How significant is modern terrorism as a threat to international security and peace?

Introduction

     The concerted efforts in fight of terrorism at home and abroad worldwide are significantly increasing following the US-led international Coalition started degrading the Islamic State terrorist in the Middle East. Based on thorough examination, terrorism is deeply embedded in ideology which can be religiously, politically and self motivated. History has shown that there are state sponsored terrorism, non-state terrorism and religiously motivated terrorism. Of these three types of terrorism manifested, it is necessary in this paper to evaluate the ideological drive of religiously motivated terrorist organizations which are the most triumphantly rampant across the global, and how they pose directly threats to the international peace and security. For instance, although the recent terror attack of Malaysia airline in Ukraine was justified more as political motivation, the ISIS, known as Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, can be said to be motivated by religious extremism by their own advertisement, have captured much of global attention. These acts of terrorism are in fact confined into the added subject of a wider argument locally and internationally, because this Islamic terrorist groups vastly threaten the global peace and security in way of recruiting thousands of foreign fighters who have become citizens of many western countries and providing them with training with an aim to stagger terror attacks around the world.

     Given the brutality and will to kill the innocent civilians by ISIS group, Buko Haram and other Islamic extremist militants, terrorism is highly alarming, forcing to question the pivot of international business, peace and security due to the vast epidemic of their members beyond national borders and further concern over the growth of homegrown terrorists. The Islamic militancy in the region of the Middle East and South Asia, from which the threat to the international business, peace and security originates, launched the 9/11 attack is the most viable example in this regard. Centred on the Islamic religiously motivated terrorism, this paper, therefore, will critically evaluate the root cause of ideological inspiration, and the significant effects of transnational terrorists, and how modern terrorism poses threats to international community.   

How terrorism is defined scholarly;

     It is important to understand the definition of terrorism defined by scholars, agreeing that there is no precise definition for terrorism, but it is commonly interpreted as the premeditated, systematic threat or use of violence by subnational groups to attain a political, religious, or ideological objective through intimidation of a large audience (Alexander, Carlton & Wilkinson 1979).¹ In this vein, the political scientist, Victoroff (2006)² however contended that the only viable goal is to influence a target audience and affect its behavior in ways that serve the interests of terrorist. In view of the above, the terrorists are known to be non-state actors, and understood to harm the ordinary people and treating people whose ideology and faith-based doctrine contradicts to theirs as an enemy and annihilated. Furthermore, investigated the aspects of terrorism by Alan O’Day (1979)³, the findings have been meant for the use of threat of violence to intimidate a group of people or government for political ends. This view, in short, reflects to much of what is happening in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria.

Background History and Central Ideology of Islamic Terrorism;

     From the Zealots in the first century AD to the Red Brigades, the Palestine Liberation Organization, the Irish Republican Army, the Tamil Tigers, and others in more recent times, terrorism has been a tactic used by the weak in an effort to produce political change. Like violent crime, deadly disease, and other scourges, it can be reduced and contained. But it cannot be totally eliminated (Gordon, Phillip. H 2007)⁴. Then Barry Davies (2003)⁵ identified types of terrorism as left wing, right wing, nationalist, state-sponsored, anarchist and religious. At its root, acts of terrorism are not committed with the intention of simply causing misfortune to individuals; they are committed to instill fear and threaten the civil liberties of the masses. Nonetheless, the outcome of the search for the reason and motive of terrorist attacks may differ from time to time and from event to event according to Saroj Kumar (2012).⁶

     Terrorism is in fact not a new phenomenon. There are about sixty international terrorist groups currently active around the world, with four countries, such as, Cuba, Iran, Sudan and Syria named as state sponsors accordingly the U.S Department of State⁷, of these more than half are religiously motivated, and most of them are Islamic terrorist groups. Although no religion encourages extreme physical violence, but promote tranquility and harmony, many terrorist groups are being motivated by their religious belief. In this respect, Osama bin Ladin’s Al-Qaida network is the prime example of religious terrorism, claimed Barry. And the ISIL Jihadism group is following the suit.

     Central to the argument, Hayat Alvi (2014)⁸, who is the Middle East expert, substantially explained the Salafi and Wahhabi ideologies which are believed to be key contributors of exporting the Islamic extremism associated with Islamic terrorist organizations in the Middle East, Eastern Africa and South Asia (Afghanistan and Pakistan) on the following;  

•      Salafism; an ideology and reform movement calling for a return to traditional Islam as it was practiced and observed in the days of Prophet Muhammad and his circle of Companions. In Arabic, “salaf” means predecessors, forebearers, ancestors, forefathers.
•     Wahhabism; originated in Saudi Arabia, where it is still the national ideology of the theocracy for more than two centuries, has been Saudi Arabia’s dominant faith, upholding a belief that those who do not practice their form of Islam are heathens and enemies. 

     These ideologies fiercely reject any notion of flexibility in Islam, instead embracing the concept of jihad by which they view the world through this lens. Both are believed to have inspired Islamic extremism and militancy worldwide, including the likes of Al Qaeda and Osama bin Ladin. Consistent with this ideology, terrorist are not people who have noting to live for, but they are people who believe in something so strongly that they are willing to die for, argued Saroj Kumar. For example, the use of the name of god, Allah  by Islamic terrorists when running an ideological campaign via social media and beheading, killing their victims comes into what appears to be inspired by this cancerous ideology. More importantly, this religious-based ideology is employed as a tool to inspire Muslims living in Western countries when recruiting and that is a substantial concern for global community as to the role it plays.

The Modern Means and Weapons of Terrorism

     One of the most effective means for terrorist organizations, as scholars suggest, is to exploit the failed or weak state so that they could establish a safe haven for the purpose of strengthening their survival strategy and using all resources available in order to run their targeted operations. Such is the overt strategy apparently used by Al Qaeda, ISIL militants and other groups in the Middle East. By and large, the failure of states can be defined as for the primal cause. Regardless, simply put, Nazli (2014)⁹ observed that the state’s vulnerability is a function of two attributes of transnational terrorism: non-hierarchical organizations and informational advantage over the state. Hence, the collapse of regimes or governments in the region significantly opens a wide door for which the terrorist organizations penetrate into society at large. Because the immediate rise of ISIS onto the international stage, according to Kurt Eichenwald¹⁰ has evinced the above claim that the Islamic State, known as ISIS took advantage of weaknesses created by civil war in Syria and governing incompetence in Iraq to grab control of lands and establish itself as a credible force.

     Another best weapon for the said terrorist organizations is of the modern technology evolved as terrorists apparently use social media unlike before. On this issue, Barry Davies also critiqued that the evolved technology, particularly the modern media and the internet, has fuelled unprecedented know-how of technical and information skills required to carry out operations worldwide and unconditionally help the terrorist organizations enable to contact with others for joint operations efficiently and effectively. Plenty of media reports and what have been seen lately about the terrorists using social media as a means of recruiting new members is a serious action needed to tackle by the international community. That is why the internet and social media become an unparalleled platform for the terrorist groups and thus a great challenge for governments to solve nowadays.

Effects Upon Transnational Borders

     The information technology has effectively made a global connection in which much of global threats are posed by modern terrorists. Modern terrorism is inundated with new skills shaped by new technology, and therefore the international community is far greater at risk than before. Shifting sole ideology may help reduce terrorism. Otherwise, these groups will remain potent threats. Some scholars believe that terrorism can be domestically ended by looking at the successful experiences of military forces deployed by Russian military and Turkish military against Chechen and PKK terrorist groups.¹¹ Despite this, the world is in reverse witnessing the increasingly growing of Islamic terrorist groups years after years.

     On contrary, scholars also puts insight in light of threats exposed by transnational terrorism that it is not likely to vanish in the near future as the international linkages (e.g., trade, global production networks, refugee flows) and modern means of communication are expected to contribute to a more rapid spread of violence across borders, which may increase the politicoeconomic vulnerability of societies to terrorism.¹² Because of this, it is unlikely possible to dim the light of transnational terrorism, as argued Brynjar Lia (2007)¹³, unless the teaching or promoting of Islamic extremism ideology via the social media and the internet is well managed, monitored or stopped. As for example, Islamic clerics promoting hatred against other religions are more prominent through social media nowadays. At most, the core danger of the religiously motivated terrorism lies on the ground of such hatred-based ideology as it treats people with different faith as an enemy. With this becoming a living agent for these groups, many join decidedly ISIS instead of pursuing their personal careers, though being born in Western developed countries.  

     Analyzing the contemporary threat of international terrorism in the context of Australia, the current threat of terrorism is generally associated with so-called Islamist or Jihadi terrorism, although the usage of both terms is controversial. The 2010 Counter-Terrorism White Paper of the Australian Government stated that the main source of international terrorism and the primary terrorist threat to Australia and Australian interests today comes from people who follows distorted and militant interpretation of Islam that calls for violence as the answer to perceived grievances (DPMC 2010:8)¹⁴. And these groups are, it is safe to say, simultaneously threatening the peace and security enjoyed by international community.

     Assessing the threats of modern terrorism by all of the above-mentioned accounts, including media reports on a daily basis, modern terrorism is virtually on the rise rather than decreasing. For this reason, the violence caused by modern terrorism will disrupt business, peace and challenge security in the future as none of any terrorist groups are effectively terminated until to date. Then, the religiously motivated terrorist organizations will lead again the role in future terrorism as there is no mechanism that can keep the ideology under control. In addition, the attempt to degrading modern terrorism appears to be fought hard as it requires moderating the extreme ideologies and critically managing social media, internet, and all of other advanced technology. And only when the mechanism is constructed and implemented, then there appears to have the feasible future of ending modern terrorism.

     In conclusion, the ideological inspiration for religiously motivated terrorist organizations are mainly focused along with the means of modern terrorism and how social media and internet are used as a good weapon for their ideological campaign and recruiting those who living in Western developed countries which are links to posing threats to international peace and security. At last, the attempt to fight modern terrorism and its threats to the international community seems to be extremely difficult and costly. That the international  business, peace and security are at risk unless the principal root of religious [Islamic] extremism ideology can be effectively in control or transformed into moderate, for it is the most significant source of producing transnational terrorists through the social media and internet.

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