Terrorism and its Characteristics
Terrorism is a violent, illegal act carried out with the intention of gaining political control over a specific region. However, these acts are carried out only after a bomber threatens to do so. Terrorist threats are viewed as crimes that are committed after a warning to evacuate and after creating significant public inconveniences, according to Goodin (2013). Additionally, because there are numerous phases involved before the main activity is carried out, terrorism can be classified as an organized crime. The majority of these terrorists engage in these actions in an effort to keep their pledges and receive payment from their employers. This report will offer an analysis of factors that catalyze terrorism and the communication techniques applied by these groups.
Psychological Factors Leading to Terrorism
The aspects of ideological absolutism, self-assertion, and self-identity are among the psychological factors that lead to terrorism. The majority of terrorists execute these activities with the ideology of attaining recognition in public. According to Douglas (2010), the aspect of gender plays a significant role in the execution of the activity, with men dominating the chain of command over the female population. The ladies are left to be submissive to instructions provided by the men, offering a relaxed approach to the attainment of their goals. Similarly, the majority of soldiers find it hard to kill the female population and children in instances of war. The factor then demonstrates the issue of a behavioral approach to terrorism in an area. In the long run, terror groups use these clusters (women and children) to gather information and execute the minor activities of the attack. The terrorists often display a character of bravery, giving an upper hand in the execution of such actions to the public. Nevertheless, the most attacked regions are trade fares, critical infrastructures, and public centers with the aim of inflicting pain on a relatively huge population.
Communication Techniques of Terrorist Groups
The majority of terror groups use IT as a means of communication with the allied parties. According to Gardner (2013), terrorists also apply the use of secretive or public messages to pass information to their targets and group members. The secretive technique acts a weapon to their targets with intentions of making surprise attacks in the area. An area with poor intelligence and weak security suffers major blows from the terror groups as they hardly have information of when and what time an attack will be executed. In the long run, the nation loses significantly large numbers of people as they will have little information about the attack and the most appropriate area that they can head to as a relocation site.
On the other hand, the public messages technique is considered as a terrorist threat as the group passes the notification to the identified spot. The public messages may be through videos, public portals of the country, USB sticks, courier by hand, and emails to the security departments of the country. The application of the courier by hand technique leaves the affected area with no digital traces identifying the executer's routes (Gardner, 2013). It was a standard method used by Bin Laden on the various series of attacks that were being used against his enemies. Similarly, the terrorist chooses a particular communication means based on the model of response that they are likely to receive from the attacked region. An area with high intelligence systems will call for the use of secretive communication to have their plan executed as drafted compared to the areas with weak intelligence mechanisms.
The Al-Qaeda and New Terrorism
The Al-Qaeda group applies aspects of new terrorism to meet the changing levels of civilization in the world today. The leadership in the organization has drastically changed from small carder recruiters to supporters of their resistance in the Western culture and leadership. The majority of men in these groups have abandoned their homes and currently find themselves in a war without an enemy. Retreating is not an option for these men as they have to be loyal to the laws that are provided by the leaders. In the long run, it has created a cognitive way of life among the members advocating similar goals in their actions. Nevertheless, the main leadership in these groups has the final say regarding the activities that will be executed, with limited options left to the junior members for dialogue. An autocratic model of leadership is applied in these groups with death as the ultimate punishment for the people that may wish to leave the group for a different way of life. The Islamic faith is a unifying factor among the Al-Qaeda leadership and the affiliated groups.
Conclusion
In conclusion, all terrorist groups have a similar target, with the majority against the western rule prevailing around the globe. The essay analyses the different factors that catalyze terrorism and the communication techniques applied by these groups. Nevertheless, the contexts of unity among these people make the groups have a stronger bond. These terror groups use technology in the execution of their activities. However, the success of their actions is linked to the model of communication used and the behavioral factors within the groups.
References
Douglas, D. H. (2010). Intimate terrorism by women towards men: does it exist? Journal of Aggression, Conflict and Peace Research, pp. 36-56.
Gardner, F. (2013). How do terrorists communicate? BBC News, pp. 1-4.
Goodin, R. (2013). What's Wrong With Terrorism? New York: NY John Wiley & Sons.
