The evolution of terrorist methods

Abstract

The peculiar succession of ideology inherited from predecessors resulted in a continuity of methods used by terrorists. Each subsequent variety of this phenomenon derives in some way from the activities of its predecessors, albeit introducing its own modes of operation. And thus anarchists who resorted to the idea of tyrant assassination used individual attacks, generally aimed at heads of states. This method was adopted by the twentieth century leftist radicals, but being unable to assassinate wellprotected state leaders, they started to direct violence against less prominent figures, people, who fulfill functions of secondary importance in the state. However, when such attacks did not trigger the desired response, they reinforced the impact, implementing kidnappings instead of assassinations. Terrorist of the extreme right, on the other hand, focused on extended attacks, a method rejected by the extreme leftists. They would direct violence against completely random people holding no connection whatsoever to the cause for which the terrorists were fighting. This method, in turn, was taken over by religious fundamentalists with the precise goal of killing completely innocent people. In fact, the innocence of victims was deemed the essence of new terrorism. This change that consists in total separation of victims and the addresses of the attacks has resulted in quite a drastic transformation of terrorism, its metamorphosis from a method of struggle against a stronger adversary into a macabre communication strategy.