In 2012, a total of 6,771 terrorist attacks occurred worldwide, resulting in more than 11,000 deaths and more than 21,600 injuries. Suicide bombings have been taking place for decades and some major bombings include 9/11, sandy hook, etc. These impact many people all over the world and are ruining the economy. Suicide bombings are a colossal issue that interfere with security at many worldwide events, but could maybe begin to be prevented. Security is developing a way to detect suicide bombers before they attack. One huge place where a suicide bombing is most likely to happen is in Sochi, Russia at the Olympic Games.
Suicide bombing colligates with kidnapping and hostages. These topics were developing popularity in 2012. While 1,280 people in 2012 were kidnapped and held hostage, security decided to take control of terrorist attacks and casualties worldwide. This is an extremely high number; knowing that all of these people were kidnapped is a recipe for a suicide bombing. Predators usually start small with kidnapping then work their way up to a more deadly form of terrorism, suicide bombing. “On average, there were 564.25 attacks, 924.23 deaths, and 1,804.33 injuries per month in 2012. There were 1.64 fatalities and 3.20 injuries per attack, including predator causalities” (National). Suicide bombing do not only occur in the USA; they also take place in other countries and are more common there. For example, “Although terrorist attacks occurred in 85 different countries in 2012, they were heavily concentrated geographically. Over half of all attacks (55%), fatalities (62%), and injuries (65%) occurred in just three countries: Pakistan, Iraq and Afghanistan” (National). In 2012, many suicide bombings and terrorist attacks were ...
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... of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism A Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Center of Excellence Based at the University of Maryland 8400 Baltimore Ave, Suite 250 • College Park, MD 20740 • 301.405.6600 www.start.umd.edu Annex of Statistical Information." Country Reports on Terrorism 2012. National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, n.d. Web. 17 Feb 2014.
Schwartz, Rhonda, James Gordon Meek, and Brian Ross. "Urgent Search for 'Black Widow' Suicide Bomber, May Be Already in Sochi." ABC News. ABC News Network, 20 Jan. 2014. Web. 17 Feb. 2014.
"Search the Suicide Attack Database." CPOST. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2014.
"Suicide Attack." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Feb. 2014. Web. 18 Feb. 2014.
Tough, Paul. "Preventing Suicide Bombing." The New York Times. The New York Times, 10 Dec. 2005. Web. 18 Feb. 2014.
In Brym’s article he discusses what research has shown about the motivations of suicide bombers. Brym and my fellow classmate explained to me how suicide bombers may be motivated by politics, religion, or retaliatory aims (Brym, Kyra Howard). Both Brym and Howard helped me view the issue of suicide bombers in multiple
In Robert Pape’s Dying to Win: The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism he investigates the three hundred and fifteen suicide terrorist attacks that have occurred from its beginning in 1980 up until 2003. By examining these attacks he explains the three logics behind suicide terrorism, the strategic, the social, and the individual logic. Pape uses Dying to Win as a tool to educate the public on suicide terrorism. He hopes people will begin to understand that it is not irrational, but requires reason and strategy. He brings to light that suicide terrorism is not directly correlated with Islamic fundamentalism, but rather political objectives, trying to put to rest many preconceived notions. By understanding the logic behind suicide terrorism people can work together to prevent it from happening in the future. After reading this book it is clear that suicide terrorism is not random, but does demand some thought in order for it to work.
Zernike, Kate, and Michael T. Kaufman. The Most Wanted Face of Terrorism. New York Times [New York] May 2011: n. pag. New York Times. Web. 16 Mar. 2014.
The FBI defines terrorism as “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 (fbi.gov).” By this definition, terrorism can be classified as internal or international based on the overall intent of the attack. Terrorism has been around since the beginning of time, but it’s only since 2011 that the world has come to fully understand the meaning of terrorism. The following paragraphs will highlight four different types of terrorist attacks that all took place within the United States spanning over a 40 year time period.
Sageman, Marc. "The Journal of International Security Affairs The Normality of Global Jihadi Terrorism 2005th ser. Spring.9 (2005). .
Ever since the Muslim extremists attacked the World Trade Centers, the word extremist fits in the same category as being a terrorist also, known as the suicide bomber. People never know when a tragedy such as a bombing could happen, some examples could be: Boston Marathon, Poe Elementary School bombing, and in 2005 The University of Oklahoma bombing. Just think a bombing could occur at any day time or hour.
Pape, Robert A. "The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism." American Political Science Review 97.3 (2003): n. pag. American Political Science Association. Aug. 2003. Web. 4 Apr. 2014. .
Scott Atran discusses the common misconceptions that people have about suicide terrorism. Those misconceptions are that suicide attackers are all evil, homicidal psychos who are uneducated, live in poverty, and want to achieve anarchy (Atran 5). However contrary to popular belief most of these attackers are neither impoverished, uneducated, or crazy. This kind of misunderstanding hinders and impedes on any chance of finding a solution or realizing that the issue is one that is manageable (Atran 5).
Townsend, Ellen. "Suicide Terrorists: Are they Suicidal?" Suicide & Life - Threatening Behavior 37.1 (2007): 35-49. ProQuest. Web. 14 Nov. 2013.
Ten years ago, four suicide bombers with rucksacks full of explosives attacked central London, killing 52 people and injuring hundreds more. Three of the bombs exploded simultaneously, in three different London Underground trains. One hour later, another bomb was detonated, but this time on top of a double-decker bus. The bombings left three different London underground trains in ruins. This was the worst single terrorist atrocity on British soil.
Pape believes that suicide terrorism is focused around democracies and occupation. After conducting his research, Pape discovered that from 1980 to 2001, records of suicide terrorism have had three main reoccurring, necessary properties: timing, nationalist goals, and target selection. Pape (2003) explains that, when it comes to timing, “nearly all suicide attacks occur in organized, coherent campaigns, not as isolated or randomly timed incidents” (347). Thus, Pape infers there is strategic reasoning behind this way of terrorizing the masses. He further states campaigns of suicide terrorism focus on gaining oversight of territory terrorists deem as their national homeland.
The biggest challenge that the United States faces, according to the members within the United States National Security establishment, is terrorism. While suicide terrorism is not the only form of terrorism the United States has been faced with, it has recently been growing into the more common type of terrorism in this age. There are several theories that are associated with suicide terrorism, such as those of Robert Pape and David Horowitz, and it is interesting to analyze and compare the theories and ideas of these intellectuals.
In his article “The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism”, Robert A. Page tried to find the answer on the question: ‘Why is the number of suicide terrorist attacks increasing last decades?’. Answering this question, he developed the theory about suicide terrorism’s logic and he presented it in details. Because it’s controversial matter, he analyzed terrorists’ assessments of suicide terrorism from different sides. To emphasize his arguments, he examined this issue through intifada against Israel.
As stated by Haddow, C., Bullock, J., Coppola, D.P., Terrorism is a global problem. From 1969 to 2009, over 38,000 terrorist attacks were reported worldwide. Three thousand, or 8 percent of these, targeted Americans or American interests both inside the United States and overseas, leading to the deaths of almost 5600 people and injuries to over 16,000 more (p. 309).
8) ?After the Attack?The War on Terrorism? (2001). Online at: <http://www.monthlyreview.org/1101edit.htm>, consulted on March 29th, 2004.