NCJ Number
197417
Journal
Studies in Conflict & Terrorism Volume: 25 Issue: 5 Dated: September-October 2002 Pages: 317-332
Date Published
September 2002
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This study aimed to identify the terrorist movements that use the Internet, determine the content of the terror sites on the Internet, assess the target audience of these Internet sites, and examine whether the sites attempt to mobilize audiences for active operations.
Abstract
To locate the terror sites, a search of the Internet was conducted by using the names of hundreds of organizations in the sampling base. The standard search engines were used. The first search, conducted in January 1998, produced 14 organizations and 16 Internet sites. Another search, conducted in January 2002, yielded 29 sites from 18 organizations. The 1998 search was limited to English websites; whereas, the 2002 search included sites in English and Arabic. Almost all organizations active in 1998 were also online in 2002; however, many of the URL addresses used by terrorist sites in 1998 had changed by 2002, mostly due to moves to different servers. Geographically, most of the organizations that have used the Internet are based in Third World countries in South America, East Asia, and the Middle East; only two are located in Europe. A classification of those terrorist organizations that use the Internet shows that they are national, revolutionary, and religious movements. The most common content of the surveyed sites is information, which usually includes the history of the organization and biographies of its leaders, founders, heroes, commanders, or revered personalities; information on the political and ideological aims of the organization; and up-to-date news. The most common presentation of aims is through a direct criticism of their enemies or rivals. Almost all sites avoid presenting or detailing their violent activities. The exceptions are Hizbollah and Hamas, who present data on the number of "martyrs," "enemies," and "collaborators" killed in planned attacks. Most of the sites attempt to provide justifications for the use of violence to achieve the movement's aims; in most cases, violence is justified as the last resort for the weak in attempting to defeat the oppression of those who are militarily more powerful. In addition to targeting supporters of the organization as an audience, these sites are also interested in reaching the international "bystander" public and Internet "surfers" who are not involved in the conflict. Most of the sites offer versions in several languages in order to enlarge their international audience. Although recruitment efforts are not overt on most of the sites and no direct calls for violence were found, some of the content on the website could be viewed as encouraging violence indirectly. 26 references, 3 notes, and appended list of terrorist organizations on the Internet and their website addresses