8246 Lecture Notes - Lecture 12: Relative Deprivation, Islamic Salvation Front, Ummah
5 Jun 2018
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National Security – Lecture 12
Terrorism
Big Questions to be Asked
• What is terror?
• Who are the terrorists?
• What do terrorists want?
• How long will the war against terror last?
• Is terror a threat to our national security?
• Has terror provoked a disproportionate reaction from us?
• What have we lost as a result of the war on terror?
• What is the cost of terrorism?
• What is the future of terrorism?
• How do we approach de-radicalisation and counter-radicalisation?
Bard O'Neill
• "The threat or use of physical coercion, primary against non-combatants, especially
civilians, to create fear in order to achieve various political objectives."
Criminal Code Act 1995
• "An action or threat of action where the action causes certain defined forms of harm or
interference and the action is done or the threat is made with the intention of advancing
a political, religious or ideological cause."
United Nations
• No agreed definition but 4 actions:
1. Address the conditions conducive to the spread of terrorism,
2. Prevent and combat terrorism,
3. Build State's capacity to prevent and combat terrorism and to strengthen the role
of the UN system, in that regard, and
4. Ensure respect for human rights for all and the rule of law as the fundamental
basis for the fight against terrorism.
Tried and True
• Zealots
• French Revolution
• PLF
• Algerian FLN
• Mau Mau
• Weathermen
• FLQ in Quebec
• Red Army in Germany
• Red Brigades in Italy
• IRA
• ETA
• Black September
Terrorism
• No an end in itself
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• A tactic used as a means of war
• Asymmetric
• Used by the weak to have an impact
• Effective in urban areas
• Not guerrilla warfare
Terrorist Act
• A 'terrorist act' defined as an action or threat of action where the action:
o Causes serious physical harm to a person;
o Causes serious damage to property;
o Causes a person's death;
o Endangers a person's life, other than the life of the person taking the action;
o Creates a serious risk to the health or safety of the public or a section of the
public; or
o Seriously interferes with, seriously disrupts, or destroys, and electronic system.
o Is conducted with the intent of forcing an action of a political, ideological or
religious cause. (This is what makes it different from a criminal act).
Terror
• Nihilists
• Anarchists
• Revolutionaries
• Nationalists
• Religious groups
o IRA
o KK
o Nagaland Rebels
Overall Assessment
• In 2016, deaths resulting from terrorism decreased by 13% to 25,673.
• Deaths have now fallen by 22% from the peak in 2014.
• 79 countries improved their GTI score while 58 countries deteriorated.
• Some countries, including Nigeria and Pakistan saw large improvements.
• 2016 was still the third deadliest year for terrorism since 2000 with a nearly eight-fold
increase in the number of deaths over this time period.
• While the intensity of terrorism in many countries has decreased, terrorism continues to
spread to more countries.
• There were 77 countries that experienced deaths from terrorism, which is an increase
from 65 the previous year.
• Two thirds of all countries experienced a terrorist attack in 2016.
Trends
• Since 2002, eight of the nine regions of the world experienced an increase in terrorism.
North America was the only region to experience a reduced impact.
• Over the last 15 years, South Asia experienced the most terrorist activity, while Central
and South America were least affected. The MENA region had the sharpest increase in
terrorism.
• Egypt and Turkey witnessed very large increases in terrorism following government
crackdowns. In Egypt, terrorism deaths increased nine-fold and in Turkey this figured
has increased by 16 times.
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