International and Domestic Terrorism
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Institution
International and Domestic Terrorism
Reasons for the Existence of Domestic Terrorists Terrorism in the US results from the many conflicts, issues, and populations co-existing within the country. Although the expression of terrorism varies greatly, domestic terrorism is summarized as a “violent claim over what or who is authentically American” (Zalman, 2017). Such distrust has been expressed in various ways by different organizations. Thus, the existence of domestic extremists can be attributed to the presence of homegrown Islamic, single issue, right-wing, and left-wing groups in the US (Council on Foreign Relations [CFR], 2011). Homegrown Islamic groups include some Muslim
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Accordingly, domestic terrorism can be understood as a psychological warfare. Since terrorists lack the manpower, expertise, and resources to secure a victory over state actors, they resort to violent acts as a way of promoting their agenda and shaping the perceptions of sociopolitical issues (Perliger, 2017). For instance, animal rights movements and eco-terrorists such as the “Earth Liberation Front have committed over two thousand crimes and caused losses of over $110 million since 1979” (CFR, 2011). Likewise, anti-abortion groups in Canada and the US have been responsible for over 170 cases of arson, 41 bombings, and 7 murders since …show more content…
In addition, it employs both aboveground and underground levels of terrorist activity (“Domestic Terrorism…,” 2017). The underground or operational level involves the illegal activities of ideologically motivated individuals or terror cells, which lack the direction or participation of organizations that maintain membership rosters and conventional leadership positions. On the other hand, aboveground levels of domestic terrorist movements concentrate on disseminating an ideology. Thus, domestic terrorists tend to operate as ‘lone wolves’ and engage in leaderless resistance. Many lone wolves commit criminal acts in the name of a particular domestic terrorist movement (“Domestic Terrorism…,” 2017). Lone wolves, for example, play prominent roles in violent acts ascribed to the white supremacist
What internally drives a terrorist’s motivation varies from subject to subject. While the average American citizen would likely be quick to point terrorists hate the western way of life and what it represents, the issue is far more complex. Simon Cottee’s article “What Motivates Terrorists?” (2015), looks at various levels of motivation. Prior definitions of terrorism looked at the defining cause as possibly psychological abnormalities within in the individual (Cottee, 2015). As studies have evolved, the focus has shifted to the environment in which the terrorist is surrounded. While certainly there is cases in which a person who is mentally unstable could be an ideal target for terrorist propaganda, the number of cases involving mental
Acts of violence were at times brutal and unwarranted, and often they were either approved by white supremacist groups or ...
Lone wolf terrorism involves self-radicalized individuals who commit violent acts to promote a cause or support a belief system. These acts, or propaganda by deeds, are extremely difficult to counter because they appear to be isolated and avoid many of the traditional organizational characteristics used to identify and track traditional terrorist groups. Though usually not capable of large-scale attacks, the modern lone wolf terrorist has access to a range of weapons with greater capacities for terror-inspiring events
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). .
In Module one, I learned that terrorism is a result of physical harm or deadly acts of force with the intent of a political outcome by the use of terror for coercion. There are various types of terrorism such as international terrorism and domestic terrorism. International terrorism occurs outside of the United States with a purpose to influence the policy of a government by intimidation. International and Domestic terrorism both involve violent acts dangerous to human life that violate federal and state laws. Domestic terrorism occurs within the United States with the intention of coercion or intimidation by way of mass destruction, etc. Some forms of terrorism include Improvised explosive devices (IED), kidnappings, suicide bombings and
A United States citizen turning against one’s own government and embracing an ideology to kill another citizen or commit an act of violence is a growing phenomenon commonly known as homegrown terrorism. This transition or radicalization process that transforms an individual into an adversary has intensified since the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The problem continues to persist in other parts of the world such as Canada, United Kingdom and even in Saudi Arabia, a Non-Western country. This form of extremism has shown its propensity in the United States since the turn of the century when Muslim extremism had its early beginnings as a venue to support a black separatist movement. Today, the threat emerges more rampantly with the accessibility and excess of information technology; as well as the political and socio-economic environment influencing many spectrums of perception and intent.
There a small but clear differences between domestic terrorism and international terrorism, that difference is where the terrorist act is planned, supported, and carried out. In the case of domestic terrorism, the act must be planned, supported, and carried out all within the boundaries of the United States. The domestic terrorists must also be domicile to the United States and not be current foreign nationals at the time of the act. If the terrorist act is committed with help from a foreign group, planned or supported in a foreign country or committed by foreign nationals inside the boundaries of the U.S., then the attack may be international terrorism. The 9/11 attack was a clear act of international terrorism as it was planned, supported,
Since the nineteenth century, the Islamic presence in Britain has expanded. Muslims were considered to be a cheap labour and this was profitable for Britain especially after World War II, when Britain needed to rebuild the economy. The majority of Muslims who came
“Terrorism involves the use of violence by an organization other than a national government to cause intimidation or fear among a target audience;” at least, this is how Pape (2003) defines terrorism in his article “The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism” (343). The goal of this article by Pape is to discuss suicide terrorism and how it “follows a strategic logic, one specifically designed to coerce modern liberal democracies to make significant territorial concessions” (343). Similar to Pape, Bloom (2004) and Horowitz (2010) also delve into the exponential increase of suicide terrorism and why it occurs. Although Pape, Bloom, and Horowitz concur that suicide terrorism is increasing, they disagree why it is so prominent. While the arguments presented from each of these researchers is powerful and certainly plausible, suicide terrorism is in fact not irrational, but strategic and is most often caused by state occupation and, when organized, aimed specifically at democracies.
Terrorism will happen again regardless of how prepared the U.S. thinks it may be. This means that it is the country’s job to ensure that there is a continuation of measures that should be taken to fight against terrorism. Others believe that the U.S. is fully prepared for another terrorist attack and that enough has been done. The question at hand is, should the U.S. still be concerned about terrorism. The United States needs to be concerned about terrorism to prevent tragedies like 9/11 from happening again, to address problems with domestic terrorism, and to improve homeland security.
The word terrorism was first used during the French Revolution from the reign of terror inflicted by the French from 1784-1804 ("International Affairs"). It was used to describe the violent acts perpetrated on the French that inflicted terror on the various peoples and instilled fear within them. However, at the time it had a more positive connotation than the term that instills fear today. During the French Revolution this was because it referred to state-sponsored terrorism in order to show the need of state instead of anarchy, sometimes promoted by other groups (Hoffman 2). Therefore, even though terrorism has taken a new nature, terrorism can refer to official governments or guerrilla groups operating outside national governments ("International Affairs"). In order to encompass terrorism’s various sectors and explain it to the public, in both positive and negative aspects, many analysts have tried to put it into a few words. Terrorism is a method used by tightly of loosely organized groups operation within states or international territories that are systematic in using deliberate acts of violence or threats in order to instill...
Terrorism has many forms, and many definitions. “Elements from the American definitional model define terrorism as a premeditated and unlawful act in which groups or agents of some principal engage in a threatened or actual use o...
Terrorism is one of the most extensively discussed issues of our time and at the same time it is also one of the least understood. The term itself “terrorism” means many different things to different people, cultures, and races. As a result, trying to define or classify terrorism with one universal definition is nearly impossible. The definition of terrorism used in this research is a reflection of much of the Western and American way of defining it. The definition of terrorism is,
Muslim civilization played a significant role in the history of the world and continues to have quiet an influence on the modern world . Today, there are over 1 billion Muslims all over the world: more than 40 countries are members of the organization of the Islamic Conference. There are many Muslim diasporas in Europe, around 15 million people , and around 6 million people in the United States. Unlike other modern civilizations, Islam is not directly linked to any region, but covers almost the entire modern world. Where people belong to different cultures, races, traditions and languages. And despite the fact that it is difficult to speak of a common historical destiny of the Muslims, Islam still acts as a unity in diversity.