WEEK 4 September 11th, Global Terrorism and War on Terrorism

Major Key Concepts Political terrorism: The deliberate use or threat of violence against non-combatants, calculated to instill fear, alarm, and ultimately a feeling of helplessness in an audience beyond the immediate victims. Assymetric warfare: Armed conflict between terrorist networks and conventional military forces.

Major Key Concepts Information warfare: Attacks on an adversary`s telecommunications and computer networks to degrade the technological systems vital to its defense and economic well-being. This is also known as `cyber-terrorism`. Bush Doctrine: It is a set of foreign policy guidelines including an emphasis on military pre-emption, military superiority, unilateral action against any perceived security threat (such as Iraq), and a commitment to "extending democracy, liberty, and security to all regions". It is a departure from the policies of deterrence and containment.

Terrorism as a Security Threat Since the beginning of the modern state system about three and a half centuries ago (Westphalia-1648), nations have prepared themselves for wars against other countries. During all that period, war has been considered as a large-scale organized violence between the regular armies of sovereign states.

Terrorism as a Security Threat Although national leaders still keep their countries prepared for such clashes and conflicts, increasingly they are faced with the prospect of asymmetric warfare which refers to an armed conflict between terrorist networks and conventional military forces. Clearly terrorism is not a new phenomenon. It was well-known even in ancient times. However, it is becoming more of a global issue and concern in the recent decades.

Various Objectives of Terrorism Although terrorist activities may be similar with their nature, they may have different objectives and aims. Agitational objectives of terrorism include promoting the dissident group, advertising its agenda, and discrediting its rivals. e.g. Nineteenth century anarchists believed that one shocking act would draw more attention than a thousand leaflets

Various Objectives of Terrorism Coercive objectives of terrorism include disorienting a target population, inflating the perceived power of the dissident group, wringing concessions from authorities, and provoking a heavy-handed overreaction from the police and military. e.g. Attacks at markets, cafes and other quiet locations to paralyze daily life and disseminate fear among the public.

Various Objectives of Terrorism 3) Organizational objectives of terrorism include acquiring resources, forging group cohesion, and maintaining an underground network of supporters. e.g. Robbing banks, demanding ransom for hostages, and collecting protection money from businesses.

September 11th 2001: The Turn of a New Era? The terrorist attacks against the United States on September 11th 2001 (shortly known as 9/11) clearly marked a new era in the security perceptions of the countries and led to a global war against terrorism. After 9/11, the American foreign policy was re-defined and to fight against terrorism at the global scale, the concept of Bush Doctrine emerged which was mainly dominated by the neo-conservative perspective in the US administration. Especially Afghanistan and Iraq have been the two main `battle grounds` of the United States` global war against terrorism. So far, the death toll has been very high in these countries and they both seem to be unfinished stories.

Can the war against global terrorism be won? Discussion Questions Can the war against global terrorism be won? Can terrorism be completely eliminated? If yes, how? If no, why not? Can terrorism ever be justified? What are the political, socio-economic and cultural reasons feeding global terrorism?