Violence and Bloodshed: the Gap Between Terrorism and War - Term Paper Example

The challenge of domestic terrorism to American criminal justice David Castillo Number Number Teacher’s Due The challenge of domestic terrorism to American criminal justice Terrorism and its global spread is an imminent threat to world peace. Besides, international terrorist groups are able to spread their influence among the people. Within this context, immigration is considered as an important factor behind domestic terrorist plots in America. When immigrations laws become less effective, there exists high possibility for the rapid spread of terrorism beyond international boundaries. The terrorist groups which operate from the Middle East are able to influence the immigrant population and it drastically affects the multicultural and multiracial outlook of America. Thesis statement: The challenge of domestic terrorism to American criminal justice is critical because the same is an imminent threat to national security. A. Definition: terrorism The task to define terrorism is difficult because the initial definition underwent rapid change due to the change in international context. Williamson defines terrorism as “‘Terrorism’ is generally understood to be intimidation with a political or ideological purpose: the terror is meant to cause others to do things that they would otherwise not do” (40). To be specific, the terrorists consider that they are revolutionaries aiming to change the whole world. But the governments and the global community consider that terrorism is totally against humanity. The clash between these concepts creates immense tension among the world nations. When terrorism is based upon religious fundamentalism, there exists high scope for violence and bold shed. B. The origin of terrorism The origin of terrorism is interconnected with the protest against the government in different societies. Some of the terrorist groups dissolve after revolution and accept democracy. But some other terrorist groups based upon religious ideology are not yet ready to accept democracy. Sylas states that “By the days of yore, most of the earliest terrorists were holy warriors who killed civilians in the first century Palestine” (3). When religious fundamentalism and political terrorism transform into international terrorist groups, there exists less scope for democracy. Within this context, one can easily identify that the origin of modern terrorism is in the Middle East. Some of the Middle East nations based upon revenue from petroleum export provide funding to international terrorist groups. C. Why terrorism is used? One can easily identify that the international terrorist groups like Al-Qaeda makes use of terrorism to intimidate the western nations. These terrorist groups consider that terrorism is the best possible way to challenge their enemies and to gain international attention. Gus states that “Terrorism was used as a matter of practical choice during insurgencies” (166). Besides, the international fundamentalist groups like Al-Qaeda make use of religious fundamentalism as a tool to spread their ideology among the younger generations. From a different angle of view, terrorism based on religious fundamentalism easily gains the attention of the international community. D. How can we prevent terrorism? The best possible way to prevent terrorism is to attract international attention on the same. Besides, strict regulation of laws on immigration can prevent the terrorists from entering a nation. But the effectiveness of this measure is interconnected with the international co-operation against terrorism. When the world nations become conscious about the far reaching consequences of terrorism, the immigration policies and laws will become effective. White states that, “Partnerships with all types of formal and informal organizations and cooperation among all levels of law enforcement in an environment that rewards information sharing is the ultimate answer to preventing terrorism” (532). Besides, the world nations must share information on the terrorist groups. This can prevent further terrorist attacks and large scale calamities. In addition, limitations on funding can reduce the rapid spread of terrorism. Within this context, the nations which provide funding to the terrorist groups must be strictly examined and effective measures must be taken to prevent the same. The United Nations can play the most important role in preventing terrorism. In addition, international cooperation can prevent the influence of terrorism because almost all the world nations are affected by terrorism. E. What do we fear Terrorism? The world nations fear terrorism because it is like an epidemic which affects the humanity as a whole. The influence of terrorism is not limited to a specific area and most of the terrorist groups are affiliated to international groups. But Altheide opines that “The war in Iraq, terrorism, and concerns about crime have promoted the politics of fear” (16). The 9/11 incident can be considered as one of the best examples for the influence and wide spread of terrorism. The influence of terrorist groups is not limited to religious fundamentalism. Instead, it extends to other fields like national and international politics. When religious fundamentalism and international politics is combined together to form the global network of terrorism, the scope of individual liberty and democracy is limited to an extent. F. Property of terrorism One can easily identify that violence is the most important property/characteristics of terrorism. Honderich states that “What it amounts to at bottom is that some war can have all the properties of terrorism except that it is larger in scale, including the property of illegality” (91). In certain situations, terrorism leads to democracy. Within this context, terrorists are considered as freedom fighters. For instance, Nelson Mandela and his followers were once considered as terrorists by the government. But the people of South Africa considered them as freedom fighters or liberators of South Africa. Later, South Africa accepted democracy and Nelson Mandela became the president. Within this context, Nelson Mandela made use of violence as an innovative tool to attain democracy. On the other side, the terrorist groups make use of violence to intimidate governments and civil societies. G. Types of terrorism Some of the most important types of terrorism include state terrorism, bioterrorism, cyber terrorism and nuclear terrorism. A. State terrorism: State owned terrorism is generally known as state terrorism. This type of terrorism is not the declaration of war but sponsoring terrorism. Frey makes clear that “Up to September 11, 2001, many of the most radical terrorists from the Middle East were allegedly actively sponsored by Sudan” (6). Besides, political agenda can be considered as the motivation behind state terrorism. B. Bioterrorism: Bioterrorism is the mode of terrorism in which biological agents are used to harm the people. Some of the international terrorist groups make use of toxic biological agents to spread deadly diseases among the people. C. Cyber terrorism: Nowadays, the terrorist groups make use of information technology to conduct attack and this is known as cyber terrorism. Within this context, hacking networks and websites related to national security is an important mode of cyber terrorism. D. Nuclear terrorism: Nuclear terrorism is the usage of nuclear materials by the terrorists to harm human beings. This type of terrorism is highly destructive because nuclear materials are harmful to human beings. H. Methods of terrorism Some of the methods of terrorism include the usage of explosive devices, shooting, kidnapping, and usage of chemical, biological and radiological (CBR) devices. A. Explosive devices: Explosive devices are widely used by the terrorists to create terror among the mass. Landau opines that “Suicide bombers also help ensure the continued existence of the extremist groups that train and send them on missions” (10). This method is less expensive and creates terror among the people because terrorists fix explosive devices in unexpected places. Besides, suicide bombers carry explosive devices and kill innocent people. B. Shooting: Shooting is another method used by terrorists in direct confrontation with the police and military forces. For instance, Al-Qaeda provides shooting training to the recruits. Besides, shooting is one of the cheapest methods used by the terrorist groups. C. Kidnapping: Kidnapping is another method of terrorism used by the terrorist groups to negotiate with the authorities. In addition, kidnapping is popular among the terrorist groups in the Middle East to create terror among the peacekeeping forces. D. Chemical, biological and radiological (CBR) devices: The usage of chemical, biological and radiological (CBR) devices is a modern method, which is less popular among the terrorists. Comparing with other methods, CBR is considered as highly expensive and destructive. Summing, the gap between terrorism and war is too narrow because violence and bloodshed are the main characteristics of terrorism and war. The rapid spread of terrorism beyond national boundaries threatens the existence of human beings as a whole. Within this context, importance must be given to hinder the rapid spread of terrorism because the same is with political and religious aims. When terrorism is interconnected with international politics and religious fundamentalism, remedial measures become less effective. So, the world nations must realize the fact that domestic terrorism is beyond the limits of national security because most of the terrorist groups are affiliated to international level. To be specific, effort from the side of the world nations can hinder the rapid spread of terrorism. Works Cited Altheide, David L. Terrorism and the politics of fear. Lanham: Rowman Altamira, 2006. Print. Frey, Bruno S. Dealing with terrorism: stick or carrot. Massachusetts: Edward Elgar Publishing, 2004. Print. Honderich, Ted. Humanity, terrorism, terrorist war: Palestine, 9/11, Iraq, 7/7. New York: Continuum International Publishing Group, 2006. Print. Landau, Elaine. Suicide bombers. Minneapolis: Twenty-First Century Books, 2007. Print. Martin, Gus. Essentials of Terrorism: Concepts and Controversies. California: SAGE, 2010. Print. Sylas, Eluma Ikemefuna. Terrorism: A Global Scourge. Indiana: AuthorHouse, 2006. Print. Williamson, Myra. Terrorism, war and international law: the legality of the use of force against Afghanistan in 2001. Burlington: Ashgate Publishing, 2009. Print. White, Jonathan R. Terrorism and Homeland Security. Belmont: Cengage Learning, 2011. Print. Read More