Terrorism and Political Violence by Alex Schmid - 1312 Words

Terrorism can be defined and viewed in many different ways. As discussed in â€Å"Terrorism and Political Violence,† by Alex Schmid, there are multiple frameworks in which terrorism can be defined (Schmid 2010, 197). In Schmid’s article, he discusses the five ways he feels terrorism can be looked at, terrorism as/and politics, terrorism as/and crime, terrorism as/and warfare, terrorism as/and communication and terrorism as/and religious fundamentalism (Schmid 2010, 197). This is interesting because it explores the concept of terrorism in different lenses, where each has its own motives, its own background and its own participants. This is important to understand because not every act of terrorism is done in the same light and for the same purposes. Just as any other crime, there are reasons behind the act. When studying terrorism, understanding motives makes all the difference, and understanding what is at stake for the attacker or the attacked helps fully conceptualize the matter. As defined by the Federal Bureau of Investigations, acts of terrorism can fit into one of two ways, domestic terrorism and international terrorism (FBI.gov). Although, there are two types, overall the FBI defines terrorism in general as a violent act intended to manipulate the civilian body, the government, and/or to involve putting people in danger on a federal or state level (FBI.gov). Meaning that someone (organization, government, institution, etc.) violently attacks someone else (government,Show MoreRelated The Media’s Support of International Terrorism Essay1742 Words   |  7 Pages   The word of the attack spreads and soon it is the talk of the town. Many more attacks on Romans are made by the Sicarii and the Zealots.   Sympathizers of the Romans slowly disappear and their voices vanish from Jerusalem.   The fear of terrorism grows and Roman repression grows along with it, this in turn leads to the people of Jerusalem to revolt in 70 AD (Miller V).   If this attack had been made in some dark alley with no spectators would the people react the way they did? Read MoreMilitary Science: Irregular Warfare Essay1230 Words   |  5 Pages(COIN) and terrorism. Resources such as time, space, legitimacy and support present themselves as key issues in dealing with insurgency and terrorism and are leveraged by an insurgent or terrorist group to gain an advantage over conventional military forces. Modern day understanding of insurgency and terrorism has become blurred over time and thus it is necessary to make the difference between the two clear when examining strategies used in irregular warfare. Alex Schmid defines terrorism as: ..Read MoreList Of Definitions Of Terrorism Essay969 Words   |  4 Pagesthroughout the literature reviewed. These themes are: defining terrorism, the terrorist mindset, methods of identifying a potential terrorist, ways to detect terrorist activities prior to execution, and developing means to combat future acts of terrorism. Although the literature presents these main themes in a variety of perspectives, this paper will primarily focus on their applicability to the terrorist lifecycle. Defining Terrorism What is a terrorist? Before we can determine the likelihoodRead MoreHistory of Terrorism3139 Words   |  13 PagesTHE CONTEXT OF TERRORISM Terrorism beams into our homes through television screens, it assaults us in newspapers and magazines, and it sometimes touches our lives in more direct manners. People do not seem to worry about the definition of terrorism at such times. They simply feel terror when they see the violence. 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Because the Western influence – in the case of this paper, the United States – is partially responsible for the instability the Middle East. Yet the United States has not taken any accountability for past policies that negatively affected the soc ial, economic and political conditions in this region - hence has become the productRead MoreHow Effective Is Terrorism Is For Achieving Its Political Objectives3701 Words   |  15 PagesTopic: How effective has terrorism being in achieving its political objectives. This essay will discuss how effective the terrorism has been in achieving its political objectives and will base its arguments on Political Terrorism by Schmid AP and Alberts J 1988 case study and supported by the 9/11 attack by Webster 2011 and the Siege operation by Cathy 2013. In unpacking the topic, key areas such as history and defining terrorist, the effectiveness of terrorism, its political objectives and quantifyRead MoreThe Attack Of The United States2417 Words   |  10 PagesSeptember 11, 2001 is a day that will forever live in every American’s mind. The terrorist attack that took nearly 3,000 lives was highly publicized, many channels played live footage of New York City as the Twin Towers were attacked. Watching the violence firsthand caused people across the nation to become incredibly invested in what had occurred. Americans felt violated; The notion of safety and freedom at home was wrenched away the moment that American Airlines flight 11 crashed into the Nor th TowerRead MoreIranian Hostage Crisis 1617 Words   |  7 Pageslaw by not bringing in security forces and by adopting the attack as their own (Wilkinson, 2001, p.138). This was also one of the first encounters of many America would have with terrorism that many attribute to the rise of Islamic fundamentalism (White, 2014, p. 207). Clearly, it changed the diplomatic and political relations between the United States and Iran (Bechtel, n.d., p. 01). Ronald Reagan’s landslide victory over President Jimmy Carter to become the 40 President of the United StatesRead MoreInsurgency4485 Words   |  18 Pagesrecognized as such by the United Nations) when those taking part in the rebellion are not recognized as belligerents.[1] An insurgency can be fought via counter-insurgency warfare, and may also be opposed by measures to protect the population, and by political and economic actions of various kinds aimed at undermining the insurgents claims against the incumbent regime.[2] The nature of insurgencies is an ambiguous concept. Not all rebellions are insurgencies. There have been many cases of non-violent