The document provides an overview of terrorism including its history, definitions, characteristics, objectives, tactics, US policy responses, and the future of terrorism. It discusses how terrorism has been used throughout history for political goals and how religious fundamentalism emerged as a primary force in the 1990s. It defines terrorism and outlines key criteria such as the use of violence, political goals, and targeting of civilians. The document also examines US national policy, military policy, and trends suggesting terrorism may become more catastrophic and network-based over time.

1. Terrorismo

2. El 11 de septiembre, enemigos de la libertad cometieron
un acto de guerra contra nuestro país ... O están con
nosotros o están con los terroristas.
~ President George W. Bush, 20 Sep 2001
"... El pueblo estadounidense debe permanecer
vigilante .... Aquellos conspirar contra nosotros
buscamos no sólo para socavar nuestra
seguridad, sino también la sociedad abierta y
los valores que apreciamos como
estadounidenses.
~ President Barack Obama, 28 Dec 2009

3. • Historia
• definiciones
• Las características, objetivos, y Tácticas
• Política Nacional de Estados Unidos y Política
Militar Futuro del terrorismo
Overview

4. • El terrorismo para lograr
agendas políticas no es nuevo
disidentes judíos se opusieron a
la dominación romana (48 C. E.)
secta islámica llamada
Hashshashin seguido la "causas
justas" Cruzados emplea la
violación como táctica de terror
Hassan-i Sabbah, Iranian
missionary who founded
the Hashshashin
History

5. • Desde 1990, el
fundamentalismo
religioso surgió como
fuerza primaria para el
terror
• La proliferación de armas
redujo la brecha entre el
poder de fuego del estado
y de los disidentes
History
Radical Shiite Muqtada al-Sadr

6. • Walter Laqueur: "El terrorismo constituye el
uso ilegítimo de la fuerza para alcanzar un
objetivo político cuando las personas inocentes
están dirigidos."
• Departamento de Defensa: "El uso ilegal o
amenaza de uso de fuerza o violencia contra
las personas o la propiedad de coaccionar o
intimidar a gobiernos o sociedades, a menudo
para conseguir objetivos políticos, religiosos o
ideológicos."
Definitions

7. Joint Pub. 3-07.2
El uso ilegal de la violencia o la amenaza de
violencia para infundir miedo y coaccionar a
los gobiernos o sociedades.
El terrorismo es a menudo motivado por
creencias ideológicas religiosas, políticas o de
otro tipo y comprometido en la búsqueda de
objetivos que son generalmente de carácter
político. - Joint Publication 3-07.2, Antiterrorism

8. • Violencia
• objetivo político
• impacto psicológico y el miedo
• La orientación de los no combatientes
• Guerra de guerrillas ......?
Key Criteria

9. Guerilla vs. Terrorism
Targets Mostly military, police,
or political opponents
State symbols, political
opponents, and the public
at large
Intended
Impact
Mainly physical
attrition of the enemy
Psychological coercion
Tactics Commando-type
operations
Specialized tactics:
kidnapping, car bombs,
hijacking, etc.
International
Legality
Yes, if follow rules of
armed conduct
No
Guerilla Terrorism

10. Typologies of Terrorism
• Política: los gobiernos fuerza
para cambiar la estructura o
políticas, o para lograr un
cambio social radical
• Religiosa: Objetivos /
acciones divinamente
guiados; a menudo vinculados
a las identidades étnicas y
nacionalistas
• Social: "interés especial"
2004: Train bombings in Spain
Group responsible for attack has
link to Al Qaeda

11. • 1: Domestic Terrorism
– Terrorism perpetrated by the citizens of a country
against their fellow citizens
Two Categories of Terrorism

12. • 2: International or transnational terrorism
– Terrorism in which planning and execution of the
terrorist act transcends national boundaries
– Examples: Hezbollah; Al Qaeda
Two Categories of Terrorism

13. Characteristics
• Status: Most from middle class backgrounds,
with some from extreme wealth
• Education: Intelligent and literate, with
varying levels of formal education
• Age: Operational members aged between 20-
35, while suicide bombers tend to be younger
• Gender: Most are male but not exclusively
“There’s nothing wrong with being a terrorist, as long as you win.”
(Paul Watson, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society)

14. • Attract attention for cause
• Demonstrate group’s power
• Show government’s lack of
power
• Exact revenge
• Obtain logistical support
• Cause a government to overreact
Objectives of Terrorism

15. 2. Intelligence and surveillance:
Information gathering on the targets with
greatest possibility of success (e.g.,
schedules, security, layout, etc.)
3. Specific target selection: Decision point!6. Action: Generally, goal is to get in, get
the job done, and get out before security
forces can react
1.Broad target selection: Collection of data on
large number of potential targets
7. Escape and exploitation: Escape plans
well rehearsed and exploitation of
successful attack vital to achieve desired
effect
4. Pre-attack surveillance and planning:
Quantity and quality of data gathering
increases, and usually is gathered over
days to weeks
5. Attack rehearsal: Often includes
relocation to target site, testing of security
responsiveness and escape routes, and
checking equipment performance
Terrorist Planning Cycle

16. Tactics
• Assassination
• Arson
• Bombing
• Hostage taking
• Kidnapping
• Hijacking
• Seizures
• Raids
• Sabotage
• Threat or Hoax
• Use of WMD
“Between now and 2015 terrorist tactics will become increasingly sophisticated and designed
to achieve mass casualties.” (National Intelligence Council)

17. • Assassination—Murder of
prominent persons,
symbolic enemies, or
traitors who defect from
the group
• Arson—Requires little
technical knowledge, poses
low risk to terrorist, and can
cause significant destruction
Tactics
Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat
(top right) and Israeli Prime Minister
Yitzhak Rabin (below)

18. • Bombing—Explosive devices
commonly employed in
warfare are now an integral
part of the terrorist’s arsenal
– Oct 1983: Marine barracks in
Beirut; 245 were killed and
146 wounded
– Oct 2000: Navy destroyer USS
Cole attacked, resulting in the
death of 17 sailors and 39
injured
Tactics

19. • Improvised explosive device
(IED) is the terrorist’s
weapon of choice:
– Inexpensive to produce
– Detonation techniques
– Low risk to the perpetrator
– Placement/concealment
– High attention-getting
capacity
Tactics

20. Sep 2004: Chechen terrorists took
hundreds of school children and adults
hostage in Beslan, Russia
Oct 2002: Ingrid Betancourt kidnapped
by the FARC; still missing
• Hostage taking: Overt
seizure of individuals with
the intent of gaining
publicity or concessions in
return for release of the
hostage
• Kidnapping: Covert seizure
of one or more specific
person(s) in order to extract
specific demands
Tactics
Rescued

21. 1976: Highjacked Flight 139 out of Tel Aviv
was diverted to Entebbe, Uganda. Israeli
forces, led by Col Yoni Netanyahu, rescued
the hostages in Operation Thunderbolt.
Netanyahu was the only military casualty.
• Hijacking or Skyjacking: Normally
executed to produce a spectacular
hostage situation; any passenger
transport can be used
• Seizure: Usually involves a building
or object that has value in the eyes
of the audience
Tactics

22. • Raids/Attacks on Facilities:
Done to gain access to media,
acquire resources, and/or
demonstrate government’s
inability to secure critical
facilities
• Sabotage: Destruction of
equipment or infrastructure to
demonstrate vulnerability of
society and to disrupt services
Tactics
April 2005: Insurgents led a
coordinated attack on Abu Ghraib
prison; intended to free detainees
and kill US forces… FAILED!

23. • Threat or Hoaxes: Threat that
causes diversion of resources;
can dull effectiveness of
preventive or
countermeasures
• Use of WMD: Chemical
weapons used in the past…
many groups have expressed
desire to acquire WMD
Tactics
1995: Terror group Aum Shinrikyo
released Sarin gas in the Tokyo subway,
injuring thousands and killing 12 people
“Acquiring weapons (WMD) for the defense of Muslims is a religious duty.”
(Osama Bin Laden)

24. 0
5000
10000
15000
20000
25000
30000
35000
40000
Terrorist Attacks 1970-2007

25. • First articulated by the Reagan administration
and reaffirmed by every president since
• Four enduring policy principles
– Make no concessions to terrorists
– Bring terrorists to justice for their crimes
– Isolate and apply pressure on states that sponsor
terrorism to force them to change their behavior
– Bolster the counterterrorist capabilities of those
countries that work with the United States and
require assistance
US Terror Policy

26. • Advance effective democracies as the long-term antidote
to the ideology of terrorism;
• Prevent attacks by terrorist networks;
• Deny weapons of mass destruction to rogue states and
terrorist allies who seek to use them;
• Deny terrorists the support and sanctuary of rogue states;
• Deny terrorists control of any nation they would use as a
base and launching pad for terror; and
• Lay the foundations and build the institutions and
structures we need to carry the fight forward against terror
and help ensure our ultimate success.
National Strategy for
Combating Terrorism

27. • Dept. of Homeland Security established: Third
largest cabinet department after DOD and VA
• Incorporates existing agencies, including US
Coast Guard, Secret Service, and Citizenship
and Immigration Service (CIS)
• Coordinates capabilities of 22+ agencies to:
– Secure borders, transportation, critical
infrastructure
– Synthesize/analyze homeland security intelligence
– Spearheads domestic counter-terrorism efforts
US Policy Post 9/11

28. • Guiding principles:
– US forces will continue to engage
– Force protection will be a major
consideration
• DOD addresses terrorism from
two distinct perspectives:
– Counterterrorism (offensive)
– Anti-terrorism (defensive)
• Intelligence critical component for success
US Military Policy

29. • Counterterrorism
– Offensive measures taken to prevent, deter, and
respond to terrorism include Operation El Dorado
Canyon and the GWOT
• Antiterrorism
– Defensive measures to reduce vulnerability include
facility hardening, setting buildings back from
roads/parking lots, and limiting access to military
posts
US Military Policy

30. • Force Protection—An integrated application of
offensive/defensive actions that deter, detect, preempt,
mitigate, or negate threats against or hazards to Air
Force air and space operations and assets, based on an
acceptable level of risk (JP 1-02)
– Relocation of deployed forces out of
heavily populated areas to an isolated base
– Deployment of floating barriers around
warships in high-risk areas
Force Protection
“Asymmetric challenges can arise across the spectrum of conflict that
will confront US forces in a theater of operations or on US soil.”
(National Intelligence Council)

31. • Terrorists are a dynamic enemy…and are
adapting to the challenges posed by developing
societies
• Groups like Al Qaeda and Hezbollah benefit
from and are exploiting globalization, even as
they fight against it
• Terrorist groups are becoming more network
based, encouraging loosely organized, self-
financed organizational structure
Future of Terrorism

32. • International or transnational cooperation
among terrorist groups is becoming the norm
• WMD proliferation amplifies the danger of
broad, network-based terrorism.
• Terrorists increasingly display a willingness to
use catastrophic violence to cause mass
casualties and destruction
Future of Terrorism

33. • Other trends:
– Intense motivational extremism
– Flexible organization structure
– Aggressive training to improve operational
capability
– Increasing exploitation of media
– Increasing mass casualties and chaos through use
of more advanced weapons
Future of Terrorism
“States with poor governance; ethnic, cultural, or religious tensions; weak
economies; and porous borders will be prime breeding grounds for terrorism.”
(National Intelligence Council)

34. • History
• Definitions
• Characteristics, Objectives, & Tactics
• US National Policy and Military Policy
• Future of Terrorism
Summary

35. Questions?
“We will not tire, we will not falter, and we will
not fail.” —President Bush, 20 Sep 2001