Terrorism Myths
We will close this lesson with a brief description of some of the myths that surround terrorism. In order to combat terrorism, it is important to have a rational perspective of what it is. According to Paul Pillar, an attack by a government’s duly uniformed or otherwise identifiable armed force is not terrorism but war. (Howard, pg. 25) This definition establishes a context for better understanding terrorism. While individuals and governments may perpetrate terrorist acts during a time of war, the context of war means they are not terrorism per se. Of course, certain acts in wartime do exceed the acceptable norms of civilized behavior test and thus are punishable as war crimes. Second, while terrorists perform criminal acts or coalesce with criminal groups, differences exist. Criminals seek material gain and have limited, if any, political objectives. They also tend to benefit from a prosperous economic system in which they operate and thus have no desire to destroy it. Third, crime may, and often is, perpetrated by individuals.
Following is a list of common myths, some of which have already been dispelled:
- MYTH: The use of terrorism is limited to non-government actors.
A government may use terrorist tactics to achieve its goal.
- MYTH: All terrorists are mad men.
In actuality, captured terrorists demonstrate psychological normality as well as a defined purpose that enables them to mobilize public support.
- MYTH: All insurgent violence is political terrorism.
Terrorism may be a tactic used by insurgents but not all insurgent violence is political terrorism. For example, the new leader of the Chechen resistance, Abdul-Khalim Sadulaev, announced recently that Chechen fighters would avoid civilian casualties in their quest for independence.
- MYTH: Terrorism is a strategy of futility or terrorism cannot succeed.
This is potentially the most destructive myth. Terrorism as a strategy can succeed. During WWII and in its aftermath, Jewish groups such as the Irgun and its splinter group, the Stern Gang, used terrorism against the British authorities and Arab population in solidify Jewish predominance in Palestine prior to Israeli independence in 1948. The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) promulgated terrorism for thirty years but ultimately achieved partial success in establishing the legitimacy of the Palestinian claim to a homeland in the Middle East
- MYTH: Terrorist groups are monolithic. Thus eliminating leadership eliminates group.
One of the greatest attributes, and least studied aspects of terrorism, is the mutation, adaptation, and evolution of terrorist groups.