In June 1994 and March of 1995, the Japanese based terrorist group, Aum Shinrikyo, carried out two separate chemical attacks using a homemade version of the non-persistent nerve agent sarin. Prior to the attacks, Aum Shinrikyo was a religious organization that was focused on the end of the world and had come under close scrutiny by the authorities due to a long list of illegal activities. The first major attack was in the city of Matsumoto and the second attack was in the Tokyo subway (Embar-Seddon, A & Pass, A. 2009). This paper will cover the history of the attacks, the motives of the terrorist group; it will also look at the forensics, treatment, and aftermath. It will also discuss the after effects of the attacks on the victims from both incidents. Lastly, the impending fate of the ringleaders will be discussed as the last trials of the individuals involved in the attacks are ending.
The Sarin Attacks by Aum Shrinikyo
On March 22nd, 1995, five members of the religious group Aum Shrinikyo(“Supreme Truth”) boarded the subway trains in Toyko, Japan. Between them they carried eleven bags of Sarin, they were able to puncture eight of them. The results were devastating with over 11 people killed (the total has since risen to 13) and 3796 people injured (that total has gone up also to 6252). This was penultimate act of a religious cult that had evolved into a terrorist organization whose goal was not to be a victim of the apocalypse but to bring it about (Danzig et al., 2011). Before March 1995, this organization has accumulated a long list of crimes, but this is the one for which they are primary remembered.
The History of Aum Shrinikyo before Sarin
The Aum Shrinikyo was begun in February of 1984 by a thirty year old b...
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...acture of a poisonous gas.”
Works Cited
Danzig, R., Sageman M., Leighton, T., Hough L., Yuki, H., Kotani, R. et al.(2011) Aum Shinrikyo: Insights Into How Terrorists Develop Biological and Chemical Weapons. Washington: Center for a New American Security.
Embar-Seddon, A & Pass, A.(2009) Sarin. Forensic Science, 3, 893-896.
Hoffman, A., Eisenkraft, A. Finkelstein, A., Schein, O., et al.(2007). A Decade after the Tokyo Sarin Attack: A Review of Neurological Follow-Up of the Victims. Military Medicine, 172(6), 607-610.
Morita, H., Yanagisawa, N., Nakajima, T., Shimizu, M., Hirabayashi, H., Okudera, H. et al. (1995) Sarin Poisoning in Matsumoto, Japan. Lancet, 346, 290-293.
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Ryall, J. (2014, Jan 16) Japanese Nerve Gas Victims await Justice; 1995 Sarin Attack. National Post, p. A9.
Guillemin, J. (2005). Biological weapons: From the invention of state-sponsored programs to contemporary bioterrorism Columbia University Press.
Killing Squads would enter towns and gather the people, usually in vast open areas. Open areas are easier to dig the mass graves where the dead would be put. After victims gave their valuables to the killing squad and were undressed, they were gassed in vans, shot in trenches, or shot in prepared pits (USHMM). People gassed in vans were killed by the carbon monoxide produced by the van because the exhaust pipes were blocked. These research findings reveal the harsh tactics of killing squads.
...gs Left Legacy of Terror, Pain.” Associated 10 Mar. 2005: n. pag. Web. 26 Feb. 2010. . The firebombings of Tokyo was a event that impacted Japanese civilian morale, and destroyed several factories. This secondary source helped me see the impact of the bombings,
The purpose of this essay is to deal with the fact that chemical warfare should be brought back to modern warfare strategies. As Warren Rudman said, “And they will tell you unequivocally that if we have a chemical or biological attack or a nuclear attack anywhere in this country, they are unprepared to deal with it today, and that is of high urgency.” Rudman’s words are true in what they say and that we should do everything to counter-act his statement. Biological weapons are a key to outstanding success in war and therefore, I strongly suggest that chemical warfare is an effective and producible weapon tactic that can be used on today’s battlefield.
Retrieved from http://www.terrorismanalysts.com/pt/index.php/pot/article/view/268/540 White, J. R. (2014). Terrorism and homeland security (8th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Schep, L, Temple, W. & Beasley, M. (2009). Racin as a weapon of mass terror-separating fact
Berger’s article explains the bombing of Hiroshima was a terrorist act. He thinks terrorists are human killers saying, “the calculations was terrorist, the indiscriminate was terrorist” (240). Berger uses the victims ' stories to grasp the horror and pity they went through allowing the reader observe. Berger’s article demonstrates terrorism as a political decision to kill a group of civilians. Mr. Takashi says, “the United States broke international law and all principles of humanity by using nuclear
One is known for his occupation and what he does and what he withholds from doing. The yakuza is a large crime organization that has thousands of members that span throughout the entire world. They originated in Japan and since then have slowly moved across the globe into many different countries; they even have members in the United States today. *The yakuza is a highly organized crime organization that places great importance in respect and honor and seeks revenge when they do not receive it, they are involved in different types of crimes and they have certain characteristics that separate them from other organizations.*
Jones, Edgar, Nicola T. Fear, and Simon Wessely. "Shell Shock and Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: A Historical Review." The American Journal of Psychiatry 164.11 (2007): 1641-5. http://0-search.proquest.com.library.francis.edu/docview/220510935/fulltextPDF/134DFDDE4904573C8F8/1?accountid=4216 (accessed January 23, 2012).
There have been many horrible crimes that have been committed by suspected members of certain cults. There have been crime cases such as , murder, kidnapping, assault, and sexual-assault. It has also been reported that there have been terrorist attacks leading to certain cults that made death threats in the past. In the days following the subway gas attack on March 20, 1995, as suspicion fell on the Aum, most people outside of Japan learned for the first time of this rather obscure Japanese religious sect. To most, their criminal actions of March 20th were out of character for a religious group. Yet, a closer review of the Aum's history show that this group's character had a common thread of criminality leading back to almost the date it was legally chartered. They include murder, attempted murder, kidnappings and burglaries. These incidents, most of which only became known to the outside world in the aftermath of the Tokyo attack, have led many to conclude that Japanese authorities should not have been surprised by either the subway attack or its perpetrators.
“In the days following the subway gas attack on March 20, 1995, as suspicion fell on the Aum, most people outside of Japan learned for the first time of this rathe...
Terrorism has been around for centuries and religion-based violence has been around just as long. (Hoffman, 2). The violence was never referred to as terrorism though. Only up to the nineteenth century has religion been able to justify terrorism (Hoffman, 2). Since then, religious terrorism became motivated and inspired by the ideological view (Hoffman, 3). Therefore, it has turned against the main focus of religion and more towards the views of the extremist and what is happening politically (Winchester, 4).
Americans and Japanese are both fond of pointing out the difference in crime rates. To many Japanese, America is seen as an outlaw nation, bristling with guns. And for many Americans, the juxtaposition of Japan's often ultra-violent entertainment with their low crime rate is fascinating. Japanese pop culture and crime statistics are often cited to defend American entertainment when it is accused of inspiring violence. But for anyone paying attention, startling crimes have a way of popping up in Japan unexpectedly. There were the "Otaku Murders" of 1988 and 1989, where Tsutomo Miyazaki kidnapped and killed four girls of around five years of age, reenacting gruesome scenes from his hentai collection. The serin gas attack in 1995 is another notable incident in the analogs of Japanese crime history. Perpetrated by the Aum Shinrikyo cult, almost a dozen people were killed during the terrorist attack.
As Berger composes his essay, he argues against things that everyone is told are wrong. However, he is one of the few who actually make the connection between the Hiroshima attack and terrorism. His argument is utterly flawless. He defines terrorism and then points out every aspect of this definition in the Hiroshima bombing. From the lack of necessity to the loss of thousands of innocent lives, the Hiroshima incident represents the model terrorist attack.