THE GLOBALIZATION OF TERRORISM

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Introduction

There is no general agreement among scholars or lawyers on a definition of terrorism. However, it is the use of violence for purpose of political extortion, coercion and publicity for a political causes” whether aimed at persons or property, whether consisting of threatened or actual violence and whether the victims are civil or government officials, terrorism is designed to win political concessions by instilling fear.

Terrorism is also generality unconventional political violence since it is staged with the intent of reading a wide audience through spectacular acts that violate accepted socials mores and earns front page headings. Political international criminal distinguished from international criminal behavior such as narcotics trafficking, privacy or slave trading. Both can involve violence, but international law has generally recognized political causes as a legal defense for certain violent acts that could other wise is considered crimes. The line of distinction can however be hazy in particular cases.

The first and most immediate problem is one of defining and conceptualizing terrorism as an international crime. The core in the definition of terrorism relates to the actual usage of violence, threats of violence or forms of intimidation to achieve a political objective; definitions from legal and illegal sources tend to affirm these underlying features. The oxford advance learner's dictionary defines terrorism as the “use of violence and threats of violence especially for political purposes”.

According to the United States departments of defense, terrorism constitutes “the calculated use of violence or the threat of violence to inculcate fear, intended to coerce or to intimidate governments or societies in the pursuits of goals that are generally political, religious, or ideological”. The use federal Bureau of investigation defines terrorism. As “the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or population, or any segment therefore, in furtherance of political or social objectives”.

Terrorism has most commonly become identified, however, with the individuals or groups attempting to destabilized or overthrow existing political institutions. Terrorism had been used by one or both sides in anti colonial conflicts (Ireland and the United Kingdom, Algeria and France, Vieteman and France — United States). In disputes between different national groups over possession of a contested homeland (Palestinians and Israel) in conflict between different regions, domination (Catholics and protestants in Northern Ireland), and in internal conflicts between revolutionary forces and established government (Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Iran, Nicaragua, El-Salvador and Argentina)

Broadly speaking, terrorism is of three categories. First, the category of those whose object of terror is inspired by political fervor. These are usually communist — oriented and include some fascist movements.

The second category of terrorists comprises those inspired by nationalism or ethnic grievance while the third category comprises those with religious grievance, particularly of the Islamic fault. Most prominent amongst them are found within the fold of the Palestinian liberation organization (PLO) which was formed in 1964 as Al fatah.

Terrorists use violence in an attempt to achieve political goals. Their intents are to bring about political change by creating a climate of fear within the society they oppose. The targeting of innocent victims and symbolic locations for a high profile attack has long been the preferred method of terrorist organizations. For centuries, terrorism has been an instrument of repression by government as well as tool of revolutionaries trying to overthrow government. Beginning in the late 1960s, the occurrence of terrorism increased dramatically throughout the world.

Background of the Study

Terrorism has a very long history several religious and political ideologies and the wars conducted to advance them show the deep historical origin of terrorism. In modern times, terrorism was associated with the Jacobin “Reign of Terror” in France in the 1790s, which involved several thousand executions and disappearances. World war1 (1914 — 1918) was triggered by the “terrorist” assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria — Hungary. All sides in World War 11 performed many acts of terrorism. The cold war, too promoted overt and covert violence that many observers characterized as terrorism.

During the second half of the 20th century states sponsored terrorism was deployed against strivings for self determination by many oppressed people. This terrorism of colonialism often produced a backlash of counter terrorism. The colonizers used terror to assert their hold overseas territories, whereas national liberation movements resorted to terrorism to pursue emancipation and independence.

A new brand of terrorism arose after the completion of decolonization and the end the end of the cold war. This threat has emanated principally from non — state groups such as Al Qaeda, the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, the Abu Nidal organization, and Sipah — El. Sahaba in Pakistan. While condemned and banned by almost all states, these movements nevertheless continued to enjoy support in Many parts of the world. Spirals of violence in places such as Palestine, Iraq, Chechnya and Afghanistan provide breeding grounds for fresh recruits to terrorists' organizations.

At 10.30am on August 7, two bombs exploded minutes apart at the U.S embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dares Salam, Tanzania killing more than 224 people.

With the investigation carried out by 471 U.S federal agents and law enforcement personnel from 13 nations, authorities quickly identified several men they believed helped to plan, building and deliver the deadly bombs.

But it was one person in particular that Americans were made grimly aware of that day — Saudi Arabian terrorists Osama bin laden, the grinning man with the wiry beard who is that more bombs were coming bombs aimed at America soldiers, diplomats and civilians around the globe.

Bin Laden's rise to most wanted international terrorist was not an over night sensation. From 1979 to 1989, the Soviet Union fought a disastrous, and an ultimately unsuccessful war to conquer the mountain passes and arid plains of Afghanistan. in the early 1980's, Bin Laden, like many other young zealous Saudis, joined the ranks of the American — backed Mujahadeen, the “holy warriors” who fought the soviet troops with an estimated $6 million in American weapons. When the fighting ended, bin laden emerged as the leader of an organization of battle hardened veterans and religious fundamentalists' crusading to oppose non Islamic governments with violence. He called his group al Qaeda, Arabic word form “The Base”.

On May 9, 1978, the crumpled, bullet ridden body of former Italian Prime Minister Aldo Miro was found by Italian police in the truck of a car. This capped weeks of desperate searching for his red brigade kidnappers. The Italian government composed of some moro's closet friends and former colleagues, refused to deal with the terrorist or considered their demand and ignored moro' poignant letters pleading for assistance. Aldo moro, one of the most noted history's terrorist victim was tried and convicted by a “peoples” court and executed by its order to life imprisonment by an Italian court in 1983.

The ancient Greek, historian Xenophon (430 — 349 BC) wrote of the effectiveness of psychological welfare against enemy populations. Roman emperors such as Tiberiv (reigned AD 14 — 37) and Caligula (reined AD 37 — 41) used banishment expropriation of property and execution as means to discourage opposition to their rule. The Spanish inquisition and arbitrary arrest, torture and execution to punish what it views as religious heresy.

The use of terror was openly advocated by Robespierre as a means of encouraging revolutionary virtue during the French revolution, leading to the period of his political dominance called the reign of terror (1793 — 1794). After the American civil war (1861 — 1865) defiant south earners former a terrorist organization called the Kuklux Klan to intimidate supporters of re-construction. in the later half of the 19th century, terrorism was adopted by adherents of anarchism in Western Europe, USSR and the United States. They believed that the best way to effect revolutionary political and social change was to assassinate person in position of power. From 1965 to 1905, a number of kings, presidents, prime ministers and other government officials were killed by anarchists' guns and bombs.

The 20th century also witness great changes in the use and practice of terrorism. Terrorism became the hallmark a number of political movements' stretching from the extreme right to the extreme left of the political spectrums.

Technological advances such as automatic weapons and compact, electrically donated explosives gave terrorist a new mobility and lethality. Terrorism was adopted as virtually a state policy though an unacknowledged one by such totalitarian regime as those of Nazi Germany under Adolph Hitler the Soviet Union leader Joseph Stalin and Nigeria under Sani Abacha and Uganda under Idi Amin. In those states arrest, imprisonment, torture and execution were applied without legal guidance or restraints to create a climate of fear and to encourage adherence to the national ideology and the declare economics, social and political goals of the state.

Scope of the Study

This research work as its title suggests covers the period when there was a terrorist attack on the United States of America on September 11, 2001.

This period was however chosen as the scope because it marked a historical landmark in the United States of America when the world trade center (WTC) was bombed by the Arabian terrorist.

Aims and Objectives

This research work seeks to critically examine the globalization of terrorism with the case study of September 11 attack on the United States of America in 2001. The central objectives of the research works specifically include:

1. To present the historical background of globalization and global; security.
2. To critically examine the causes of September 11, terrorist attacks on the United States of America in 2001 terrorism.
3. To study the strategies employed by the United States of America to fight against terrorism.
4. To highlight the impacts/effects of global terrorism

Conceptual Frame Work

Terrorism: This is a weapon of the weak against the strong. It is a special form of political violence. As a political activity, it is undertaken not to inflict violence or destruction but to communicate political message.

This is why Bailey defined it as an activity which “main purpose is usually to threaten or harm the innocent as a means of exerting pressure on the strong” there are different types of terrorism; namely political, revolutionary subevolutionary terrorism and state terrorism.

Conflict:

This describes a situation in which two or more parties perceive difference between or among themselves and seek to resolve those differences to their own satisfaction. It is the product of communication and contact: interaction is bounded to generate disagreement or conflict. Conflict should however not be regarded as abnormal because it has own contribution towards systematic growth and maintenance.

Conflict could also be said to be an interests and inevitable part of human existence. However, violent conflict is not inevitable and as such as namely. It is defined as the pursuit of incompatible interest and goals by difference groups.

Violence:

This is a behavior involving physical force intended to hurt, damage or kill. It is usually of two types direct violence is usually expressed in physical psychological and counter value violence against an opponent while structural; violence does not immediately come across as violence. It arises from particular form of social organization and possesses. It is expressed in such conditioned as exclusions, deprivation and poverty.

War:

Simply put, war is the absence of peace. Most authorities however, still define war in a relatively narrow sense. According to the new English dictionary, it is a hostile contention by means of armed forces, carried on between parties in the same nation or state; the employment of armed forces against a foreign power, or against an opposing party in the state.

Hoffman Nickerson, in the encyclopedia Britannica, states that war is the use of organized force between two human groups pursuing contraction policies, each group seeking to impose its policy upon the other.

To the Marxist, wars are the products of the strains and stresses of monopolistic capitalism. Capitalism gives rise internally to two classes — the bourgeoisie and the proletariat—who are locked in bitter antagonistic struggle.

Again, war is the deliberate application of violence occasioned by the incompatibility in human interactions and should take place as a last resort in defense of vital interest. War cannot be wished away nor decreed or legislated out of extended because rights are more precious than peace, and at times to preserves these rights war ensues. Be that as it may, war should and must be kept under control.