What is Terrorism

The definition of terrorism as found in AR 525-13 is "the calculated use of violence or threat of violence to attain goals that are political, religious or ideological in nature. This is done through intimidation, coercion, or instilling fear. Terrorism involves a criminal act that is often symbolic and intended to influence an audience beyond the immediate victims."

To completely understand what terrorism is and where it comes from, one must understand the various types of terrorism. One type is state sponsored terrorism which is usually used by countries like Iran, Syria, North Korea, Cuba, Libya, etc. These countries have been known to or are suspected of giving aid, support, and planning terrorist attacks. Iran for example has the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Ministry of Intelligence and Security which is known for planning and giving support for terrorist acts. Iran is a strong voice of the anti-Israel thought in the Middle East.

The second type is fundamentalist, revolutionary, or religious groups that use terrorism as a way to try and get their message heard. Some known terrorist groups are al-Qaida, Hizballah, Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC), etc. The most well know attack by a terrorist group was the attacks on September 11, 2001. Al-Qaida high jacked commercial jets and flew them into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

These two types of terrorism are the current threat to the American way of life. No longer is it another super power, like during the Cold War, where the territories were known. It is now a conflict where an attack can happen anytime or anywhere. With these terrorist groups having the ability to be backed by Rouge States it makes major terrorist attacks even more likely to happen because they have access to more funds and equipment.

http://www.globalsecurity.org/security/library/report/2004/pgt_2003/pgt_2003_31644pf.htm

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/policy/army/accp/it0468/lsn1.htm

The Day of Change

The recent seventh anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon remind us of how America’s way of life has been altered. September 11, 2001 was the first time since the War of 1812 that the United States mainland was attacked by a foreign enemy. It shut down all air travel in the United States, closed Wall Street, and put the United States Military on its highest alert. The threat of terrorism was of little concern to most American’s before September 11. A terrorist act was seen as possible but unlikely to happen on American soil. Today, seven years later, there are government agencies devoted to stopping terrorism, people wait in line for hours at airport security lines, and people now believe that a terrorist attack can happen to them.