In his article International Terrorism: A New Kind of Warfare, Jenkins acknowledges that terrorism in today’s world has become an issue of concern not only to governments but also to its citizens. He notes that groups such as AL- SHABAB, BOKO HARAM, and AL-QAIDA are responsible for the increased terrorism over the last few years. In addition, terrorism is mainly rooted in political issues and minor reasons such as releasing prisoners or payment of ransom (Jenkins, 1974). These political extremists target crowded areas such as pubs, schools, airline terminals, and banks among other areas that are crowded. The worst affected, however, are schools. In the recent past, terrorist attacks in educational institutions seem to be on the rise. According to a recent report by the Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack (GCPEA), there have been more than 1000 terrorist attacks in more than 11o countries with the most affected being Afghanistan, Colombia, Pakistan, Somalia, Sudan and Syria (Carapic & Donges, 2016). Jenkins in his article address numerous issues such as definitions and features of terrorism, its impacts, and trends in society.
At its core terrorism is a campaign of violence designed to instill fear. In other words, the intention of terrorism is to terrorize (Jenkins, 1974). Usually, terrorism is executed by organizations that are devoted to political ends. Al-Shabaab, for instance, has been making attacks in Somalia, with the intention of establishing an Islamic State based on Sharia law (Mutanda, 2017). Their motive is solely focused on the domestic insurgency in Somalia based on the fact that its elements support other terrorist groups such as Al-Qaida. Their kind of crimes are not mere crimes but fall under the umbrella term-terrorism. The definition of terrorism is important because in society there are crimes and felonies that take place but are not necessarily classified as acts of terrorism (Martin, 2017).
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Features or rather characteristics of terrorism are numerous. To begin with, they are usually focused on innocent civilians. They put on hostage innocent citizens and terrorize them including staking their lives. Also, terrorists carry out their attacks in a way they will achieve maximum publicity. Terrorists have different tactics to achieve their goal including putting the lives of the hostages at stake (Jenkins, 1974). It is also worth noting that the death and destruction of civilians are of no advantage to terrorists. The intention is to create an atmosphere of fear among people including talks about the strength and capabilities of the terrorist. In most cases, however, terrorist attackers are usually a small group. Therefore their strength is not based on the weaknesses but the effects they have on society. Also, terrorists make sure that their attacks are both shocking and dramatic to the targeted civilians. For instance, during the 9/11 attacks, Americans were not only shocked by the high number of deaths but also by the dramatic occurrence of the terrorist attack. Terrorists do not physically destroy their opponent forces directly making them lack kind of power
With the advanced and innovative technology, social media networks and international press have become a platform for terrorists to attract publicity while holding hostage of innocent civilians. Usually, they pass the message of having their demands met or they will kill the hostages. The publicity is intended for the government and other people to watch.
It is worth noting that the Federal government has come up with several approaches to combat terrorism in the United States. These include the development of domestic criminal law, the management of the federal government’s program of science and technology to counter terrorism, and the formation of agencies such as the Homeland Security Department. This was particularly after the 9/11/1 terrorist attacks where the lives of more than 3000 people were lost (Jenkins, 1974). The attack triggered major U.S. initiatives to combat terrorism among them the Homeland Security Approach. Through the establishment of laws and the Homeland Security Approach, politicians and investigators have been made to comprehend and discuss issues such as ways of carrying out investigations and surveillance, and the identification of terrorism as a National Security. Since the 9/11 incident, techniques used in the investigation of terrorist attacks go as far as having access to official telecommunication records and data.
The impacts of terrorism have been felt not only in the United States but also internationally in countries such as Somalia, Pakistan, Nigeria, and Syria. International order, for instance, has been put on the edge by terrorism. In the economic sector, terrorism has affected trade due to issues of safety and security of people across borders (Jenkins, 1974). Furthermore, one of the factors considered by investors before venturing into foreign markets is mainly political stability that is greatly impacted by terrorist attacks. Other economic impacts of terrorism range from high levels of unemployment and inflation. It is without a doubt that also countries particularly those in the Middle East have been struggling politically due to issues revolving around terrorism. Israel, for instance, has been fighting with Palestine due to land issues (Hajjar, 2017). Also, bordering countries such as Yemen, the United Arab Emirates, Iran, and Saudi Arabia, have been taking sides with Palestine hence more terrorist attacks in the region. The escalation of local terrorism in the Middle East region has affected some countries. In the United States, for instance, border security has been enhanced through approaches such as security screening of travelers and cargo before arrival at the ports of entry and airline terminals.
To align its Homeland security approaches of countering terrorism, the U.S. government has come up with safety organizations such as the Department of Homeland Security that was established in 2002 with the agenda of securing the country from the many threats it faces including terrorism. As of 15 th June 2017, the United Nations Office also got approval to be one of the organizations that help in combating terrorism across the world (Martin, 2017).
In regards to trends of terrorism, statistics reveal that as of 2018 terrorist activities have been boosted by technological innovations and advancements (Croucher, 2018). For instance, through the use of the internet, terrorists have formed platforms through which they not only organize attacks but also support each other with monetary resources. In Somalia, for instance, Al-Shabab has often used these resources to finance and attack neighboring nations such as Kenya, Ethiopia, and Sudan (Hajjar, 2017). Nations should cooperate at an international level to bring down the rising levels of terrorism. This can be done by holding a global conference and establishing international policies for dealing with terrorists. Powerful nations such as Israel and the United States should be at the forefront to help other nations in fighting against terrorism (Martin, 2017). This will prevent the common practice of some nations cooperating with terrorists with the fear of crackdown and consequently suffering an attack. Countries such as Yemen, and Saudi Arabia, for instance, could fear attacks from Palestine hence their unwavering support for conflicting with Israel over the years.
In conclusion, terrorism will continue to be on the rise particularly for the reasons for gaining publicity. That is whey both Border Security and Counter-Terrorism have expanded their approaches including the incorporation of technology for the purposes of investigation and surveillance. It is the role of the government to protect the public from terrorist attacks. Furthermore, the USA Patriotic Act of 2011 requires the federal government to protect Americans from the deadly plans of terrorists (Thomas, 2018). Therefore all possible ways including international cooperation should be used as approaches to combating terrorism.
References
Carapic, J., & Dönges, H. (2016). Attacks on education in conflict, post-conflict, and non-conflict settings. In Women and Children as Victims and Offenders: Background, Prevention, Reintegration (pp. 141-174). Springer, Cham.
Croucher, S. (2018). Globalization and belonging: The politics of identity in a changing world . Rowman & Littlefield.
Hajjar, L. (2017). Human rights in Israel/Palestine: The history and politics of a movement. In Law and Social Movements (pp. 137-154). Routledge.
Jenkins, B. M. (1974). International terrorism: A new kind of warfare (No. P-5261). RAND CORP SANTA MONICA CALIF.
Martin, G. (2017). Understanding terrorism: Challenges, perspectives, and issues . SAGE publications.
Mutanda, D. (2017). What Makes Terrorism Tick in Africa? Evidence from Al-Shabaab and Boko Haram. Jadavpur Journal of International Relations , 21 (1), 20-40.
Thomas, J. (2018). Reflections on the Influence of the 9/11 Attacks on Domestic Security Practices and Future Cyber Security Needs. Available at SSRN 3177272 .
