In 1992 the UN defined terrorism as An anxiety-inspiring method of repeated violent action, employed by (semi-) clandestine individual, group or state actors, for idiosyncratic, criminal or political reasons, whereby in contrast to assassination the direct targets of violence are not the main targets. However, the American Department of State defined terrorism as premeditated politically-motivated violence perpetrated against non-combatant targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an audience.
Terrorist activities have existed for millennia around the world. In the year 1976 the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), in collaboration with Germanys Baader- Meinhof gang hijacked an Air France plane with 250 passengers on board. The plane was taken to Entebbe Airport, Uganda. They diverted the plane to Entebbe, Uganda. Six days later, on 1 July, they released 150 hostages, but 100 hostages, composed of Israelis and Jews, were still under captivity. However, Operation Thunderbolt caught the hostage takers and Idi Amins forces by surprise, when Israeli commandos stormed the airport and rescued all hostages except of 3, who lost their lives during the 34 minute fight.
The number of terrorist organizations has gone up to almost unimaginable levels. In the horn of Africa, the Al-Shabaab terrorists, based in Somalia, have terrorized the region. They hijacked ships and demanded for ransoms worth millions of dollars, assassinated high-profile Somali politicians and now these jihad-motivated Islamists extremists have crossed the borders to Kenya and carried out grenade and gun attacks across the country. Al-Shabaab has been brought to sharp focus by the recent Westgate attack in Nairobi, Kenya in September, 2013. Sixty eight people perished and over 120 sustained injuries. The terrorists were tough, fearless, and highly trained. The assailants were of mixed nationalities and one woman nicknamed The White Widow was a British citizen. Terrorism has taken another dimension. The terrorists recruit young boys and girls from different nationalities to be able to take people by surprise. Before the invasion of Somalia by Kenya Defense Forces in 2011, Al-Shabaab controlled Mogadishu and the Port of Kismayo. Kismayo was the pillar of revenue for Al-Shabaab, where they gathered taxes and occasionally supplemented them with ransoms.
In the Philippines, there is Abu Sayyaf, in Afghanistan there is the Taliban that shakes the government, and Lebanon has their own miseries in the hands of the Hezbollah organization. Nigeria has now become an extremist state because of the Boko Haram. The main agenda of Boko Haram is to make Nigeria an Islamic state targeting Christians. They burn churches, kill church leaders, and kidnap families of prominent people. They do their evil with extreme prejudice and cruelty, of course, to send messages. Three thousand six hundred people, including security personnel, are reported to have been killed by Boko Haram in the last 4 years. It has caused human beings to doubt their own insanity. They do not do pinpricks, they destroy.
Although Terrorism has existed for millennia, Osama Bin Laden is the one who made it go global. Osama was born to Saudi Arabia parents. His father was a wealthy structural engineer, and it was mysterious how Osama, once a shy and obedient boy, would decide to take an unusual ambition. He used his fathers wealth to fund terrorist missions. The Saudi authorities terminated his citizenship, but that did not stop Osama. He moved to Sudan and in 1998 he planned an attack on the US embassy in Nairobi, where over 250 people died and hundreds injured. The same year Tanzania was attacked, too. Later on, Osama sought refuge in Afghanistan under the Taliban embedment. With the Taliban, he attacked the World Trade Center, presently Ground Zero, and killed over 3,000 people, most of which were innocent children. However, he was dug out of his hideout in Pakistan by the SEALS Team 6 and was taken down.
Experts have tried to explain why terrorism came into existence. One thing that makes terrorism a debatable topic is the right reasons for peoples involvement in it. They use Islam to justify their evil. In fact, Osama was the one who institutionalized terrorism. Most emerging insurgents like Al-Shabaab, Taliban, and Boko Haram had got their motivation from Osama Bin Laden.
The teaching of Prophet Muhammad demands Muslims to use anything within their disposal to defend Islam. The Prophet was insistent that Muslims remain vigilant to prevent Islam from being infiltrated by other religions. It should, however, be clarified that Muhammad did not call for suicide bombings. He never asked Muslims to kill innocent civilians. That is not Islam. Jihadists believe when they die in war they go straight to heaven.
Is it not a justifiable fact that terrorism is an act of retaliation? It represents the weak side that has lost the battle, either diplomatic or military. Al-Shabaab was originally a group of pirates who hijacked cargo and passenger ships and demanded ransom as a way of revenue acquisition. They were just a rebel group so frustrated by the poor governance of Somalia that they began launching occasional attacks on senior politicians. The interim presidents of Somalia escaped the jaws of death several times from Al-Shabaab attacks. They became the full scale terrorists when the Kenya Defense Forces defeated them and took full control of Kismayo and Mogadishu. Al-Shabaab was not interested in the AMISON soldiers who joined Kenya. Kenya was the main reason for their downfall. They vowed to revenge against Kenya by launching guerilla attacks on certain occasions, until KDF troops are withdrawn from Somalia.
Osama, on the other hand, was angered by the United States, when the latter turned their back on him after he has helped the US Army drive Iraqi forces out of Kuwait during the Gulf War. He promised to be anti-American until the end. Osama carried out cowardly attacks targeting American citizens to retaliate through his Al-Qaeda network.
There are some terrorist endeavors meant to force the release of their members from detention centers. The PFLP hijacked the Air France plane in 1976 and took 100 Israelis and Jews before demanding the release of 53 of the PFLP militants from Israeli prisons. They do not care whether whatever they are doing is right or wrong. It was obvious that those 53 prisoners were international criminals caught by justice, so why were those releases from prison justifiable anyway?
Causation analysis of terrorism showed that most terror gangs do not fight for Islam. They have their own agendas and selfish motives. Revenge, demands or whatever the cause is, but killing the innocent is not worthwhile. When a terrorist keeps his children and parents safe before killing other people who are not accountable is nothing but a coward and evil maneuver. In fact, Islamic religious leaders condemn terrorism because they know that it goes against Prophet Muhammads teachings. Inadequacy and starting what cannot be finished is the main pusher for terrorism. The millions of dollars Al-Qaeda uses to finance terrorist activities are enough to take thousands of needy children to school, buy medicine for the sick, and other humanitarian aids.
