Gender Roles, Tactics, and Force Multipliers in Terrorism

1. Gender Roles, Tactics, and Force Multipliers in Terrorism Chapter 5

2. Learning Objectives: Chapter 5 • Summarize the tactics of modern terrorism. • List and describe four force multipliers. • Discuss historical and current roles of women in terrorism. • Outline the tactical importance of female terrorists.

3. Learning Objectives: Chapter 5 • Define the types of threats posed by technological terrorism. • Explain the effects of biological, chemical and radiological weapons. • Characterize the possibility and possible outcomes of nuclear terrorism.

4. Learning Objectives: Chapter 5 • Discuss the role of the media as a force multiplier. • Summarize transnational economic targeting in the tourist, energy, and transportation industries. • Summarize theories of suicide bombing.

5. Terrorism Tactics • Bombing • Hijacking • Arson • Assault • Kidnapping • Hostage taking • Weapons of mass destruction

6. Force Multipliers • Transnational support • Increases terrorist groups ability to move and hide • Technology • Allows a small group to launch a deadly attack • Media coverage • Makes minor group appear to be politically important • Religion • Transcends normative political and social boundaries

7. The Bomb • Philosophy of the bomb • The only way to communicate with the social order was to destroy it • Terrorists tend to increase their effectiveness in bombing by applying improved explosive technology to their weapons • Thermobaric bomb • Spreads fuel in the air and then ignites it

8. Moscow Bombing • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUiEHovbg4E Discussion: • Did it surprise you that the suicide bombers were women? • Would you say that the location and the timing of the bombing were such as to create a level of fear as much as to cause casualties? Support your view.

9. Women and Terrorism • Female terrorists are not new to the history of terrorism: • 18th century France • 19th century Russia • 20th century US • Rebels in Ireland • Western revolutionary groups • Women are actively recruited by religious terrorists today

10. Women and Terrorism • Role of women in terrorist groups is more closely determined by the political orientation of an organization than its tactics • Women are more attracted to domestic terrorist organizations than international groups • Women also have opportunities for leadership in revolutionary (domestics) groups • International terrorists try to defend a traditional culture that limits the role of women

11. Women and Terrorism • Revolutionary groups • Ulricke Meinhof and Leila Khalid served as combatants, leaders and served as inspiration for supporters • Secular and religious terrorist groups • Women increasingly receive combat assignments because they are so numerous

12. Impact of Terrorism on Women • Women have a greater sense of vulnerability to crime, and these feelings seem to transfer to terrorism • Israeli study • Women seemed to be more scared of terrorism than men, because women experienced terrorism more vicariously • Women were more likely to suffer from posttraumatic stress and seek assistance following terrorist attacks • Women approached the fear of terrorism with problem-solving strategies

13. Women and Terrorism • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXyh8WeRYiE&NR=1&feature=endscreen Discussion: • Do you consider it somewhat ironic that while women are considered subordinate to men – their role being that of wives and mothers; they are recruited as suicide bombers? • Do agree with statement that it is easier for women to go through security checkpoints than it is for men? What would you suggest as a counter-measure? • How does this video align with the Israeli study?

14. Overlooking Female Terrorists • Researchers do not tend to think of women as terrorists or criminals • When they do look at females, researchers usually view women as victims • Law enforcement officers do not tend to arrest females • It is generally assumed that terrorism is a violent male occupation

15. Cyberterrorism • The use of computers to attack technological targets or physical attacks on computer networks • An attractive low-risk strategy • Computers allow terrorist groups to remain connected, providing a means for covert discussions and anonymity • Greatest fear of cyberterrorism concerns catastrophic or multiple system failures

16. WMD: Biological Agents • Modern arsenals contain bacterial weapons and viral weapons, with microbes cultured and refined, or weaponized, to increase their ability to kill • The Center for Disease Control classifies the most threatening from the groups as smallpox, anthrax, plague, botulism, tularemia, and hemorrhagic fever

17. US Biological Attacks after 1980 • Bacteria • Religious group in Oregon spread bacteria in area salad bars to sicken potential voters • Hundreds of people suffered food poisoning • Anthrax • Cases were reported in Florida, Washington, DC, New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut • Public health response was disorganized • The case is still under investigation

18. WMD: Chemical & Radiological • There are four types of chemical agents: nerve agents, blood agents, choking agents, and blistering agents • Radiological weapons are more head resistant and lasts longer than chemicals • Exposure to radiation can produce short-term burns and long-term heath problems

19. Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU) • HEU is plentiful and easy to obtain • HEU is so potent that it could be used in a dirty bomb or a nuclear device • Terrorists could build a device with HEU without the assistance of a nuclear state

20. Nuclear Terrorism • The most fearful scenario with WMDs involves a nuclear explosion • Tel Aviv University Scholars suggest that the probability of nuclear terrorism is low • The nuclear threat is based on the crime causation model: victim, opportunity to commit a crime, and the criminals’ desire

21. Nuclear Terrorism Misconceptions • Security is never 100% effective. • The nuclear black market does not exist. • Building a nuclear bomb is a complex process. • Nuclear defense should be based on realistic, comprehensive scenarios. • We should create total intelligence pictures of terrorist groups beyond nuclear terrorism. • Total protection is not possible, but we can tip the scales in our favor.

22. Media Force Multiplier • Both governments and terrorists see the media as a force multiplier: • Security forces (symbols of sanity in a world turned upside down) assume the role of heroes who are trying to restore order • Constant reporting makes small terrorist groups seem important • With repeated media coverage, the striking power of the terrorist group is magnified

23. Tourism • Terrorism does not seem to have an impact on domestic travel • Terrorism most frequently affects international travelers • Terrorism against tourists has a negative economic impact

24. Energy • Fossil fuels present tempting targets: • They represent the power and strength of the industrialized world • Strikes against oil refineries have an economic impact on the West

25. Energy Attacks • Saudi Arabia • al Qaeda sought to destroy production facilities; destroy transfer systems; and target individual oil workers, especially foreigners • Pakistan and Balochista • The Bugtis resent and resist Pashtun incursion into their native land, which has led to sharp fighting and a guerrilla war

26. Transportation • After the September 11 attacks, the federal government immediately budgeted $4.8 billion to protect the aviation industry • Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore have joined to protest insurance premiums on ships traveling through the Strait of Malacca • Critics of homeland-security policies argue that ports remain unsecured because of the costs associated with increased protection

27. Hidden Bombs • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woz74cXDI_s Discussion: • Do you agree or disagree with ErrollSouthers that the release of information by the government instils level of confidence in the public. Support your view.

28. Theory of Suicide Terrorism • Pape (2005) believes three factors must be in place before a suicide terror campaign occurs: • Nationalistic or ethnic group must be resisting the occupation of a foreign power • Foreign power must have democratic government whose voters will not routinely allow the slaughter and repression of the people in the occupied area • Must be a difference in the religions of the occupying power and the people living under occupation

29. Teenage Suicide Bombers • http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-13115660 Discussion: • What are your thoughts on children and adolescents being used as suicide bombers? • Do you think most suicide bombers freely decide to engage in suicide bombing, or do you think they are manipulated into their actions? Support your views.

30. Models of Suicide Attacks • Gunaratna sees three things that all attacks have in common: secrecy, reconnaissance, and rehearsal • The Hamas model involves a professional group that plans and executes the attack, and a support group to prepare the attacker • For many years, researchers believed that this was the only model for suicide bombing

31. Models of Suicide Attacks • Cronin finds that different models emerged over time: • The LTTE trained suicide bombers • The PKK leadership coerced victims • The bombings in Chechnya represent a different combination of social and psychological factors

32. Chapter Take Aways • The tactics of terrorism are straightforward and simple, but they are employed in innovative ways. • The study of terrorism is complex as a result of tactical innovation. • Force multipliers – technology, transnational support, religion, and the media – enhance the power of terrorist groups.

33. Chapter Take Aways • It is important to understand the tactical impact of gender on terrorism, but research on the roles of women has been neglected. • Technological attacks can be made more effective by using WMD, cyber-attacks, or economic targeting. • Suicide bombing has become a particularly terrorizing tactic, but there is no single explanation for either understanding or preventing it.