whose members share a way of life, developed by their ancestors, to be passed on to their children—are the highest values of international society” (Walzer 2000: 254).

Here we have two different conceptions of supreme emergency. The threat is imminent in both, but the nature of the threat differs: it is one thing to suffer the fate the Nazis had in store for peoples they considered racially inferior, and another to have one’s polity dismantled. By moving back and forth between these two types of supreme emergency under the ambiguous heading of threat to “the survival and freedom of a political community”, Walzer seeks to extend to the latter the moral response that might be appropriate to the former. Yet whereas genocide, expulsion, or enslavement of an entire people might be thought a moral disaster that may be fended off by any means, its loss of political independence is, at most, a political disaster. If a polity to be dismantled lacks moral legitimacy, its demise may well be a moral improvement. But even if a polity does have moral legitimacy, a threat to its “survival and freedom” falls short of “an ultimate threat to everything decent in our lives”. If so, its military cannot be justified in waging war on enemy civilians in order to defend it. (On supreme emergencies see, for instance, Statman 2006; Kaplan 2011.)

There is another, less permissive position constructed along similar lines, but based on a more austere view of what counts as a moral disaster that might justify resort to terrorism. Contrary to what many fighters against social or economic oppression, colonial rule, or foreign occupation believe, evils of such magnitude that they can justify indiscriminate killing and maiming of innocent people are extremely rare. Not every case of oppression, foreign rule, or occupation, however morally indefensible, amounts to a moral disaster in the relevant sense. Nor does every imminent threat to “the survival and freedom of a political community” qualify, contrary to what Walzer has argued. However, if an entire people is subjected to extermination, or to an attempt at “ethnically cleansing” it from its land, then it is facing a true moral disaster and may properly consider terrorism as a method of struggle against such a fate. In view of their enormity and finality, extermination and “ethnic cleansing” of an entire people constitute a category apart. To be sure, resorting to terrorism in such a case will be morally justified only if there are very good grounds for believing that terrorism will succeed where nothing else will: in preventing imminent extermination or “ethnic cleansing”, or stopping it if it is already under way. Cases where both conditions are met will be extremely rare. Indeed, history may not offer a single example. But that does not mean that no act or campaign of terrorism could ever satisfy these conditions and thus turn out to be justified. Accordingly, terrorism is almost absolutely wrong (Primoratz 2013: chapter 6).

Both the “supreme emergency” and the “moral disaster” view will justify a resort to terrorism only when that is the only way to deal with the emergency, or to prevent the disaster, respectively. Just how certain must we be that terrorism will indeed achieve the goal, while no other method will? One might argue that when in extremis , we cannot apply stringent epistemic standards in deciding how to cope—indeed, if we cannot really know what will work, we must take our chances with what might. This is Walzer’s view: in such a predicament, we must “wager” the crime of terrorism against the evil that is otherwise in store for us. “There is no option; the risk otherwise is too great” (Walzer 2000: 259–260). It may be objected that this position highlights the enormity of the threat, while failing to give due weight to the enormity of the means proposed for fending off the threat—the enormity of terrorism, of deliberately killing and maiming innocent people. When that is taken into account, the conclusion may rather be that even in extremis , if terrorism is to be justified, the reasons for believing that it will work and that nothing else will must be very strong indeed.

Some hold that terrorism is absolutely wrong. This position, too, comes in different versions. Some philosophers work with a wide definition of terrorism, and argue that under certain circumstances “selective” terrorism that targets only those seriously implicated in the wrongs at issue may be justified (Corlett 2003, Young 2004). This seems to suggest that terrorism which is not selective in this way—that is, terrorism in the narrow sense—is never justified. Yet this does not follow: there is still room for arguing that terrorism of the latter type can be justified by further considerations, such as those of “supreme emergency” or “moral disaster”.

Per Bauhn does not leave it at that. He attempts to show that terrorism that targets non-combatants or common citizens can never be justified by deploying a slightly amended version of Alan Gewirth’s ethical theory. Freedom and safety are fundamental prerequisites of action and therefore must be accorded paramount weight. The need to protect them generates a range of rights; the right pertinent here is “an absolute right not to be made the intended victims of a homicidal project” all innocent persons have (Gewirth 1981: 16). When the absolute status of this right is challenged by invoking supreme emergency or moral disaster, Bauhn argues that there is a moral difference between what we are positively and directly causally responsible for, and what we are causally responsible for only indirectly, by failing to prevent other persons from intentionally bringing it about. We are morally responsible for the former, but (except in certain special circumstances) not for the latter. If we refuse to resort to terrorism in order not to target innocent persons, and thus fail to prevent some other persons from perpetrating atrocities, it is only the perpetrators who will be morally responsible for those atrocities. Therefore we must refuse (Bauhn 1989: chapter 5).

Some philosophers base their absolute rejection of terrorism on the slippery slope argument, and argue that “the appeal to supreme emergency is too dangerous to be allowed as a publicly available vindication for terrorism, no matter how rare the circumstances are meant to be” (Coady 2021: 143–44).

Stephen Nathanson seeks to ground the absolute immunity of civilians or common citizens and the absolute prohibition of terrorism which it entails in a rule-consequentialist ethical theory (Nathanson 2010: 191–208). Adopting civilian immunity, rather than adopting any other rule regulating the matter or having no rule at all, is the best way to reduce the killing and destruction in armed conflict. Moreover, the best consequences will be achieved by adopting it as an absolute rule, rather than as a rule allowing for exceptions in supreme emergencies. The idea of supreme emergency is vague. The criteria for proffering supreme emergency exemptions are liable to be applied in arbitrary and subjective ways. Finally, there is the slippery slope argument: “permitting [departures from the rule of civilian immunity, including terrorism] even under the direst circumstances will lower the bar for justifying such acts … broadcast the message that such behavior may sometimes be justified and … thus lend its weight to increasing the use of such methods” (Nathanson 2010: 207).

However, one can adopt rule-consequentialism as one’s ethical theory and yet view the immunity of civilians or common citizens and the attendant prohibition of terrorism as very stringent, but not absolute moral rules. Thus Richard B. Brandt and Brad Hooker do not view this immunity as absolute. They argue that a set of moral rules selected because of the good consequences of their adoption should include a rule that allows and indeed requires one to prevent disaster even if that means breaking some other moral rule. Even such a stringent moral rule as the prohibition of deliberate use of violence against innocent people may be overridden, if the disaster that cannot be prevented in any other way is grave enough. (See Brandt 1992: 87–88, 150–51, 156–57; Hooker 2000: 98–99, 127–36). There is thus some convergence at the level of practical conclusions between their understanding of the immunity of civilians or common citizens and the “moral disaster” position outlined above (2.3.2).

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Library of Congress Catalog Data: ISSN 1095-5054

Terrorism and the threat to democracy

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Daniel l. byman daniel l. byman director and professor, security studies program - georgetown university, senior fellow - foreign policy , center for middle east policy @dbyman.

February 2019

Executive Summary

Terrorism does more than kill the innocent: It undermines democratic governments, even in mature democracies like those in the United States and much of Europe. The fear terrorism generates can distort public debates, discredit moderates, empower political extremes, and polarize societies. An array of actors, including governments, international institutions, and civil society can decrease the scale and scope of terrorist violence and mitigate its most dangerous political effects. 1

To mitigate the danger terrorism poses to democracies, the United States and its allies should continue to emphasize intelligence-sharing and expand such efforts when possible. This is true even though in 2018 the number of successful jihadist attacks fell dramatically in the United States and Europe. Although the Islamic State continued to plot terrorist attacks, aggressive law enforcement and the disruption of the Islamic State’s safe haven account for much of the decline. 2 U.S. and European governments should step up efforts to penetrate right-wing terrorist movements, arrest their members, and devote more resources to this problem. Given the recent decline in jihadist violence, transferring some resources is appropriate. In the United States, Congress should authorize more resources for this problem. Improving social services to Muslim communities is vital, especially in new areas with many recent refugees. This involves governments, civil society organizations, and the international aid community. The United States and Europe should cooperate on standards for internet companies, and the companies should also work together to create standards for right-wing hate groups. In foreign policy, U.S. and European diplomats should try to decrease the intensity of wars in the Middle East by pressing outside powers like Saudi Arabia and Iran to end their interventions, and in general, try to prevent and resolve wars in the region. Finally, political leaders should emphasize societal resilience in order to decrease the psychological impact of terrorism.

Democracy & Disorder; The Struggle for Influence in the New Geopolitics

How Terrorism Is Wrong: Morality and Political Violence

Virginia Held, How Terrorism Is Wrong: Morality and Political Violence , Oxford University Press, 2008, 205pp., $45.00 (hbk), ISBN 9780195329599.

Reviewed by Igor Primoratz, University of Melbourne

This is a book on terrorism and political violence more generally, written by a philosopher and accordingly focusing on conceptual and moral, rather than empirical or historical, questions. The book is meant for fellow philosophers and political theorists, but it is written clearly and without philosophical jargon, and will be accessible, and of much interest, to the general reader too.

While political violence is a traditional topic in political and moral philosophy, terrorism -- the type of political violence generally considered most difficult to defend -- was not much discussed before the attacks in the US on 11 September 2001. Virginia Held is one of the few philosophers who gave it sustained attention before it became a fashionable topic. The present book is a collection of seven essays she has published over the last twenty-odd years and one previously unpublished paper. Some essays discuss terrorism or political violence generally, while others look into such related issues as the ways the media deals with political violence, or collective responsibility for ethnic hatred and violence. There is also an essay on the methods of moral inquiry.

In her approach to moral questions, Held combines consequentialism, deontological ethics and the ethics of care. The relevance of the last approach to discussing issues of political violence is rather limited, and Held's position on terrorism and political violence is grounded in consequentialist and deontological considerations of a more traditional type. So is just war theory, but Held's views are not a version of that theory. Indeed, she doubts that just war theory can be of much help in understanding and judging contemporary armed conflicts.

The title of the book might be thought somewhat misleading, as Held does not so much seek to show how terrorism is wrong as how it can be right. To be sure, a title highlighting the latter prospect probably would not have been a good idea in the current atmosphere of the "war on terror." This "war" is both driven and defended by a "moral clarity" claimed by leaders of some major powers and by many analysts and commentators. Held rightly challenges this facile "moral clarity," according to which all terrorism is morally the same, clearly distinct from war, and a monopoly of insurgents, who are both amoral and utterly irrational and fanatical, and therefore never to be engaged with in dialogue or negotiation. She goes on to argue that we should not adopt a sweeping moral rejection of all terrorism, whatever the cause it serves, the circumstances in which it does so, and the consequences of refraining from it; that terrorism is not "uniquely atrocious"; and that it is not necessarily morally worse than war.

The scope and import of any moral assessment of terrorism depends on just what is meant by "terrorism". Accordingly, Held discusses at some length the question of how the term should be defined. The usage over the two centuries or so since the term entered political and moral discourse in the West has been notoriously confusing, fraught with moral emotions and political passions, and plagued by relativism and double standards. It is in such cases that philosophy can demonstrate its relevance to public debates by clarifying central concepts and main positions, spotting missteps in argument, exposing prejudice and double standards, and thus facilitating more rational and discerning moral deliberation and choice. Most definitions of terrorism crafted by philosophers acknowledge the two traits that make up the core concept underlining all shifts in descriptive and evaluative meaning: terrorism is violence aiming at intimidation (fear, terror). Beyond this, philosophers tend to disagree, most importantly on whether terrorism is violence against civilians (non-combatants, innocent people), or can also target members of the military and security services and highly placed government officials. This is the question of a narrow vs. wide definition. A wide definition is in line with common use over two centuries, whereas a narrow definition is revisionary. Yet a narrow definition may be more appropriate in the context of moral assessment of violence and terrorism. Surely there is a considerable moral difference between planting a bomb in an office of (what is considered) an extremely oppressive government and killing a number of its officials, and planting a bomb in a coffee shop and killing a number of common citizens.

Held prefers a wide definition, for reasons I do not find convincing. One is common use. Held points out that the attack on the Marine barracks in Lebanon in 1983, or much Palestinian violence directed at Israeli soldiers, would not count as terrorism on a narrow definition, while the bombing of Dresden or Hiroshima would, and finds these implications unacceptable. To me, they seem just right. She quotes Walter Laqueur's remark that "most terrorist groups in the contemporary world have been attacking the military, the police, and the civilian population" (p. 55) as showing the inadequacy of a narrow definition. But surely the fact that a group has engaged in terrorism to an extent sufficient to consider it a terrorist group does not turn every act of political violence committed by the group into an act of terrorism. Finally, Held rejects narrow definitions on the ground that "it is not at all clear who the 'innocent' are as distinct from the 'legitimate' targets. We can perhaps agree that small children are innocent, but beyond this, there is little moral clarity" (pp. 19-20). Yet even if only "small children" were morally protected against violence that would be a weighty consideration, as indiscriminate political violence against civilians or common citizens is bound to kill and maim children too. Moreover, there are other classes of civilians that are just as clearly innocent in the relevant sense, i.e. innocent of the (alleged) injustice or oppression: opponents of the government, those too old or infirm to take part in political life, or those inculpably ignorant of the immorality of their government's policies.

The book offers two somewhat different definitions of terrorism: as "political violence that usually spreads fear beyond those attacked" and "perhaps more than anything else … resembles small-scale war" (p. 21), and as political violence employed with "the intention either to spread fear or to harm non-combatants" (p. 76). Both definitions run together war and terrorism, and imply that an act of war proper, i.e. one aimed at a legitimate military target, counts as terrorism. For, as Trotsky pointed out in his defense of the "red terror", "war … is founded upon intimidation… . [It] destroys only an insignificant part of the conquered army, intimidating the remainder and breaking their will" ( Terrorism and Communism , Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press, 1961, p. 58). Held accepts this implication of her position; I find it problematic.

Philosophers working with a wide definition of terrorism usually distinguish terrorism that targets the military and high government officials and terrorism that attacks common citizens, and argue that the former type of terrorism can be morally justified in certain circumstances, while the latter type is never, or almost never, justified. Held does not take this line. Her book offers two different justifications of terrorist violence, and both apply to the latter as well as the former kind of terrorism.

The first is in terms of the responsibility of citizens in a democracy for what their government does on their behalf. This justification is only suggested at several points in the book and is never developed and defended from likely objections. Held does not make it clear whether she sees common citizens as proper objects of terrorist violence because, as voters, they authorize the government's actions and policies (p. 20), or on account of various types and degrees of support they give the government (pp. 56, 78). Both these lines of argument are open to serious queries.

Held's second justification of terrorism, presented in chapter 4 )“Terrorism, Rights, and Political Goals”) is carefully spelled out. It focuses on the issue of human rights. When human rights of a person or group are not respected, what may we do in order to ensure that they are? On one view, known as consequentialism of rights, if the only way to ensure respect of a certain right of A and B is to infringe on the same right of C, we will be justified in doing so. Held does not accept such trade-offs in rights with the aim of maximizing their respect. But she points out that rights sometimes come into conflict, whether directly or indirectly. When that happens, we cannot avoid comparing the rights involved in terms of their stringency and making certain choices. That applies to the case of terrorism too. Terrorism violates some human rights of its victims. But its advocates claim that in certain circumstances a limited use of terrorism is the only way of bringing about a society in which the human rights of all will be respected.

Even when that is so, it is not enough to make resort to terrorism justified. But it will be justified if an additional condition is met: that of distributive justice. If there is a society where the human rights of a part of the population are respected, while the same rights of another part of the population are being violated, and if the only way of putting an end to that and bringing about a society in which human rights of all are respected is a limited use of terrorism, and finally, if terrorism is directed against members of the first group, which until now has been privileged as far as respect of human rights is concerned -- then terrorism will be morally justified. This is an argument of distributive justice, brought to bear on the problem of violations of human rights. It is more just to equalize the violations of human rights in a stage of transition to a society where the rights of all are respected, than to allow the group which has already suffered large-scale violations of human rights to suffer more such violations (assuming that in both cases we are dealing with violations of the same, or equally stringent, human rights). Human rights of many are going to be violated in any case. "If we must have rights violations, a more equitable distribution of such violations is better than a less equitable one" (p. 88).

This is an original, deontological cum consequentialist justification of terrorism. Neither the indispensable contribution of terrorism to bringing about equal respect of human rights of all nor the justice in the distribution of violations of such rights in the transition stage is, in itself, enough to justify its use. Each is necessary, and jointly the two are sufficient for its justification. Obviously, a critique that reduces Held's position to either of its prongs falls short of the mark. So does the objection that terrorism is as a matter of fact highly unlikely ever to help usher in a better, more just society. If so, that tells against terrorism, rather than against Held's (or any other) stringent moral requirements for a morally defensible recourse to it.

Another objection is that in allowing for sacrificing such basic human rights as the right to life and to bodily security of individual victims of terrorism for the sake of a more just distribution of violations of the same rights within a group in the course of transition to a stage where these rights will be respected throughout that group, Held adopts a collectivistic position that offends against the principles of separateness of persons and respect for persons. In response, Held argues that

to fail to achieve a more just distribution of violations of rights (through the use of terrorism if that is the only means available) is to fail to recognize that those whose rights are already not fairly respected are individuals in their own right, not merely members of a group … whose rights can be ignored. … Arguments for achieving a just distribution of rights violations need not be arguments … that are more than incidentally about groups. They can be arguments about individuals' rights to basic fairness. (pp. 89-90)

Still, a common citizen belonging to the relatively privileged section of the population has done nothing to forfeit her right to life. If she is killed by a terrorist seeking to make the distribution of right to life violations in the entire population more just, her right to life is violated for reasons to do with the group: for the sake of more justice within the group. This has nothing to do with her sins of commission or omission, and in this sense Held's is a collectivistic argument -- and an argument that I, for one, do not find convincing. Held argues that, if we fail to resort to terrorism in the circumstances described in her argument, we thereby fail to recognize that individuals belonging to the disadvantaged section of the population "are individuals in their own right," rather than merely members of a group whose human rights can be ignored. This argument is predicated on moral equivalence of acts and omissions, and on ascription of negative responsibility. This, too, I find problematic. We do not fail to respect the right to life of disadvantaged individuals when we fail to kill or maim other individuals, personally innocent of the plight of the former. The disadvantaged individuals do not have a right that we should engage in terrorism in their behalf, and we do not have a duty to do that. Indeed, I believe we have a duty not to do that.

Whether Held's two-prong justification of terrorism can be successfully defended against this and other possible objections or not, it remains an original, complex, and highly important position on the morality of terrorism. The essay presenting it is the centerpiece of Held's book and her most valuable contribution to the discussion of terrorism as far as fellow philosophers are concerned. The general reader will find much of interest in all the essays in this book. In the wider context of public debate about terrorism and the "war" against it, Held provides a strong antidote to the simplistic deliverances of "moral clarity" many of our political leaders and "public intellectuals" claim to possess.

Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

The future of counterterrorism: Twenty years after 9/11

National security experts examine how the United States and its allies and partners must reimagine their counterterrorism strategies to counter the next terrorist threat.

Engage with our series as we continue forecasting the future of counterterrorism

The twentieth anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York and Washington is a time for reflection and perspective. In the Atlantic Council’s Future of Counterterrorism Project series, some of the world’s foremost counterterrorism and national security practitioners and experts examine whether the United States and its allies should reset the fundamental assumptions, policies, and practices put in place after 9/11 in order to counter today’s and tomorrow’s terrorism threats. It should come as no surprise, twenty years after 9/11, that much needs to change for the future of counterterrorism.

The 9/11 attacks killed 2,977 people and led to a “Global War on Terrorism” against the terrorists responsible—as well as wider conflicts involving South Asia, Europe, the United States, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. In some ways, the campaign against those responsible for 9/11 has been a success: no terrorist attacks on the scale of 9/11 in twenty years. However, the threat has not been eradicated. Some of the sources of terrorism twenty years ago still threaten peace and security some twenty years later. Threats like domestic terrorism, which last posed a threat in the 1970s, are now back and pose a threat to democracy itself in the United States.

Scope: This series will look at terrorism threats by non-state actors, some supported by hostile governments, to carry out acts of violence (or their cyber equivalent) against civilian targets to advance political goals. This includes threats from groups like al-Qaeda and ISIS, proxies backed by nation-states like Iran, and ideologies with roots in divisive chapters of American history.

The Future of Counterterrorism Project pays special attention to the role of partnerships between governments and within the United States between federal, state, and local governments and the private sector, all of which contribute to addressing the threats from today’s terrorism.

List of acronyms

AI – artificial intelligence

COIN – counterinsurgency

CRISPR – clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats

CT – counterterrorism

CVE – countering violent extremism

DeFi – decentralized finance

DHS – Department of Homeland Security

FBI – Federal Bureau of Investigation

iGEM – International Genetically Engineered Machine

IoT – Internet of Things

ISIS – Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham

JCPOA – Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action

NKA – non-kinetic act

NRA – National Rifle Association

PKK – Kurdistan Workers’ Party

PPE – personal protective equipment

REMVE – racially or ethnically motivated violent extremism

RPV – remotely piloted vehicle

USAID – US Agency for International Development

WMD – weapons of mass destruction

What these practitioners and experts are saying

Each of the authors in this series writes independently, under the Atlantic Council’s policy of intellectual independence, drawing on their years of experience in counterterrorism:

Thomas S. Warrick writes about taking advantage of the next few years to plan and resource the efforts needed to end the current wave of terrorism.
Christopher P. Costa draws on experience with international terrorism to raise the need to combat hyper-tribalism that is driving domestic terrorism.
Amb. Nathan A. Sales points to the advantages of counterterrorism partnerships, even in an era of great-power competition.
Mary B. McCord calls for taking on the insider threat within law enforcement.
Javed Ali writes about the driving factors behind the current “fifth wave” of terrorism: white supremacism and anti-government attitudes.
LTG Michael Nagata, USA (Ret.) calls for an intellectual reckoning by practitioners and policy makers to address the need for greater investments in non-kinetic counterterrorism efforts.
Barbara Slavin looks at the missed opportunities to reset relations between the United States and Iran.
Nate Rosenblatt weighs whether treating Syria as a state sponsor of terrorism advances or holds back US national security interests.
Barry Pavel and Vikram Venkatram warn of the future threats from bioterrorism, particularly in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Arun Iyer draws attention to the considerable dangers of non-kinetic forms of terrorism.
Max Brooks , writing from the future in June 2032, draws attention to the causes of a future domestic terrorist attack on the scale of 9/11. Don’t say you weren’t warned.
Jennifer A. Counter describes how terrorists will use the Internet as a tool for dual-track efforts at public recruiting and private plotting.
Christopher Preble examines how the Global War on Terrorism appears to have undermined the United States’ reputation—and how this could have far-reaching geopolitical consequences.

Even with this breadth of expertise, several common themes emerge.

The United States should not stay locked into ideas and institutions that, arguably, worked well enough over the past twenty years to prevent a recurrence of a mass casualty attack like 9/11 but that are no longer suited to the terrorism threats of the future.
Military power played a dominant role in US efforts against terrorist threats over the past twenty years, but the future of counterterrorism will require an increase in leaders’ attention and resources for civilian security and law enforcement. Domestic terrorism, in particular, is now a major threat to American democracy, but it obviously does not require a military response.
Prevention needs to be an increasingly important focus of future counterterrorism efforts. As will building partnerships—both internationally and in the United States.
Terrorists will continue to innovate and try to surprise. The Internet and social media will continue to be a way for terrorists to recruit and plot attacks. The counterterrorism community needs to use imagination and foresight to anticipate threats and get policy makers to focus on closing doors before attacks occur. Counterterrorism professionals need access to, and the attention of, senior officials to get them to make the necessary changes—including increasing resources—to prevent terrorists from carrying out plots that today sound like speculative fiction but that history over the last twenty years has shown can become terrifyingly real.
The system of designating state sponsors of terrorism made sense in the 1980s, but the world has gotten more complex. Terrorism is but one way that nations like Iran use nonmilitary means to confront the United States and its allies. The US approach to state sponsors of terrorism needs to be overhauled and updated to address nonmilitary threats from a range of nations.
In the United States, all presidential administrations since 2001 came into office wanting to focus on domestic issues or conventional national security challenges like great-power competition. The first three administrations of the twenty-first century were all forced to devote considerable attention to counterterrorism. A good strategy alone will not defeat today’s terrorism threats. The Biden administration should not see the choice as being between counterterrorism and other national security priorities. The investments needed in effective counterterrorism today are modest by comparison to the cost of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Provided the United States and its allies can make more effective use of civilian security, law enforcement, and prevention programs, there is every reason to believe terrorism can be reduced to a level where the threats can be handled by individual governments without the need to resort to large-scale, decades-long military efforts like in Afghanistan, Iraq, or the campaign to defeat ISIS. The Biden administration, working with its partners, needs to design the end state for today’s terrorism threats, both international and domestic, then it must fully resource those efforts and ensure that they succeed.

By Thomas S. Warrick , director of Forward Defense ‘s Future of DHS Project and nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council.

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We are in the interwar period

Tom Warrick

The United States must take advantage of the next few years to plan and resource the efforts needed to end the current wave of terrorism.

READ THE ESSAY

Hyper-tribalism and the domestic terrorism threat

Chris Costa

The United States must act now to implement a strategic approach to counter the emerging domestic terror threat.

The enduring threat of domestic terrorism

The United States has not yet reached the peak of the “fifth wave” of terrorism, fueled by white supremacism and anti-government attitudes.

An intellectual reckoning on counterterrorism

Michael Nagata

US practitioners and policymakers must make greater investments in non-kinetic counterterrorism efforts.

Counterterrorism and great-power competition

Nathan Sales

Counterterrorism efforts can advance US strategic objectives around the globe, even in an era of great-power competition.

The global war on terrorism wrecked relations with Iran

Barbara Slavin

The United States squandered key diplomatic opportunities with Iran following 9/11.

OPINION: We are all responsible for 6/5

It is June 6, 2032, and America is grappling with the aftermath of the next horrific terrorist attack.

Facing the future of bioterrorism

Barry Pavel, Vikram Venkatram

As biotechnology becomes accessible to increasingly more actors, the threat of bioterrorism grows.

Preparing for future concepts and dangers in terrorism: Non-kinetic acts and decentralization

The United States must employ a whole-of-society response to counter non-kinetic and decentralized terror acts.

Combating domestic extremism means combating the insider threat in law enforcement

Mary McCord

An effective US counterterrorism strategy must address the “insider threat” in law enforcement.

Does treating Syria as a State Sponsor of Terrorism advance US national security interests?

Nate Rosenblatt

Treating Syria as a state sponsor of terrorism narrowly advances US national security interests.

Extremist communications: The future is corporate

Jennifer Counter

Counterterrorism strategies must take into account the use of emerging technologies for terrorist group communications.

The consequences of a US overreaction to the perceived threat of terrorism

Christopher Preble

Examines US counterterrorism policies after 9/11 and how the Global War on Terrorism appears to have undermined the United States’ reputation—and how this could have far-reaching geopolitical consequences.

Watch the launch

US national security experts discuss counterterrorism twenty years after 9/11, reimagining the future of the terrorist threat.

Join the conversation

Forward Defense , housed within the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, generates ideas and connects stakeholders in the defense ecosystem to promote an enduring military advantage for the United States, its allies, and partners. Our work identifies the defense strategies, capabilities, and resources the United States needs to deter and, if necessary, prevail in future conflict.

Middle East Programs

Through our Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East and Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative , the Atlantic Council works with allies and partners in Europe and the wider Middle East to protect US interests, build peace and security, and unlock the human potential of the region.

Counterterrorism Study Group

The Counterterrorism Study Group is a forum for former counterterrorism officials to review the latest threats, to understand emerging trends and future predictions, and to explore creative new proposals for improving the effectiveness of current policies and operations.

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Last updated on October 29, 2022 by ClearIAS Team

Defining terrorism is a tedious and confusing task as there is a lack of consensus at the international level. However several efforts have been made in this regard.

Table of Contents

Defining Terrorism

An agreed, comprehensive definition of terrorism has never been created by the international community. The United Nations’ attempts to define the term during the 1970s and 1980s failed mostly because of disagreements among its members over the use of violence in conflicts over self-determination and national liberation. Due to these differences, a conclusion cannot be reached.

According to the FBI: “Terrorism is the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.”

Causes of Terrorism

There are many causes for terrorism such as:

Political causes

Insurgency and guerrilla warfare, a type of organized conflict, were the contexts in which terrorism was first theorized. A non-state army or organization committing political violence. Because they dislike the current system, they pick terrorism. They oppose the current social structure and wish to change it.

Religious reasons

In the 1990s, experts started to claim that a brand-new sort of terrorism propelled by religious zeal was on the increase. They cited groups like Al Qaeda, the Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo, and Christian identity movements. Religious concepts like martyrdom were viewed as especially hazardous.

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Socio-Economic

According to socio-economic theories, persons who experience different types of deprivation are more likely to turn to terrorism or are more open to being recruited by groups that use terrorist tactics. Lack of political freedom, lack of access to education, and poverty are a few examples.

Types of Terrorism

The following are the various types of terrorism.

Ethno-Nationalist Terrorism

According to Daniel Byman, ethnic terrorism is the premeditated use of violence by a subnational ethnic group to further its cause. Such violence typically aims at either the establishment of a separate State or elevating one ethnic group above another.

Activities by Tamil nationalist groups in Srilanka are an example of Ethno-Nationalist terrorism.

Hoffman claims that those who engage in terrorism who are either wholly or partially driven by religious imperative view violence as a sacramental or heavenly responsibility. Religious terrorism is more destructive in nature because it adopts different justifications and modes of legitimization than other terrorist organizations.

Ideology oriented

Several ideologies have been used to legitimize terrorism. They include:

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Left-Wing Extremism

The idea focuses on overthrowing the state through an armed struggle and establishing a communist state.

Right Wing Terrorism

Right-wing organizations typically aim to preserve the status quo or go back to a scenario from the past that they believe should have been preserved.

They might compel the government to seize a piece of land or to step in to defend the rights of a minority that is being “oppressed” in a neighboring nation.

State Sponsored Terrorism

State-sponsored terrorism and proxy war are as old as organized warfare itself. According to Walter Laqueur, these customs were in place in antiquity in the Eastern Empires, Rome and Byzantium, Asia, and Europe.

Impacts of Terrorism

It seriously jeopardizes global peace and security and undercuts the fundamental principles of growth, peace, and humanity. Terrorist activities not only have a catastrophic human cost in terms of lives lost or permanently changed, but they also endanger political stability and economic and social advancement.

Often, terrorist attacks disregard international boundaries.CBRNE (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and Explosives) materials are used in terrorist attacks that have devastating effects on infrastructure and communities.

Measures To Counter Terrorism

The United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) is responsible for leading and coordinating the UN system’s efforts to prevent and combat terrorism and violent extremism worldwide.
Under UNOCT, the UN Counter-Terrorism Centre (UNCCT) encourages global collaboration in the fight against terrorism and assists the Member States in putting the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy into practice.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime’s (UNODC) Terrorism Prevention Branch (TPB) is a key player in global efforts.
International standards are established by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) , a global organization that monitors money laundering and terrorist funding with the goal of preventing these illicit actions and the harm they do to society.

A combined effort at the international level is the need of the hour to tackle the perils of terrorism. Terrorism of any form is unacceptable in a civilized society.

Article written by: Vivek Rajasekharan

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Marco Pinfari examines terrorism and extremism

Terrorism vs. Extremism: Are They Linked?

With terrorist attacks in Brussels, Istanbul and, most recently, Kabul, as well as other parts of the world, Marco Pinfari, assistant professor of political science, examines the relationship between terrorism and extremism.

1. What is extremism?

Extremism is holding an extreme ideology or belief. To be clear, some ideologies and religious traditions are structured in such a way that you can hold an extreme or an intermediate version of that belief. Extremism is when you adhere to the extreme version. It is often associated with religious ideology, but it really includes any belief system.

2. What is terrorism?

Terrorism is a type of political violence that includes the intentional targeting of noncombatants and distinguishes between the direct victims and audience that you want to affect. In this way, terrorism, as I define it, has three key elements: political violence, or a violent action done to share a particular political message; the intentional targeting of noncombatants; and a bifocal nature, where you attack one group to terrorize another group.

3. How are these two terms related?

In my view, there isn’t a lot of overlap between extremism and terrorism. Where there is some overlap is when you examine the ideology and psychology of terrorists. Obviously, when you talk about terrorism, you talk about the terrorist and why a person would commit this kind of act. Historically, acts of terrorism have been associated with extremism because they involve the direct targeting of noncombatants. Individuals may see terrorism as the only way forward and so accept the killing of civilians. This may be because they hold an extreme view, be it their views on self-determination, religion or otherwise, but this doesn’t have to be the case.

4. Do you have to be an extremist to be a terrorist?

Not all terrorists are extremists. If we assume that all terrorists are extremists, then we end up labeling people backward. For example, in the case of the National Liberation Front in Algeria or the secessionist movement in Ireland, you may hold a relatively reasonable view on the entitlements of your people to self-determination but still commit an act of terrorism because you feel you don’t have any other means. Then, your belief may be considered “extreme” not because it actually is, but because it led you to commit acts that are seen as extreme.

5. Are all extremists terrorists?

No. In fact, some types of extremism don’t have anything to do with terrorism. For instance, pacifism has two versions: contingent pacifism, where using violence is allowed in some circumstances, like physical self-defense; and absolute pacifism, where using violence is never allowed. Absolute pacifism is actually a form of extremism and is even sometimes referred to as “extreme” or “extremist” pacifism. The people who hold this view -- a view that many would consider extremely good in a way -- are treated as extremists in this particular ideology. However, they are not terrorists and, in fact, stand strongly opposed to violence.

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Self-Fulfilling Prophecies in Everyday Life

This essay about self-fulfilling prophecies explores how beliefs and expectations can shape behavior and outcomes in various aspects of life, such as academia, workplaces, financial markets, and personal relationships. It discusses how positive or negative expectations can influence the performance and behavior of individuals, leading to the realization of those expectations. The essay emphasizes the importance of recognizing and challenging our own beliefs to cultivate more equitable and favorable outcomes in different spheres of life.

How it works

An intrinsically profound occurrence, a self-fulfilling prophecy elucidates the psychological intricacies wherein one’s preconceptions regarding an individual or circumstance precipitate behaviors that ultimately bring about the realization of those preconceptions. Initially conceptualized by sociologist Robert K. Merton in 1948, this phenomenon underscores the profound influence wielded by beliefs and anticipations, often unbeknownst to the harbinger. The potency of self-fulfilling prophecies permeates myriad spheres of existence, encompassing realms such as academia, workplace dynamics, and interpersonal bonds.

Within scholastic environs, a quintessential illustration of a self-fulfilling prophecy transpires.

Should a pedagogue harbor the belief that a specific pupil possesses exceptional aptitude, they may bestow upon said pupil heightened attention, intricate tasks, and unabating encouragement. This affirmative reinforcement has the potential to bolster the pupil’s self-assurance and efficacy, thereby propelling them to attain levels commensurate with the educator’s expectations. Conversely, if a pedagogue entertains low expectations regarding a pupil, inadvertent disregard or minimal feedback may ensue, precipitating subpar performance and thereby reaffirming the educator’s initial prognostication.

The corporate sphere furnishes yet another arena ripe for the proliferation of self-fulfilling prophecies. Envisage a scenario wherein a supervisor harbors an expectation of unparalleled success for a fresh recruit. Said supervisor may proffer augmented support, mentorship, and avenues for advancement to said recruit, who subsequently flourishes owing to the amplified resources and self-assurance. This triumph serves to validate the supervisor’s initial anticipation. Conversely, should a supervisor harbor misgivings regarding an employee’s capabilities, they may circumscribe their remit, thereby constraining the employee’s capacity to evince their potential or make strides, thereby perpetuating a cycle of underperformance.

Self-fulfilling prophecies also exert a palpable influence within the economic domain, notably within the stock market. Should investors harbor the belief that a corporation’s stock is poised for an upsurge, they may inundate the market with substantial purchases of said stock. The concomitant surge in demand precipitates an actual escalation in the stock’s valuation, thus corroborating the investors’ initial conviction, notwithstanding negligible alterations in the company’s intrinsic value. Such self-fulfilling prophecies have the propensity to foment market bubbles wherein stock prices, or other assets such as real estate, become artificially inflated beyond their fundamental worth predicated solely on collective conviction and comportment.

Personal relationships, too, are susceptible to the reverberations of self-fulfilling prophecies. For instance, should one party harbor suspicions of infidelity within a relationship bereft of substantiated evidence, their ensuing allegations and mistrust can engender strain within the relationship. This tension may elicit the very behaviors initially feared, such as clandestineness or detachment, thereby potentially precipitating the dreaded denouement of dissolution.

At the crux of a self-fulfilling prophecy lies the nexus between expectations and comportment. By anticipating certain outcomes, individuals consciously or subconsciously engender conditions conducive to the materialization of said outcomes. Their actions may serve as a harbinger to others, eliciting behaviors that validate their convictions, thereby perpetuating the cycle. The deleterious ramifications of harboring negative beliefs or succumbing to stereotypes cannot be overstated.

A cognizance of the nature and ramifications of self-fulfilling prophecies engenders more discerning and purposeful interactions across various spheres of existence. By introspectively acknowledging our anticipations and subjecting them to rigorous scrutiny, we can obviate the manifestation of adverse prognostications and, instead, cultivate favorable outcomes. Educators, for instance, cognizant of the repercussions of their expectations, may endeavor to foster equitable perceptions regarding the potentialities of all pupils. Likewise, supervisors may conscientiously afford equal support and opportunities to all employees, eschewing the encroachment of bias upon their assessments.

In summation, self-fulfilling prophecies furnish a poignant testament to the profound manner in which our convictions mold our reality. Whether within the hallowed halls of academia, the crucible of corporate dynamics, or the sanctum of personal bonds, the anticipations we harbor exert a palpable influence upon the conduct of others and the trajectory of our own lives. A comprehension of this phenomenon serves as a lodestar towards constructing a milieu characterized by equity and advancement, wherein affirmative expectations beget favorable outcomes for all stakeholders.

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1.1.1 The reign of terror

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