1. Lecture 2: History
A Brief History of Terrorism

2. Historical examples Zealots – Sicarri (1st century)
Murdered Romans in broad daylight in Jerusalem
Muslim Assassins (11th & 12th centuries)
Shia Muslim sect who attacked their enemies either covertly or in broad daylight, usually using a small blade like a dagger
Hindu Thugee (13th-17th centuries)
Originally a religious sect that strangled & robbed victims in ritual sacrifice

3. Historical examples French revolution Iraq Early terrorism in the U.S.
Use of revolutionary tribunals to prop up the French republic.
Rule by fear/terror – Robespierre’s “lists”
Iraq
Hussein regime uses chemical weapons to subdue uprising among Kurdish villages
Early terrorism in the U.S.
“Sons of Liberty” – provoked by Stamp Act, organized mobs to tar and feather colonists still loyal to the king, forcing many to flee the country and settle in Canada
Klu Klux Klan – effective in spreading fear; forced federal govt. to end Reconstruction

4. A Brief History of Modern Terrorism
4 Waves, Each roughly years (David Rapoport)
Covers roughly 130 years of terrorism history
Anarchist Wave
Anti-Colonial/Decolonization Wave
New Left Wave/Leftist anti-Western sentiment
Religious Inspiration Wave
Themes to consider for each wave:
Doctrines of terror
Technology (especially for communication/propaganda)
Avenues of funding and support
Organizations can transcend waves (e.g. IRA, ETA)

5. 1) Anarchist Wave Roughly 1880s to 1920s Doctrines: Technology:
seeking to provoke state to the point where the reaction leads to popular revolt
Technology:
communication and transportation patterns; telegraph; daily newspapers; railroads; technology shrank time and space
weapons: mostly guns and knives; but invention of dynamite helped launch new terrorist capabilities
Financing:
Bank robberies, extortion, etc.

6. Anarchists
Tsar Alexander II (1861) frees the serfs (1/3 of Russia’s population) and promises funds for them to use to buy land
Unable to provide those funds, raised expectations lead to widespread anger, disappointment, unrest; violence, assassinations
Narodnaya Volya (“people’s will”), Kropotkin’s “propaganda by the deed”
Pre-cursor to Serbian group, Narodna Obrana (splinter: Black Hand), killed Archduke Ferdinand and helped spark World War I

7. Anarchists Other Examples:
Assassinations of Pres. McKinley, Spanish Prime Minister, etc.
Response of several governments was to create plain-clothes national police forces (FBI, Scotland Yard, Russian Okhrana, etc.); most are still in action today
1919: President Wilson authorizes round up of all Anarchists; ship to Soviet Union; Anti-American speech made illegal

8. 2) Anti-Colonial Wave Circa 1920s – 1960s
Examples: Irgun (precursor to Lehi), the “Stern Gang” and other Zionist extremists; ANC in South Africa; GIA and GSPC in Algeria
Doctrines:
Freedom for indigenous peoples to decide own system, structure
Anti-racism, imperialism; fewer assassinations then previous wave; attacks mainly on police, military, colonial govt. targets
Technology:
Faster means of communication, transportation, money transfer
Financing:
Diaspora support, particularly from immigrants living in Western countries

9. 3) New Left Wave Circa 1960s – 1990s
Examples: Italian Red Brigades, ETA (Spain, France), Tamil Tigers (Sri Lanka), PLO (Middle East), Red Army Faction (Baader-Meinhof Gang) (Germany), Japanese Red Army, Sendero Luminoso (Peru)
Doctrines:
strategies for political change, Marxism, separatism
Anti-Western political movements encouraged by Soviets, Libyans, Iranians, Syrians, North Koreans etc.
Technology:
cell phones, digital timers, radar guns and other types of devices that could be used as trigger switches for explosives
Airplane hijackings
Global television media
Financing:
Could include state-sponsorship (e.g., Soviet Union), hostage ransoms

10. 4) Religious Inspiration Wave
Current “wave” of terrorism
Religious Cults (e.g., Aum Shinrikyo)
Christian, Jewish and Islamist extremists
Violent anti-abortion movement
Doctrines:
superiority of God’s rules
oust “them” from holy lands; stop actions that “offend God”
Fatwas against the West; sermons condemning abortion
Technology:
Increasing sophistication of IEDs
Use of “ultimate smart bomb” (suicide terrorists)
New “Weapons of Mass Disruption”
The Internet
Financing:
Global trafficking in drugs & weapons
Diverted charity funds
Internet fraud, ID theft, etc.

11. Conclusion Themes to consider for each wave: Doctrines of terror
Technology (especially for communication/propaganda)
Avenues of funding and support
Organizations can transcend waves (e.g. IRA, ETA)
What do we think about the future of these things?

12. Questions?