About Terrorism

Terrorism as a Form of Political Communication and Radicalization

Terrorism is generally described as the threat of using fear or violence to achieve a social, ideological, or political aim. Terrorism is now viewed as the largest threat to society, and it has been declared illegal in many countries under anti-terrorism legislation. The world is now under threat from escalated terrorist attacks by numerous terrorist organizations such as ISIS, Alshabaab, Taliban, and Boko Haram. Since it was historically granted to those who were uneducated, impoverished, or suffering from mental illness, there has been conflicting evidence on the roots of terrorism around the world. However, it has changed in the modern days given that most of the individuals involved in the terror acts have privileged backgrounds. Further, many arguments have stated that the rise of radical groups is the logical reaction of oppressed people. According to my point of view, I will illustrate that terrorism is not a rational response of despondent individuals to their condition but a form of political communication and radicalization.

The Communicative Purpose of Terrorism

Initially, terrorism was founded on the communicative purposes since it entailed the set of activities that utilized political violence for the aim of delivering the specific idea. The ultimate goal of the terrorist groups was to extend political messages and to create some segments of the state or society to perform something they wanted. For instance, terrorism as the communication can be illustrated by the acts of terror such as al-Qaida which aims at recruiting people from different parts of the world to implement the Sharia law. Al-Shabaab of Somali joined the al-Qaida group which means that they wanted to change Somalia to be a Muslim country ruled by Sharia law. Additionally, terrorists use the violence and menace of hostility deliberately to evoke fear in the particular audience. Also, the terror caused by terrorists is a vehicle that maintains compliance or allegiance. For example, the mass killing off the students in Garrisa University in Kenya was aiming to create fear in Kenya thus attempting to convince the Kenyan government to withdraw its forces from Somalia.

Radicalization and Terrorism

The current terror acts in the world are attributed to radicalization among young people. Radicalization is identified as the progression where an individual adopts or inculcates others for the dedication not only to the system of radical belief but also imposing one’s principles on the society. Religion especially Islam acts as the driver that encourages terror activities that are more brutal in nature. Being promised repayment after death makes terrorists more likely to conduct suicide bombing as well as other tactics that are hard to defend. Moreover, terrorism uses violence to inflict one’s own beliefs on other societies as well as performing the evil actions according to its religion stands. Radicalization brainwashes an individual to the extent of making him or her conduct terror acts based on the creed.

Addressing Radicalization and Political Differences

Conclusively, terrorism should be viewed as a form of political communication and a subject of radicalization. All terror acts have a specific message that is designed to be delivered based on the religious believes. The entire world needs to question when, where, and what caused the rise of terrorism and why it occurs in particular regions around the globe. By asking such questions, appropriate measures will be developed to address the effects of radicalization and dealing with political differences in areas that are vulnerable to the emergence of radical groups.