Definitions of Terrorism

"Terrorism" comes from the French word terrorisme, and originally referred specifically to state terrorism as practiced by the French government during the Reign of terror.

“One’s person freedom fighter is another person’s terrorist.”

The above statement occurs in a variety of forms that all say much the same thing – that terrorism, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. More than a hundred definitions of terrorism exist. Proffered by government officials, scholars, the media and the terrorists themselves, the varying definitions present a bewildering array of approaches to defining terrorism. The difficulty of definition is not new, however.

In a study of 109 definitions of terrorism, a group of researchers collapsed the definitional elements into 22 categories. The most common elements were violence or force (84% of the definitions), followed by political motivation (65%), engendering fear or terror (51%), using a threat (47%), psychological effects (42%), and victim-target differentiations (38%).

It is clearly indicated most definitions include violence or a threat of violence. Most also include motivations (e.g., political, religious, economic). Thus for the purpose of this study, the definition of terrorism as defined in Oxford Advance Learners English – Chinese dictionary as “the use of violent action in order to achieve political aims or to force government to act” is adopted.

Objectives of Terrorism:a. Direct ObjectivesThey are the objectives announced by the organization during implementation of the terrorism operation. They are represented in the following: i. Obtain funds to finance the organization activities, and recruit new personnel to work with it.

ii. Release prisoners in jails, either they are politicians or members of the organization or they have been caught during previous operations.

iii. Implement killing operations to opponents either as disclosed or concealed operation. iv. Secure the escapes of the persons who implement the terrorism operation after the end of the

operation in achieve the last stage of the operation to succeed. v. Perform necessary propaganda for the organization.

b. Indirect ObjectivesThey are unannounced objectives but the organization tries to achieve. They may be more important to the organization than the direct objectives. They are represented in the following:i. Weaken the government authority and show it as disabled due to its inability to discover the

operation before it occurs and its inability to face the situation resulting from the terrorism operation.

ii. Obtain official recognition from the targeted country of the existence of the organization or obtain international recognition due to announcements of statements that organization mandated announcement.

iii. Oblige the country to implement works directed against the citizens who result in loss of confidence in the government due to its inability to achieve security for citizen and face the terrorism organization to overcome.

iv. Create supporter from the citizens of the targeted country and work to overcome the ruling regime or achieve the organization objectives.

v. Attack tourism, economy, security and the sources of power that give country the legality such as religion, economy and security.

Types of Terrorism:Based on Washington's classification in 1976 the terrorism was divided into four types: a. Doctrine terrorism

This includes leftist, communist, rightist extremists, Zionism and Hindu terrorism.

b. National terrorismIt includes operations targeted to expel occupants, destroy their machinery and interests and kill their representatives.

c. Religion, or faction race terrorismFor instance operations implemented by Tamil against the Srelankan government and Seek operations against Muslims in India.

d. Sickness terrorismIt is caused by mental or psychological malfunction.

With respect to the one who implement the violence and extremism, it can be divided into two types: a. Individual Terrorism

Violent acts implemented by one person or several limited person.

b. Group TerrorismIt comes from religious or national faction against another one, or against other people, or one nation against another. It has two shapes namely national group terrorism and doctrine group terrorism.

Terrorism is distinguished from other violence works by the following: 1. Violence or threatening and it last for long time causing terrorism. 2. Organization linked to violence and as it continues it causes terrorism. 3. The purpose is illegal although it is clear that it tries to curb the political authority. 4. The act is not from acquired acts and it has been given a name as crime that is ruled by

jurisdiction so that no mix shall be made between international crimes. 5. A symbolic limited act that goes beyond the scope of action in order to make wider and

comprehensive effects of fear. 6. Terrorism is an act that means several political indications and it aims to affect decision making

or diverting it. 7. Terrorism acts does not mean military counter acts. It is limited in terrorism severe tactics,

secret and unforeseen implemented by political elements opposing the authority and the ruling regime and it specifically selects its objectives and has specific requirements.

8. Use of power, violence, or threatening by that which is considered the main role to achieve the objectives.

9. The terrorism act is limited by boundaries or geography and its plan is implemented in a place that achieves the objectives.

10. Terrorism operations attract the attention, and therefore, its operations occur to international objectives or super power countries in order to spread its news to serve the objectives. Therefore, its objectives have two dimensions namely emotional dimension and mental dimension and they are characterized by extremism and have no mediation.

Reasons of terrorismThe general reasons for the terrorism phenomena in the world

a. Geographical reasons: The wide area of the country borders makes it difficult for the armed forces and security systems in any country that have weakness, factions usually make it difficult to secure that and impose control on the borders. This encouraged terrorists to penetrate through borders to inside the country to achieve objectives and perform their operations. Some countries or places have certain terrains that are suitable as shelters for them facilitating terrorism operations. Undeveloped random areas form a dangerous challenge to security and stability of the nation and citizen. In addition to the geographical reasons, hot areas are considered more suitable than cold areas for spread of political reasons. Similarly is the aggression on personnel and raising riot. For example, it has been found that there is increased number of terrorist and it is easy to attract many youth such as in south of Egypt. It is found that very cold weather prevent criminals and kill them if they fortify in mountains and their high tops.

b. Media Reasons The criminals use the mass media as a means to reach their objectives. Terrorist organizations in the world conduct terrorist operations to attract the attention of the world public opinion to their cause which they defend in order to oblige the aired party to surrender to their demands. Some researchers commented that mass media programs which are shameful and hurt the honor and spread the sin and sarcastic of the values and principles leads to creation of environment suitable for terrorism to face these countries and the dangerous role of that mass media, and the deviated ideas and view that contracting to the Islamic principles. The resulted in negative reaction by the youth who are affected by the media attack. Some of them try to compromise and they go extremely in understanding Islam. Others have blocked minds and in both cases the reason is the misunderstanding of the religion and teaching. Some are affected by some bad imported scholarships or they blindly follow some misleaders who are trading in religion. Sometimes they is lack of religion which is not filled because mass media is involved in programs far away from the religion situation and different from the ambitions of the youth and their needs and does not discuss their problems and spread the correct religious awareness and as such it fees the feeling of extremism and terrorism.

c. Economic Reasons The economic problems of the undeveloped countries are some of the dangerous reasons for terrorism in the world. The scientific and technical developments of the world banking systems have facilitated the transfer of money between the terrorist networks. Also, individuals in the third world countries suffering of the economical countries related to housing, debts, unemployment's, and poorness, inflation in prices, communication, and health are factors that may lead the youth to be extremist and terrorist and provide the opportunity to the terrorism organization to utilize the economic conditions of the youth to achieve their objectives.

d. Family Reasons: Family loose relations, and the lack of supervision of the parents on their children and the mistreatment of the parents or the negligence and the lack of dialogue between the children and their sharing in taking the decisions specially if they are directly related to their future such as education, work and marriage.

e. Intellectual Reasons: The world suffers of the sharp intellectual division between different currents: Secular current that calls for secular life away from religious traditions and customs and social values so that the society will develop and reach the civilization. On the other side there is extremist current away from intermediate and fairness that rejects the current civilization and anything associated with the civil development and they reject that under the pretext that this civilization cause corruption of morals, dismantling of family, frozen social relations and as such each side refuses the thoughts of the other party and look at him doubtfully without scrutinizing and evaluation to reach the right and basic principles. This caused some extremists to be under a state of attraction between both currents which led at

the end to follow terrorism approach which is not approved by religion and contradict with the civilization path.

Root Causes The relationship between terrorism and democracy continues to challenge scholars in their search for causes of terrorism. It is generally agreed that a lack of democracy, civil liberties and the rule of law are preconditions for many forms of domestic terrorism. Generally, the most democratic and the most totalitarian societies have the lowest levels of oppositional violence. Failed or weak states on the other hand, lack the capacity – or sometimes the will – to exercise territorial control. This often leaves a power vacuum that can be exploited by terrorist organizations to maintain safe havens and training facilities or serve as bases for launching terrorist campaigns. However, this should not be perceived as simply a lack of democracy or democratic processes. Long standing liberal democracies with established traditions of free speech and tolerance have been the targets of both domestic and foreign terrorism. As Crenshaw contends “democracy and terrorism are not polar opposites: saying ‘yes’ to democracy, unfortunately, does not mean saying ‘no’ to terrorism”.

Rapid modernization and urbanization in the form of high economic growth has also been found to correlate strongly with the emergence of ideological terrorism, but not with ethno-nationalist terrorism. This may be particularly important in countries where sudden wealth (e.g. from oil) has precipitated a change from tribal to high-tech societies in one generation or less. When traditional norms and social patterns crumble or are made to seem irrelevant, new radical ideologies that are sometimes based on religion or perhaps nostalgia for a glorious past, may become attractive to certain segments of society.

Extremist ideologies of a secular or religious nature are at least an intermediate cause of terrorism, although people usually adopt such extremist ideologies as a consequence of more fundamental political or personal reasons. When these worldviews are adopted and applied in order to interpret situations and guide action, they tend to take on a dynamics of their own, and may serve to dehumanize the enemy and justify atrocities.

Historical antecedents of political violence, civil wars, revolutions, dictatorships or occupation may lower the threshold for acceptance of political violence and terrorism, and impede the development of non-violent norms among all segments of society. The victim role as well as longstanding historical injustices and grievances may be constructed to serve as justifications for terrorism. When young children are socialized into cultural value systems that celebrate martyrdom, revenge and hatred of other ethnic or national groups, this is likely to increase their readiness to support or commit violent atrocities when they grow up. Hegemony and inequality of power. When local or international powers possess an overwhelming power compared to oppositional groups, and the latter see no other realistic ways to forward their cause by normal political or military means, “asymmetrical warfare” can represent a tempting option. Terrorism offers the possibility of achieving high political impact with limited means.

Illegitimate or corrupt governments frequently give rise to opposition that may turn to terrorist means if other avenues are not seen as realistic options for replacing these regimes with a more credible and legitimate government or a regime which represents the values and interests of the opposition movement.

Powerful external actors upholding illegitimate governments may be seen as an insurmountable obstacle to needed regime change. Such external support to illegitimate governments is frequently

seen as foreign domination through puppet regimes serving the political and economic interests of foreign sponsors.

Repression by foreign occupation or by colonial powers has given rise to a great many national liberation movements that have sought recourse in terrorist tactics and other political means. Despite their use of terrorist methods, some liberation movements enjoy considerable support and legitimacy among their own constituencies, and sometimes also from segments of international public opinion.

The experience of discrimination on the basis of ethnic or religious origin is the chief root cause of ethno-nationalist terrorism. When sizeable minorities are systematically deprived of their rights to equal social and economic opportunities, obstructed from expressing their cultural identities (e.g. forbidden to use their language or practice their religion), or excluded from political influence, this can give rise to secessionist movements that may turn to terrorism or other forms of violent struggle. Ethnic nationalisms are more likely to give rise to (and justify) terrorism than are moderate and inclusive civic nationalisms.

Failure or unwillingness by the state to integrate dissident groups or emerging social classes may lead to their alienation from the political system. Some groups are excluded because they hold views or represent political traditions considered irreconcilable with the basic values of the state. Large groups of highly educated young people with few prospects of meaningful careers within a blocked system will tend to feel alienated and frustrated. Excluded groups are likely to search for alternative channels through which to express and promote political influence and change. To some, terrorism can seem the most effective and tempting option.

The experience of social injustice is a main motivating cause behind social revolutionary terrorism. Relative deprivation or great differences in income distribution (rather than absolute deprivation or poverty) in a society have in some studies been found to correlate rather strongly with the emergence of social revolutionary political violence and ideological terrorism, but less with ethno-nationalist terrorism.

The presence of charismatic ideological leaders able to transform widespread grievances and frustrations into a political agenda for violent struggle is a decisive factor behind the emergence of a terrorist movement or group. The existence of grievances alone is only a precondition; someone is needed to translate that into a program for violent action.

Impact of terrorismThis is the consequences of terrorist which adversely affect the society for long years suffering from them and the next generations. These results can be concluded in the following: a. The terrorism operations are considered risks that discourage the traders and businessmen to

expand their trading and commercial deals with countries suffering of terrorism. b. The general climate of investment will be discouraging for attraction of capital from outside. c. The terrorism interrupt the tourism activities which are considered as a source of the national

income for many Islamic countries d. The terrorism and its consequences of non-stability of security and economy leads to setback of

the economic development. This creates another type of hidden economy which is trading of weapons and explosives.

e. The terrorism take dangerous dimensions that may harm the budget of the country in which it occurs in two aspects: i. The state expenses will be increased on terrorism fighting.

ii. Increase the country's burden of payments to the killed persons and treatment of injured people, repair of what destruction and damage resulting from terrorism.

The preventive and remedial precautions for terrorism incidents: a. Spread the awareness and knowledge among people so that the citizens will coordinate to have

the perfect method and strongest way to support. b. Take care of the rehabilitation aspects of the person committed the crime because cutting the

reasons of crime will prevent their occurrence. c. Direct the penalties through the best way that defend the crimes and eliminate them. d. Impose proper penalties for crimes even if they are small and not related to terrorism incidents,

because crimes and violations may lead to others. e. Enforce penalties on the crime incidents if they are combined by terrorism. f. Find penalties that the support the basic penalties as required such as announcement. g. Impose precisely and accurately the juristic penalties for the crimes. h. Develop the juristic and security organizations which track the crime before occurrence. It

proposes the juristic recommendations and proper social and scientific remedies.

Overview of Terrorism

Early History of TerrorismThe beginnings of terrorist violence closely followed the spread of early civilization. Individuals, rebel groups, and governments have used brutality and power from early times to the current. The reasons why they were used that to reduce enemies, to spread fear and panic, and to achieve political, religious, and other ideological goals.

a. Political Purpose Terror has been used to achieve political ends and has a long history. From the 66 to 72 A.D, there was Jewish against to Roman occupation, terrorists killed Roman soldiers and destroyed Roman Property. Terror was used to resist occupation.

b. Religious Purpose Suicidal martyrdom represented being killed by invaders, which resulted in reward in heave. It dates back thousands of years in most societies and religious. Terrorism against the enemy is often viewed as a religious action.

Four Waves of Modern Terrorism What is a wave? It is a cycle of activity in a given time period – a cycle characterized by expansion and contraction phases. A crucial feature is its international character; similar activities occur in several countries, driven by common predominant energy that shapes the participating groups’ characteristics and mutual relationships.

The waves illustrate the general ideological trends in terrorism over the past 130 years. It is important to note that the name of each wave reflects the dominant, but not the only ideology of the wave. Nationalist groups, for example appear in all waves.

First WaveThe origin of the first wave, which is generally also seen as the origin of modern terrorism, was set around 1880 in Russia. The wave was anarchistic in character and was the first global terrorist experience. One of the main characteristics of the first wave was political assassinations. The most important group was Narodnaja Volja, or “People’s Will”. The group expected that targeting specific

political representatives would ignite a popular uprising. This led the group to choose its targets very carefully, ultimately killing Tsar Alexander II.

The wave that started in Russia soon swept Europe and eventually reached the United States. Anarchists killed, amongst others, the President of France Marie François Sadi Carnot, the President of United States William McKinley, the Prime Minister of Spain Antonio Cánovas del Castillo and later also Prime Minister José Canalejas, Elisabeth of Bavaria the Empress of Austria and Umberto I the King of Italy. It is thus not a surprise that the period is sometimes called the “Golden Age of Assassination”. The wave of anarchist violence that swept the world led President Roosevelt to “ask in December 1901 for international treaties among all civilized powers to make anarchism a crime against the law of nations and to empower the federal government to deal with this crime”. This was a call for an international battle against anarchist terrorism, one hundred years prior to the call of President Bush for a war on religious terrorism. Second Wave The Anticolonial wave emerged in the 1920s and had its root causes in the Treaty of Versailles signed in 1919. The European victors broke up the old defeated empires (the Ottoman Empire and the Austro- Hungarian Empire) and decided that its non-European parts were not yet ready for independence. Terrorist groups appeared in, for example, Palestine and Cyprus. Following World War II terrorist activity emerged in the overseas territories of the battered European colonial superpowers. The second wave receded with the dissolving of the colonial empires in the 1950s and early 1960s.

Third WaveThe third wave, known as the New-Left, emerged in the 1960s out of discontent with the western political climate that was characterized by the Vietnam War and had of course the Cold War as broader context. Terrorist groups were active in Europe, Latin America and the United States and were often aided by Palestinian organizations (most notably the PLO) and state sponsors (for example Libya, Iran and the Soviet Union).

The end of the Cold War (in 1989/1991) and as a result the decrease of state sponsorship of terrorism (as there was no longer a need for destabilizing Western Europe) were the main reason behind the demise of the third wave (For more on the decline of terrorism see TTSRL deliverable 5a).

Fourth WaveThe fourth, and for now, last wave has its roots in the Iranian Revolution and the invasion of Afghanistan by the Soviet Union in 1979. Although religion has always played an important role in some terrorist organizations (for example in the IRA and Irgun), it was typically subordinate to other main causes. The IRA, for instance, wanted to liberate and unite the whole of Ireland, while the Irgun aimed to create a Jewish state.

In the fourth wave religion became the ideological justification for perpetrating terrorist attacks. While terrorist violence associated with Christianity has been relatively low, other religions including Hinduism and Judaism played a greater role in this fourth wave. Ultimately, according to scholars, the wave is predominantly characterized by fundamentalist Islamist terrorism. This wave is further characterized by specific trends like suicide terrorism, the decline of the number of terrorist groups and the targeting of ‘softer’ targets.

9-11 or September 11, 2001

9-11 was a series of coordinated suicide attacks by a terrorist group, al-Qaeda, against the United States on September 11 in 2001. On the day, the hijackers intentionally crashed two of the airliners into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, taking away the lives of people on board and those working in the building. Within two hours of time, both buildings collapsed and destroyed other buildings nearby. The third plane crashed into the Pentagon. The fourth plane crashed into a field near Shanksville in Pennsylvania, after some of its passengers and flight crew tried to take control of the plane, the hijackers had redirected toward Washington, D.C. In the end, there were no survivors from any flights.

· London Subway Bombings

On 7 July in 2005, there were suicide bomb attacks on London’s public transport system in the morning, the busiest time for working people. British Islamist extremists conducted the terrorist act because of Britain’s involvement in the Iraq War and other conflicts.

Early in the morning, four bombs exploded on three London underground trains and on a bus in Tavistock Square. As a result, 52 commuters and the four suicide bombers died and 700 were

injured. Moreover, the incident disrupted the city’s transport system and the United Kingdom’s mobile telecommunications infrastructure. This will be remembered as the largest and deadliest terrorist attack on London’s transport system throughout the history.

Strategy to Counter Terrorism: The objective of the national security strategy has to be the creation and maintenance of a security environment which would enable the nation to provide opportunities to all individuals to develop to their fullest potential.National security strategy needs to be built round the concept that nothing must impede the drive towards the goal of eradicating poverty and raising everyone in the country above the poverty line.Multi-pronged approach is needed where socio-economic development is a priority so that vulnerable sections of society do not fall prey to the propaganda of terrorists promising them wealth and equity. Administration, particularly service delivery mechanism must be responsible to legitimate and long standing grievances of the people so that these are redressed promptly and are not exploited by terrorist groups.To deal with menace of terrorism, comprehensive strategy at multiple fronts involving different stakeholders – government, political parties, civil society, and security agencies is needed. Political parties must arrive at national level political consensus to devise the broad contours of planned strategy. This must be realized with intense state and centre cooperation parties should rise above their sectarian and petty electoral compulsions. Priority to the development work, its actual implementation on ground amidst corruption free environment is needed.While dealing with any situation, law of the land must be respected. If the law is inadequate to deal with existing situation, new laws may be enacted.Terrorism is an extraordinary issue. Ordinary laws of land are not adequate to curb the terrorism. It needs special laws and effective enforcing mechanism, but with sufficient safeguards to avoid its misuse.Extend to intelligence gathering machinery, security agencies, civil administration and society at large.

The Global Counter Terrorism strategy adopted by United Nations General Assembly in 2006 is based on these four principles:a. Address conditions conductive to spread of terrorism for instance lack of rule of law, national

and religious discriminations, human rights violations etc.b. Prevent and combat terrorism by denying terrorists means to carry out attacks.c. Build state capacity to combat terrorism.d. Ensure respect for human rights for all and the rule of law as the fundamental basis to fight

against terrorism.

The strategies of counter-terrorism

Intelligence effortsAnalyze information relating to terrorism among National governments, international organizations, and police departments Identifying terrorist suspects and by detecting terrorist Electronic surveillance: monitor suspected terrorists and to intercept their communication Wiretapping: intercepts telephone conversations by a listening device connected to a nearby telephone wire Special aircrafts and artificial satellites that give detailed images of suspected terrorist bases or camps

Gathering information by questioning under arrest terrorists and by searching areas where terrorists have lived Examine financial records and trace the funding of terrorist organizations then order banks to stop the assets of terrorists or of individuals or groups believed to be contributing to terrorist activities.

Security measuresSecurity systems and procedures and the work of trained security personnel are placed at airports and airplanes, large public gatherings, and government buildings High security at airports and on airplanes to decrease the hijackings and other attacks: passing through multiple airport checkpoints before they get on to the plane, guards scan or search baggage and other items Large buildings, such as skyscrapers and government buildings have placed physical barriers to keep away car or truck bombs. Also they have metal detectors or other security checkpoints to search for dangerous items and to prevent unauthorized people from enteringCameras scan people's faces and attempt to match them with photos of suspected terrorists in a computer database at some crowded events

Diplomatic, economic, and military pressure Extradition treaties allow people linked to terrorism in one country to be arrested in a different country and deported for trial in the country where an attack took place. Such treaties make it difficult for terrorists to escape criminal charges. The international community may isolate or punish nations that support terrorism. Governments limit or end economic relations with the country until it changes its policies If sanctions and diplomatic pressure fail, countries may launch military strikes against terrorist bases and camps or against countries that sponsor terrorism.

The US has highly appreciated Bangladesh’s role in combating terrorism saying its counterterrorism efforts made it harder for transnational terrorists to operate in or establish safe havens in Bangladeshi territory but said the judiciary moved slowly in processing terrorism and other criminal cases in general.

“…Bangladesh has demonstrated its commitment to combating domestic and transnational terrorist groups,” the ‘Country Reports on Terrorism 2012’ of the US State Department said in its Bangladesh part.

It mentioned that the South Asia remains a frontline in the battle against terrorism.

US assistance supports programmes for Bangladeshi civilian, law enforcement, and military counterparts to build their capacity to monitor, detect, and prevent terrorism.

The report considers Bangladesh as an influential counterterrorism partner in the region, and mentioned that the country continued to make strides against domestic and international terrorism. Besides, Bangladesh and India improved and expanded counterterrorism cooperation.

Despite the absence of major terrorist incidents on their territory, governments in the five Central Asian states were concerned about the possibility of a growing threat connected to changes in the international force presence in Afghanistan in 2014.

Legislation, Law Enforcement and Border Security

Bangladesh’s criminal justice system is in the process of fully implementing the Antiterrorism Act of 2009. However, the judiciary moved slowly in processing terrorism and other criminal cases in general.

Bangladesh cooperated with the United States to further strengthen control of its borders and land, sea, and air ports of entry. It continued to participate in the Department of State’s Antiterrorism Assistance program and cooperated with the Department of Justice’s efforts to provide prosecutorial skills training to its assistant public prosecutors, encourage greater cooperation between police and prosecutors, and institute community policing in targeted areas of the country.

With financial support from the United States and other partners, Bangladesh established a National Academy for Security Training in 2012 and began to provide counterterrorism training courses.

Countering Terrorist Finance

Bangladesh is a member of the Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering, a Financial Action Task Force (FATF)-style regional body.

The Bangladesh Bank (the central bank) and its Financial Intelligence Unit/Anti-Money Laundering Section lead the government’s effort to comply with the international sanctions regime.

FATF has identified Bangladesh’s implementation of UNSCRs 1267 and 1373 as a deficiency in its laws. Bangladesh formed an interagency committee to address this issue, and has drafted regulations to implement both of these provisions.

While Bangladesh’s Anti-Terrorism Act criminalised terrorist financing, FATF has recommended that Bangladesh amend its laws to meet international standards and to clarify remaining ambiguities.

The interagency committee mentioned above has begun revising the legislation to satisfy FATF’s concerns in this regard.

Regional and International Cooperation

Bangladesh is party to various counterterrorism protocols under the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation and is bringing the country’s counterterrorism efforts in line with the four pillars of the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy.

Bangladesh’s foreign and domestic policies are heavily influenced by the region’s major powers, particularly India.

In past years the Indo-Bangladesh relationship provided openings for transnational threats, but the current government has demonstrated its interest in regional cooperation on counterterrorism. Bangladesh was active in the full range of international fora.

In 2012, Bangladesh enacted a mutual legal assistance law that will allow for greater international cooperation. It has also signed memoranda of understanding with a number of countries to share evidence regarding criminal investigations, including investigations related to financial crimes and terrorist financing.

Countering Radicalisation and Violent Extremism

Bangladesh uses strategic communication to counter violent extremism, especially among youth.

The Ministry of Education provides oversight for madrassas and is developing a standard national curriculum that includes language, math, and science curricula; and minimum standards of secular subjects to be taught in all primary schools, up to the eighth grade.

The Ministry of Religious Affairs and the National Committee on Militancy Resistance and Prevention work with imams and religious scholars to build public awareness against terrorism.“The Government of Bangladesh is also actively expanding economic opportunities for women as it views economic empowerment for women as a buffer against violent extremist messages of male religious leaders,” the report says.

About Pakistan it said the country continued to experience significant terrorist violence, including sectarian attacks.

Although terrorist attacks occurred in 85 different countries in 2012, they were heavily concentrated geographically. As in recent years, over half of all attacks (55%), fatalities (62%), and injuries (65%) occurred in just three countries: Pakistan, Iraq, and Afghanistan, the report says.

http://www.thedailystar.net/beta2/news/us-praises-bangladeshs-counterterrorism-efforts/

To consolidate and enhance these activities, Member States of United Nation in September 2006 embarked upon a new phase in their counter-terrorism efforts by agreeing on a global strategy to counter terrorism. The Strategy marks the first time that all Member States of the United Nations have agreed to a common strategic and operational framework to fight terrorism. The Strategy forms a basis for a concrete plan of action: to address the conditions conducive to the spread of terrorism; to prevent and combat terrorism; to take measures to build state capacity to fight terrorism; to strengthen the role of the United Nations in combating terrorism; and to ensure the respect of human rights while countering terrorism.

The Strategy forms a basis for a concrete plan of action:To address the conditions conducive to the spread of terrorismTo prevent and combat terrorismTo take measures to build state capacity to fight terrorismTo strengthen the role of the United Nations in combating terrorismTo ensure the respect of human rights while countering terrorism.

http://www.un.org/en/terrorism/

Governments able to recognize the potential terrorist threats and develop a wide variety of security measures and emergency procedures by gathering and evaluate information about all the terrorist groups. Counter-terrorism is recommended to carry out through number of strategies as listed:

What are the impacts of terrorism in Singapore? o Be it a direct terrorist attack on the nation, or just the threat of terrorism looming over our heads, terrorism impacts Singapore in several ways Terrorism as a threato Drains national resources: Security issues warrant much of the national budget. It is imperative that this does not compromise on other important national concerns such as education, housing, healthcare and sustainable economic growth

o Creates a climate full of fear and tension: which would be succumbing to terrorism, and which would be a blow to the psychological health of the country Terrorist attacko Human and material damage: An attack would definitely result in casualties and infrastructural losso A test to the resilience of Singapore’s social fabric: May potentially split the different communities against each other. In a worst-case scenario, this will result in civil chaos that sees its precedence in the riots of the 1960s erao Economy: Short term, reparations and losses will temporarily stun the growth of the economy while the nation gets itself back on track. Long term, Singapore, a nation heavily dependent on multinational companies and foreign investments, who has a clean reputation of being a stable country, would suffer shaky investor confidenceThis led to closure in many businesses.Thus, terrorist attacks put additional economic strains on the government.

This causes displeasure to the travelers in terms of inconvenience and infringement of personal freedom and privacy. Thus, creates unhappy relations with the government.Terrorist acts have the potential to affect peaceful relations among the races in multiracial societies.It may create suspicion and tension among various ethnic and religious groups.Cause people to react violently and unfavorably especially if their loved ones are affected.These attacks had potential to cause ethnic groups to fell targeted as they were singled out for increased security checks or viewed suspiciously by the community.

Feelings of alienation arose and tension increased.Thus, communal trust built over the years may destroyed by terrorism.Governments in the world realized the importance of maintaining racial and religious harmony.

Government assumes greater responsibility in ensuring security against terrorist acts.Tighten various controls such as stepping up border security to ensure terrorists do not slip into the country.There are greater check on traveler’s identities and belongings. Thus, slowing down immigration clearance. Introduce laws that give governments greater powers to investigate and prosecute suspected terrorists.

Economic ImpactUS economy – the loss of life & property cost insurers $US40billionAirline industry lost a lot of business people afraid to flyGovernments had to provide economic help to the airline industry to prevent airlines from closing downAfter Bali attacks – Tourism affectedGovernments – increased spending on security of airports and transportation services SocialActs of terrorism - create tensions between religious groups and ethnic groups especially if terrorists are “home-grown” (fellow citizens)Forced governments not to take racial/religious harmony for grantedMany countries including Singapore developing programmes to engage citizens to build social cohesion and harmony. ◦ Purpose: To build & strengthen communal bonds so that these bonds will ease tensions in the aftermath of a crisis such as a terrorist attack

PoliticalGovernment has an additional responsibility to keep their citizens safe from terrorismStepped up border controls/securityGreater checks on travelers’ identities & belongingsIntroduce laws that give governments greater powers to investigate and prosecute suspected terrorists.

Case Study 1: 911 Attacks911 OverviewAttacksCasualtiesMotive

Motives for the September 11 attacks

The attacks of September 11, 2001 in the northeast United States were an organized terrorist act carried out by 19 hijackers, and organized by numerous members of al-Qaeda. Motives for the attacks were stated before and after the attacks in several sources, Osama bin Laden's declaration of a holy war against the United States, and a fatwā signed by bin Laden and others calling for the killing of American civilians in 1998, are seen by investigators as evidence of his motivation.[2]

In bin Laden's November 2002 "Letter to America",[3][4] he explicitly stated that al-Qaeda's motives for their attacks include: Western support for attacking Muslims in Somalia, supporting Russian atrocities against Muslims in Chechnya, supporting the Indian oppression against Muslims in Kashmir, the Jewish aggression against Muslims in Lebanon, the presence of U.S. troops in Saudi Arabia,[4][5][6] U.S. support of Israel,[7][8] and sanctions against Iraq.[9]

Sources

Before the attacks, Al-Qaeda issued proclamations that provide insight into the motivations for the attacks: one was the fatwā of August 1996,[3] and a second was a shorter fatwa in February 1998.[4] Both documents appeared initially in the Arabic-language London newspaper Al-Quds Al-Arabi. Three years before the September 11 attacks, Al-Qaeda released a Fatwa, stating "We -- with God's help -- call on every Muslim who believes in God and wishes to be rewarded to comply with God's order to kill the Americans and plunder their money wherever and whenever they find it. We also call on Muslim ulema, leaders, youths, and soldiers to launch the raid on Satan's U.S. troops and the devil's supporters allying with them, and to displace those who are behind them so that they may learn a lesson."[4] The Fatwa also complains against the presence of the U.S. in Saudi Arabia and support for Israel.[3][4] After the attacks, bin Laden and al-Zawahiri have published dozens of video tapes and audio tapes, many describing the motivations for the attacks. Two particularly important publications were bin Laden's 2002 "Letter to America",[10] and a 2004 video tape by bin Laden.[11] In addition to direct pronouncements by bin Laden and Al-Qaeda, numerous political analysts have postulated motivations for the attacks.

 

Stated motives

Sanctions imposed against Iraq

On 6 August 1990, after the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, the U.N. Security Council adopted Resolution 661 which imposed economic sanctions on Iraq, providing for a full trade embargo, excluding medical supplies, food and other items of humanitarian necessity, these to be determined by the Security Council sanctions committee. After the end of the Gulf War and after the Iraqi withdrawal from Kuwait, the sanctions were linked to removal of weapons of mass destruction by Resolution 687.[12] From 1991 until 2003 the effects of government policy and sanctions regime led to hyperinflation, widespread poverty and malnutrition.[citation

needed]

In the 1998 fatwa, Al Qaeda identified the Iraq sanctions as a reason to kill Americans: "despite the great devastation inflicted on the Iraqi people by the crusader-Zionist alliance, and despite the huge number of those killed, which has exceeded 1 million... despite all this, the Americans are once against trying to repeat the horrific massacres, as though they are not content with the protracted blockade imposed after the ferocious war or the fragmentation and devastation....On that basis, and in compliance with Allah's order, we issue the following fatwa to all Muslims: The ruling to kill the Americans and their allies—civilians and military—is an individual duty for every Muslim..."[13]

In the 2004 Osama bin Laden video, Osama calls the sanctions "the greatest mass slaughter of children mankind has ever known"[14]

Effects on the Iraqi people during sanctions

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_sanctions

 

Presence of U.S. military in Saudi Arabia

After the 1991 Gulf war, the US maintained a presence of 5,000 troops stationed in Saudi Arabia.[15] One of the responsibilities of that force was Operation Southern Watch, which enforced the no-fly zones over southern Iraq set up after 1991, and the country's oil exports through the shipping lanes of the Persian Gulf are protected by the US Fifth Fleet, based in Bahrain.

Since Saudi Arabia houses the holiest sites in Islam (Mecca and Medina) — many Muslims were upset at the permanent military presence. The continued presence of US troops after the Gulf War in Saudi Arabia was one of the stated motivations behind the September 11th terrorist attacks,[15] and the Khobar Towers bombing. Further, the date chosen for the 1998 United States embassy bombings (August 7), was eight years to the day that American troops were sent to Saudi Arabia.[16] Bin Laden interpreted the Prophet Muhammad as banning the "permanent presence of infidels in Arabia".[17] In 1996, Bin Laden issued a fatwa, calling for American troops to get out of Saudi Arabia. In the 1998 fatwa, Al-Qaeda wrote "for over seven years the United States has been occupying the lands of Islam in the holiest of places, the Arabian Peninsula, plundering its riches, dictating to its rulers, humiliating its people, terrorizing its neighbors, and turning its bases in the Peninsula into a spearhead through which to fight the neighboring Muslim peoples."[13] In the December 1999 interview with Rahimullah Yusufzai, bin Laden said he felt that Americans were "too near to Mecca" and considered this a provocation to the entire Muslim world.[18]

 

 

 

 

 

 

Support of Israel by United States

In his November 2002 "Letter to America", Bin Laden described the United States' support of Israel as a motivation: "The expansion of Israel is one of the greatest crimes, and you are the leaders of its criminals. And of course there is no need to explain and prove the degree of American support for Israel. The creation of Israel is a crime which must be erased. Each and every person whose hands have become polluted in the contribution towards this crime must pay its price, and pay for it heavily."[19] In 2004 and 2010, Bin Laden again repeated the

connection between the September 11 attacks and the support of Israel by the United States.[20][21]

Support of Israel was also mentioned before the attack in the 1998 Al-Qaeda fatwa: "[T]he aim [of the United States] is also to serve the Jews' petty state and divert attention from its occupation of Jerusalem and murder of Muslims there. The best proof of this is their eagerness to destroy Iraq, the strongest neighboring Arab state, and their endeavor to fragment all the states of the region such as Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Sudan into paper statelets and through their disunion and weakness to guarantee Israel's survival and the continuation of the brutal crusade occupation of the Peninsula."[4]

Inferred motives

Some motives for the attacks—such as globalization and a desire to provoke the United States—have been inferred by political analysts, although these motives are not explicitly stated by Al-Qaeda.

Globalization

Bernard Lewis is the best-known exponent of the idea of the "humiliation" of the Islamic world through globalization. In the 2004 book The Crisis of Islam: Holy War and Unholy Terror, he argues animosity toward the West is best understood with the decline of the once powerful Ottoman empire, compounded by the import of western ideas— Arab socialism, Arab liberalism and Arab secularism.

During the past three centuries, the Islamic world has lost its dominance and its leadership, and has fallen behind both the modern West and the rapidly modernizing Orient. This widening gap poses increasingly acute problems, both practical and emotional, for which the rulers, thinkers, and rebels of Islam have not yet found effective answers.[22]

In an essay titled 'The spirit of terrorism', Jean Baudrillard described 9/11 as the first global event that "questions the very process of globalization".[1]

 

 

 

 

Provoke war with the United States

Some middle-east scholars like Michael Scott Doran and Peter Bergen have argued that 9/11 was a strategic way to provoke America into a war that incites a pan-Islamist revolution.

Michael Scott Doran argued that the attacks are best understood as being part of a religious conflict within the Muslim world. In an essay, Doran argued that Bin Laden's followers: "consider themselves an island of true believers surrounded by a sea of iniquity".[23] Doran further argued that bin Laden hoped U.S. retaliation would unite the faithful against the West,

sparking revolutions in Arab nations and elsewhere; and that the Osama bin Laden videos were attempting to provoke a visceral reaction in the Middle East aimed at a violent reaction by Muslim citizens to increased U.S. involvement in their region.[24]

Correspondent Peter Bergen argued that the attacks were part of a plan to cause the United States to increase its military and cultural presence in the Middle East, thereby forcing Muslims to confront the idea of a non-Muslim government and establish conservative Islamic governments in the region.[25]

US Resolution on 911Teams Proposed Solution

Action by USThe United States responded to the attacks by launching the War on Terror. Specifically, on October 7, 2001, it invaded Afghanistan to depose the Taliban, which had harbored al-Qaeda terrorists. On October 26, 2001, the U.S. enacted the Patriot Act, anti-terrorism legislation that expanded the powers of U.S. law enforcement and intelligence agencies. Many countries followed with similar legislation.

September 11, 2001 Terrorist AttacksScenario The September 11, 2001 attacks (often referred to as 9/11—pronounced "nine eleven") consisted of a series of coordinated terrorist suicide attacks by Islamic extremists on the United States on September 11, 2001. The victims were predominantly civilians.On the morning of September 11, 2001, nineteen terrorists affiliated with al- Qaeda hijacked four commercial passenger jet airliners. Each team of hijackers included a trained pilot. The hijackers intentionally crashed two of the airliners (United Airlines Flight 175 and American Airlines Flight 11) into the World Trade Center in New York City, New York, one plane into each tower (1 WTC and 2 WTC), resulting in the collapse of both buildings soon afterward and irreparable damage to nearby buildings. The hijackers crashed a third airliner (American Airlines Flight 77) into the Pentagon in Arlington County, Virginia, near Washington D.C. Passengers and members of the flight crew on the fourth aircraft (United Airlines Flight 93) attempted to retake control of their plane from the hijackers; that plane crashed into a field near the town of Shanks Ville in rural Somerset County, Pennsylvania. In addition to the 19 hijackers, 2,973 people died; another 24 are missing and presumed dead.

Among the multitude of causes that may lead a person to resort to terrorism, there is none that conclusively links a sole cause to the act. Ethnicity, nationalism/separatism, poverty and economic disadvantage, globalisation, (non)democracy, Western society, disaffected intelligentsia, dehumanisation, and religion all have arguments confirming a possible existing link, as well reservations against a causal relation.