International Terrorism Intro

The World Trade Center bombing and the subsequent alleged plot (which appear to have been indirectly connected) caused a spate of reports in the American press, speculating that the relative immunity of the United States from international terrorism was at an end. More generally, the bombing and threat of more bombings drew greater attention to the subject of terrorism as a whole. The press response to the New York incidents had a further consequence, a consequence which is, perhaps, worthy of closer examination.

The Trade Center bombing and the alleged plot were both associated with followers of a previously obscure New Jersey clergyman, Shaikh Abdul Rahman, a Muslim fundamentalist who preaches at a mosque which occupies an upstairs room in a building in a nondescript New Jersey neighborhood near New York City (Frantz, 1993).

. . .
ere not terrorist attacks in the modern sense of operations intended primarily to send a message. The assassins of William the Silent and Henri IV targeted their victims specifically as individuals, probably in the belief that their deaths would in and of themselves prompt desired changes of policy. They were thus direct strikes to the head of the enemy. In contrast, it is unlikely that the modern terrorists who killed former Prime Minister Aldo Moro of Italy and attempted to kill NATO chief Gen. Alexander Haig were under any illusion that the deaths of those individuals would decapitate the political forces they represented. Their goal, instead, was to send a message to others. (This point will be examined in greater detail in Chapter Three, below.) In contrast, the sicarii of ancient Judea may have frequently chosen victims for symbolic value. The hashishins evidently acted both to eliminate specific foes and to spread terror among other opponents. "Terror," as a specifically political term, entered the lexicon with the Terror of the French Revolution (Laqueur, 1987, p. 11). This was not, however, terrorism in the modern sensenot even state terrorismsince it was carried out for the most part quite openly and off
. . .

Some common words found in the essay are:
Trade Center, Middle East, Iranians Muslim, Iran Islamic, Significance Study, Shaikh Rahman, Americans Western, Review Literature, Latin America, Middle Eastern, trade center, middle eastern, world trade center, islamic fundamentalism, eastern terrorism, mass media, world trade, terrorist actions, american public, middle eastern terrorism, international terrorism, trade center bombing, middle east, tunnel bombings carried, laqueur 1987 pp,
Approximate Word count = 5735
Approximate Pages = 23 (250 words per page)

More Essays on International Terrorism Intro