TERRORISM: DEFINITION, TEMPLATE, AND EXAMPLES

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TERRORISM: DEFINITION, TEMPLATE, AND EXAMPLES

In order to determine whether an action is a terrorist act or not, terrorism must first be defined. Terrorism is the use or threatening the use of violence as a weapon to influence a person or a group of people to change policies or influence decisions according to the terrorist’s desires. The terrorist can be a single person acting on personal wishes or a group of people with an ultimate goal. The goals of a terrorist are normally political, ideological, or religious in nature.

Once an action has been identified as a possible terrorist act, it now becomes necessary to further explore the reason(s) of the individual(s) behind the action. The elements that are consistent with every terrorist are motive, planning, and recognition. It is necessary to have at least all three of these elements in order to be considered a terrorist or terrorist organization.

Every terrorist has a motive. Even the terrorist who can be proven as clinically insane has a motive at the root of his actions. Most generally the motive of the individual or a group is political, religious, or ideological in nature. Keeping the three elements in mind, the following examples are provided.

One group that has used terrorism in order to bring about recognition to their group is the Aum Shinri Kyo (Supreme Truth). This group of Armageddonist (normally a religious group that...

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