Not a Modern Phenomenon (From Terrorism in the Twenty-First Century, P 20-35, 1997, Cindy C. Combs -- See NCJ-170150)

• NCJ Number: 170152
• Author(s): C C Combs
• Date Published: 1997
• Length: 16 pages
• Sale Source: Prentice-Hall, Inc
• Publication Type: Historical Overview
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

After reviewing the long history of terrorism, this chapter contrasts earlier terrorism with contemporary terrorism.

Abstract

Prior to the 20th century, terrorism has existed in many forms: political assassins; lethal groups of religious zealots and drug-crazed murderers; state-sponsored as well as nonstate pirates; and dedicated revolutionaries, whose resort to violence is tied to state repression. All of these forms of terrorism continue in the modern world, but there are significant differences. Regarding political assassinations, terrorist acts are no longer directed solely or even primarily at heads of state. In the latter part of the 20th century, attacks have been made with greater frequency on individuals of less significance, but who were easier for the assassins to attack. Regarding drugs, religious fanaticism, and political murders, this lethal combination still exists in the contemporary world, but the relationship between these elements has changed considerably. Today, drugs are used to finance the terrorist acts of religious zealots, whose targets are not only those of another religion within their community, but include whole nations or groups of nations whose citizens are regarded by the zealots as legitimate targets for murder. This is a broadening of the category of acceptable potential victims. Although piracy on the sea has waned somewhat in recent years, air piracy has more than taken its place. Although the treatment of victims of piracy has remained essentially the same, the purpose or goal of the act has changed radically. Regarding state-sponsored terrorism, modern governments have expanded the concept of "licensed" pirates. Terrorism has, in fact, become an institutionalized form of foreign policy for many nations. Governments privately and sometimes publicly sponsor groups involved in terrorist activities. Modern methods of travel, modern communication, and the dramatic increase in the arsenal of weapons available to modern terrorists has significantly changed the threat that terrorists pose. The chapter includes questions for students regarding the typology of the 1985 hijacking of the pleasure ship Achille Lauro and the killing of a passenger. 4 suggested readings and 13 notes