Chapter 8: Nationalistic and Endemic Terrorism

1. Chapter 8:Nationalistic and Endemic Terrorism

2. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: Cyprus • Cyprus 1955-1959 • Claimed by Britain as a crown Colony after WW I. • Greek and Turkish Cypriots had different ideas about a post-colonial future for the island. • George Grivas, a Greek Cypriot • Organized a Greek Cypriot movement EOKA to overthrow the British. • Developed a two fold strategy: • Encourage international sympathy for an independent Cyprus • Fight the British by tying up large numbers of troops in an urban environment

3. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism • Cyprus 1955-1959 • The British • Responded with overwhelming force to EOKA attacks • Negotiated independence for the island • The island was ultimately partitioned into Greek and Turkish communities

4. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: Algiers • The Battle for Algiers 1954-1962 • France had ruled Algeria since the 19th century. • After World War II: • Algerians hoped to negotiate a peaceful separation from France. • When the French refused independence, the Algerian National Front was formed. • The French responded with a brutal counterinsurgency campaign.

5. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism • The Battle for Algiers 1954-1962 • The French campaign mobilized the native population against French rule and provoked strong protests in France. • Algeria received its independence in 1962 after the French lost their taste for a dirty war. • David Galula: • French counterinsurgency strategist • Opposed the French approach • His work has been influential in shaping counterinsurgency doctrine in the United States in the 21st century.

6. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: Kenya • The Mau Mau in Kenya 1950-1960 • Kenya after WW I • The British solidified colonial rule in Kenya and displaced local farmers and providing land to European farmers. • The Kikuyu people of Kenya created the Mau Mau organization that advocated violent resistance to British domination in Kenya. • British respond with force, violating the United Nations Universal Declaration on Human Rights. • Killings, tortures • Creation of concentration camps

7. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: Kenya • Differed in important ways from the movements in Cyprus and Algeria: • It was rural. • It was based in tribal rites and ceremonies which sought to unify the community. • Violence was typically marked by massacres. • The British used overwhelming military force, including mass detention and torture. • The Mau Mau insurgents suffered the majority of casualties. • The movement was destroyed, but the result was many of the reforms the Mau Mau had been seeking.

8. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: The Russian Federation • The Russian Federation • Breakaway States and Crime • Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, three new nations – Moldova, Georgia, and Azerbaijan – have spawned internal separatist movements. • Organized crime thrives in these shell states.

9. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: Chechenya • Chechnya • Annexed to Russia in 1859. • Considered a nationalist revolt • International jihadists have rallied to the Chechen cause. • Key Chechen leaders: • Shamil Basayev • Ibn al Khattab • After their death Chechen violence has continued • Major attacks inside Russia and former Soviet Republics • Chechens have used suicide bombing • Women bombers, “Black Widows”

10. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: Turkey • Turkey • Turkey was established as a secular republic in 1923. • It is a member of NATO and has recognized the State of Israel. • Turkey looks to Europe for economic and cultural reasons, but Europe has resisted welcoming Turkey into the European Union.

11. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: Turkey • Turkey’s Struggle with Terrorism • Turkish Hezbollah (unrelated to the Lebanese Shiite group) seeks to establish an Islamic state. • El Kaida Turka, an al Qaeda offshoot, attacked Western interests, but their tactics backfired, with Turkish citizens demanding a government crackdown on the group.

12. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: Kurdistan • The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and Its Alter Egos • The PKK seeks an independent Kurdistan, including lands that are currently parts of Turkey, Iraq and Iran. • Initially, the PKK sought to conduct a guerilla war, but with low popular support for its Marxist principles, turned to campaigns of terrorism. • Large scale massacres of the Kurdish population turned public sentiment away from the PKK, who turned its attention on security targets by the 1990s. • The group has changed its political stance as well, downplaying Marxist-Lenninist theory and emphasizing Muslim texts to justify revolt against the secular government of Turkey.

13. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: China • China’s Problems in Xinjiang • The Uighars, ethnic Turkmen, who live in Xinjiang, seek to restore an Islamic state in that Province. • China links the Uighar’s interests to those of international jihadists, but the majority of militants are not jihadists.

14. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: India • Sikh Separatism in India • The Sikhs, whose religion embodies elements of Hinduism and Islam, sought an independent state in Punjab following the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947. • Following an Indian government attack on the Golden Temple, (1984) a sacred site to Sikhs, small groups of Sikhs formed terrorist cells. • In response, Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated by his Sikh bodyguards. • After a period of intense terrorist activity, violence decreased without a resolution in the political situation.

15. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: Africa • Endemic Ethnic Terror in Sub-Saharan Africa • Endemic terrorism refers to terrorism created by artificial division of tribes, families and ethnic groups. • Countries were established by colonial European powers without regard to tribal and ethnic groupings.

16. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: Conclusion • Following decolonization, many countries have experienced inter-group terrorism including ethnic cleansing, child armies and wars waged by self appointed militias. • Africa’s status as the most poverty stricken region in the world and poor health conditions, including the effects of the AIDS pandemic, have made it difficult to focus on terrorism on the continent.

17. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: Oil Regions • Oil Regions • In the oil regions of Western Africa, terrorism should be considered a potential problem. • Governments and rebel groups vie for control in these countries, and criminal organizations are in league with corrupt governments. • Liberia experienced two violent civil wars which destabilized the country.

18. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: Oil Regions • Nigeria is economically important to the united States because it currently provides 7% of its oil supply. • The country is sharply divided between a Muslim north and a Christian south. While there is no evidence of jihadist cells currently in the country, the potential is there. • The tradition of rule by a Big Man poses potential problems for diplomacy in Central and western Africa because other countries can enter into alliances with autocratic and corrupt rulers.

19. Post World War II Anti-Colonial Terrorism: Conclusion • The United States, Britain and France have followed different patterns of post 9/11 diplomacy. • The United States has focused on cooperation in the war on terror. • Britain has focused on a moral and humanitarian approach. • France has maintained a special military unit, the African Cell, to militarily support big men, overthrow governments and protect French interests.