Terrorism Is Not Only A Weapon Used By Non State Actors, Regimes, And Governments?

First, I see terrorism as war and a terrorist in my view is a soldier going to war for certain purpose and reason to destroy. If captured, they should be treated as prisoners of war. What comes to the mind of terrorists is always war such as in military actions because they believe they have a cause to fight for. They are not countries declaring war

“Terrorism's particularly heinous but highly attractive means to achieve political objectives or even radically restructure political foundations is manifest within societies in all reaches of the world. While the practical application of terrorist methodologies comes across as a relatively straightforward craft, the conceptual and ideological understanding, and subsequent evaluation of its socio-political influence, implementation, and psychological impacts present difficult questions, and in some cases conceivably insurmountable obstacles” (Romaniuk 2014, para

Terrorism is an act of violence, usually done in the public sphere, which is used to incite fear in a population in order to coerce change in public opinion or a government’s position on an issue. In many parts of the world, groups wage war with their countries, either to separate from the government or to overthrow it entirely. Sometimes these people are treated unfairly by their government, and their struggles are justified. Other times, these groups use violence against both military and civilian targets, terrorizing innocent bystanders to get what they want—these groups are terrorists. Often, though, it is difficult to tell the difference.

Of the many problems that society faces today, terrorism is one that is more serious. The presence of terrorism can be felt across the globe, which make this issue a global concern. In all countries, whether they are developed or in the process of developing, this issue is always up for debate in todays society. History has shown us the clear evidence that the presence of terrorism is very much real and has gone through tremendous changes over the years. Terrorism now has become more difficult to control, more widespread, and more lethal. In todays society, terrorism is a serious challenge because of its presence around the world. Terrorists create chaotic conditions leading to mass murder and destruction to undermine the stability of society,

Acts of terrorism are typically political oriented and ideologically motivated, ranging from specific goals expressed in terms of the might of political nation-states to more general purposes connected to the dilemma of certain people and groups. Therefore, terrorism can result from demands made by ethnic groups to receive representation in an existing political community or have its own state be formed, while terrorism can also be part of ideological fights for the acknowledgment of diminished expressions of ideas and ways of life. Because of the essentially political ideological objectives of terrorism, the fundamental ideas of terrorism are important to consider as the inspiring forces that fuel terrorist groups and individuals.

The Central Intelligence Agency defines terrorism as “premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets by subnational groups or clandestine agents” (CIA). This term was specifically created to differentiate terrorism between other acts of violence. These doings of terrorism are not just any act but are specific acts of violence. A dominant reason behind terrorism tends to fall upon religious beliefs and culture ties.

What exactly is terrorism? “Terrorism is commonly defined as violent acts (or the threat of violent acts) intended to create fear (terror), perpetrated for a religious, political, or ideological goal, and which deliberately target or disregard the safety of non-combatants, civilians.” The intent of terrorist groups differ vastly depending on the situation they are in and the message they want to send. Terrorists use violence for many things including: to produce widespread fear, obtain recognition for their cause through the media, to weaken the government, to free prisoners, to satisfy vengeance, and to influence government decisions. Ideology and motivation also influence the objectives of terrorist groups, particularly regarding the casualty rate. Secular terrorist groups

They think that will provide them to carry acts against innocent people but on the other hand, they see the other sides as pure evil or invader and must be destroyed. A good example of that is North Korea. They see the western nation as a threat to them and must be eliminated. In sociological perspective these terrorist organizations make someone believe that when an individual joins a group a new set of relationship develops between the people, like a big family. Terrorism is the unlawful use of violence and intimidation, especially against civilians in the pursuit of political gains. Terrorists attempt to deprive the state of its monopoly on violence, seek to acquire its own control of the use violence and they seek to provoke profound social and political change. Government and terrorism as such represent two major opposing forces in a battle for the directions of the world in this way. The existence of terrorism aligns with the conflict theory, which proposes that conflict between competing interests is the driving force of social

(4) Violence is central to both war and terrorism, but the objective and purpose of terrorism is entirely different. Terrorists seek to use intimidation to impose their agendas. They create fear and panic, extort concessions or weaken and discredit governments to show that the government is unable to protect their citizens. Terrorism is also used in the place of low cost strategic warfare, motivated by ideology, religion or nationalistic sentiments, to express protest and rage, advance fanatic agendas, and overthrow opposition governments. Countries such as Syria, Iran and Libya use terrorism as a form of diplomacy and as an adjunct to their foreign policies. * For these states, terrorism is an integral part of their negotiation strategies.

Terrorism in the Middle East has brought the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to the attention of the world. These terrorist groups use murder, bombs, threats, and other violent acts to get their way politically. Hamas, the organization that has replaced Fatah as the representative of the Palestinians, is a leading sponsor of terrorism. The Hamas are the leading reason there is not peace in the middle east as they strongly embrace terrorism.

Terrorism is a violent act that is planned and committed to cause terror in the people while trying to achieve political goals. In the Prologue Magazine article of John Brown the author states, “Terrorists may hope for political change, but what they often want is to simply strike back at and harm those they oppose” (Finkelman, 2011). Terrorism is something that can happen in any country because there are people who disagree with another’s beliefs or political views. Terrorists usually target civilians or “non-military folk” because they aren’t able to defend themselves against an attack. They are also not concerned with how much damage they cause; they will use anything from a bomb to guns.

Non-state actors and terrorism in international relations are complicated subjects seeing it in different perspectives. Non-state actors see themselves as freedom fighters, whereas the victims see them as terrorists. There isn’t a solid definition on terrorism however, there are three different qualities that defines a terrorist. Violence is a quality that causes destruction of properties and murder within states. Targeting civilians is another quality that terrorist have because they use them to create examples to threaten state actors. Finally the most important quality out of all is political purposes because without it, it would be a group of sick people who slaughter other people out of pleasure. Non-states actors, and terrorism existed

In addition, the complexities of terrorism further encompass the discordances of defining terrorist groups. Not dissimilar to the disparities of defining terrorism, terrorist groups are identified through their predisposed choice of tactics and are labelled as non-state actors (Ramsey, 2015, p.220). Additional literatures (Arena and Arrigo, 2006; Sutton and Vertigans, 2006 Welch, 2006;) highlight the characteristics of whom is deemed to be a terrorist and/or who are the terrorist groups by state definition. The consensus here implies that those who commit acts which are not legitimised by the state become defined as a terrorist organisation. Significantly, in most recent years, the methods or weapons of choice are not dissimilar to

Terrorism in the twenty-first century has some similarities and differences from terrorism in the twentieth century. Terrorism is, in its broadest sense, the use or threatened use of violence in order to achieve a political, religious, or ideological aim. Also useful to remember that because the two entities involved, the terrorists and the terrorized, are on the opposite end of the political, religious or ideological continuum, the same act is viewed by them differently. There is much sense in the phrase one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter.

Kydd and Walter (2006:50) assert that violent terrorism is effective as a political strategy "because it causes governments and individuals to respond in ways that aid the terrorists' cause." For Hamas, violence against civilians for political aims does play a role in its political strategy. However, violence in and of itself is not the ultimate aim of the organization. Formed in 1987 during the Palestinian uprising (the Intifada), Hamas exists as a branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, which, according to the United States National Counterterrorism Center (2013), aims at erecting "a Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders with Jerusalem as its capital." Because Israel also desires to claim Jerusalem as its capital and has shown itself eager to expand its own boundaries, violent conflict has ensued between the people of Palestine and the people of Israel. This paper will discuss the role which political violence plays in Hamas' political strategy. By applying the Kydd and Walter "strategies of terrorism" framework alongside an analysis of the tensions between war and peaceful democratic participation, one may see why Hamas views terrorism as a necessary component in its strategic quest for statehood.