Third Stage of the Process

The Third Stage of the process is a Catalyst. In chemistry a catalyst increases the rate of the reaction. In politics, we use the term catalyst to mean a thing or person which kind of kicks an event off. Most political groups do not become terrorist – they may form political parties and fight elections, or pressure groups and take part in protests. Terrorism requires leadership, funding and possible state sponsorship

Leaders of terrorist groups tend to be from wealthy, well-educated backgrounds. They need to be able to inspire people with their charisma They also need to be able to preach an ideology which makes terrorism seem like the only possible way out of the problems the country is facing.

A Saudi Arabian son of a billionaire High educated civil engineer Radicalised at the time of the Soviet war in Afghanistan Went on to form Al-Qaeda with the intention of fighting the “Far Enemy”

Born (in 1951) to a wealthy family in Egypt – father was a doctor. Radicalised by his mother into following the Islamist teachings of Sayyid Qutb Trained as a surgeon Joined the Muslim Brotherhood at the age of 14 Formed a terrorist organisation in Egypt Maktab al-Khidamat, which became part of Al Qaeda in Maktab al-Khidamat Less charismatic than Osama Bin Laden – so Al Qaeda has weakened in more recent years

Born (in 1974) to a very respected religious Shia family in Iraq – his great grandfather was an Ayatollah His greatest support is amongst the poorest Shia communities in Sadr city - he allows that idea of stealing from the rich – as long as the thieves pay 1/5 of their loot to his organisation. Founded the Mahdi Army to fight against the Americans and Sunnis. Was one of the main protagonists in the sectarian conflict which ravaged Iraq from Supported the Shia government of Nouri Al- Maliki from 2011 – so limited violence in that time, but since the collapse of that government, and the spread of ISIS, the Mahdi Army has again been activated, and the sectarian battle is reignited.

Exception to the rule – he was born to an impoverished family in Jordan (in 1966), and was a petty criminal before being radicalised in prison. He met Osama Bin Laden, but Bin Laden considered his views too extreme, and did not approve of his willingness to kill Muslims He formed Al Qaeda in Iraq in 2003 – but Bin Laden did not allow the group to be part of the formal Al Qaeda movement. Fought the sectarian battle against Al-Sadr’s Mahdi army Began the hostage business in Iraq – and started the notorious beheading of Westerners transmitted live in 2005 (ISIS have since used this tactic) Died in 2008

He is known as the “invisible sheikh” as he has always maintained an air of mystery among his followers – he wears a mask to make speeches. Those who have known him have commented on his shyness – but he seems to have a lot of charismatic authority, young Muslims from around the world have been impressed by the air of mystery around him. He is highly educated and has a number of qualifications from Saddam University in Baghdad – his main area of study has been Islamic theology. He was radicalised at a young age, but his views became more extreme when he was imprisoned and tortured by the Americans following the 2003 invasion. He was released by the Americans, as they thought he was a low priority prisoner. – He then went on to take over ISI – which later became ISIS. He defied Ayman Al-Zawahiri and refused to take his fighters out of Syria There have been many reports of his death over the past few years. None have been confirmed, however, it is suspected that he has been paralysed following an airstrike

In order to carry out attacks, a terrorist group would need to be able to make money. Running these operations can cost a significant amount, so the receipt of funding will allow a group to be able to carry out attacks. ISIS secured money from wealthy Saudi businessmen, who would simply turn up at the border with Turkey with bags of cash and hand it over. They also made significant amounts from taking over oilfields in Iraq and Syria In areas that they have taken over, they now have the power to levy taxes on inhabitants – so can make money in the same way as other governments make money

We have already looked at proxy wars – so we have discussed how nations can get involved in world affairs by funding groups which attack or destabilise their enemies So the US initially funded Al Qaeda We are now funding the PKK