Root Causes of Terrorism

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer notes that since the events of September 11, 2001 the reality and threat of international terrorism has increased. This threat has also extended to the danger of domestic terrorism, with the subsequent increase of security concerns within the United States and around the globe. The writer points out that the study of terrorism and the cause or causes of terrorist actions have therefore assumed a high profile in many disciplines, including the important area of international relations. The writer discusses that among the cardinal reasons for terrorist activities are perceptions of inequality and discrimination on economic as well as political and ethnic levels. The writer maintains that this is by no means the only cause of terrorism but many of the other causes can be derived or related to this basic concern.

From the Paper:

"While the focus has generally been on ways and methods of preventing and fighting terrorism, there has been an increasing focus on the necessity to determine the underlying causative facets that motivate and precipitate terrorist actions. There is a growing realization that only through a clear understanding of these primary and fundamental causes can the specter of terrorism be practically reduced."
"However, the question of the causative factors of terrorism cannot be easily answered in any simplistic or definitive way. There are many complex variables and aspects that have to be considered in order to come to a fundamental assessment of the causes of these extreme actions. The facets that underlie and act as fundamental " triggers" of terrorist actions are often interrelated, so that there are in most cases a number of factors that combine to create the environment and the sense of justification for terrorist actions. The following is only a partial list of various possible causes of terrorism."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Asner, E., & Hall, B. 2004, Needed: A New and Bolder Strategy for the War on Terror. The Humanist, vol 64, p.5+.
• Evans, E. 1979, Calling a Truce to Terror:The American Response to International Terrorism, Westport, CT, Greenwood Press.
• Cohn, M. (2002). Understanding, Responding to and Preventing Terrorism. [Online]. Available from< http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5000665586>[11 March 2007].
• Howell, L. D. 2003, "Is the New Global Terrorism a Clash of Civilizations? Evaluating Terrorism's Multiple Sources, " in C. W. Kegley, Jr (ed.) The New Global Terrorism: Characteristics, Causes, Controls, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ:, pp. 173-184.
• Huntington Samuel P. 1971, Civil Violence and the Process of Development, in Civil Violence and the International System, International Institute for Strategic Studies, London, pp. 11-12.

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