TERRORISM



“The Nature of Terrorism Has Adjusted To Changes in the International System”

“The nature of terrorism has adjusted to changes in the international system” Discuss.

The struggle against international terrorism is at crossroads. Counter-terrorism and counter insurgency strategies are difficult to develop and implement, unless we assess how international terrorism adopts changes of the international system. Using traditional means to counteract terrorism would not work anymore. Hence, it requires a concerted evaluation of the trends of terrorism that is taking place in the new era of technology and globalization. The increased focus on international terrorism, followed by the 9/11 attacks have totally changed the way countries perceive and manage counterterrorism efforts.

Many scholars believe that the nature of terrorism has undergone various changes in the modern society. They believe that the world is now experiencing a new kind of terrorism that is different from what they faced since 1968. There are some other evidences that suggest that terrorism has not adopted great many changes in the last twenty years, rather the nature, and the primary motive still remains the same. This study will present an analysis on each claim in detail within the following text, to assess how has terrorism adapted to the modern times, and what are the differences in its nature since globalization and international systems were introduced.

Terrorism is defined in as many ways as it is undertaken or perpetrated. However, many scholars believe there are many ways in which we can define terrorism using the most common instances in which it occurs. The primary motive of terrorism is to harm either an individual or a state through a brutal use of force, power and weapons. Usually the term is seen at the broad state level, where the motive is to cause harm to the general public in order to achieve ulterior motives related to political and gain of influence.

In wars, groups of people are selected for attack as they hold a certain value, and attacking them would result in the achievement of a military goal. There is much more to the term than warfare that is usually not committed by legitimate combatant groups. In terrorism, the killing of individuals is a concern that is certainly not acceptable at all.

Terrorism should not be confused with warfare. There are three types of terrorist attacks that distinguish it from warfare, which are attacks caused through the use of weapons of mass disruption, weapons of mass destruction and weapons of mass disruption. These distinctions focus on the intention behind terrorist activities rather than its motive. While the goal of terrorism is fundamentally based on the creation of fear for achieving a political goal, it can either be object-driven or terror-driven.

The 21st century starts with diverting the attention of the world's states, organizational partnerships and international implementation of the main threats to international peace and security. With the intensifying dynamics of technical, scientific, economic and social developments, the potential of change is so immense that every state needs to pay ...