Terrorism: urban insecurity

Not all radicals are terrorists, but all Terrorists are Radicals.

Terrorism

There is no single definition that adequately describes the many expressions of terrorism that have spread throughout history. The main elements of terrorist action are the calculated use of unexpected, shocking, and unlawful violence against non-combatants in order to intimidate or coerce a government or civilian population to accept demands on behalf of an underlying ideology or cause. There are several reasons given for the use of terrorist activity.

Among them are to create high profile impact on the public with the goal of undermining public confidence in their own government; to make routine social activity difficult; to inflict as much damage as possible; to seek vengeance; and to create physical pain and paralyzing psychological emotions such as panic, chaos, unrest, fear, paranoia, anxiety, anger, grief, and a sense of tragedy. Foundation for terrorism Middle Eastern terrorism rests upon more than religion. It is based upon current and historical cultural experiences within the Islamic world. These experiences include political and racial conflicts both within and between these nations, and the historical relationships between the Islamic world and the West. It is maintained through several ideologies, environmental pressures, and its adherents are never lacking in justifications.

Religious influence and ideologies

Extreme religious ideologies play a central role in radicalizing young Muslims, recruiting and indoctrinating them into the terrorist ideology, and eventually asking them to commit terrorist acts. The common theme in these ideologies is that Islamic states were no longer purely Islamic and Muslim are living in “Jahiliya” (the age of ignorance which prevailed in the Arabian Peninsula before the revelation of Islam to the prophet Mohammed). The extremists' ideologies grew stronger around the second part of the 19th century, particularly in the Islamic world.

Out of this systematic teaching came a planned and strategic effort to indoctrinate Muslims into thinking similarly. In order to unite Muslims around the world, to emphasize that they are distinct, and to develop the perception of “them” vs. “us,” Islamic extremists promoted an Islamized dress code of the 142 W. Loza / Aggression and Violent Behavior 12 (2007) 141–155 Hijab and the black baggy-sacks for women and the Pakistani high-rise midi-trousers with slippers for men. This type of dress code was not commonly seen before the 1960s in most of the modern Arab countries, such as Egypt.

Islamic extremists have been successful in promoting the exclusivity of Islam by prohibiting non-Muslims from entering Mecca where Mohammed (the prophet of Islam) is buried, by influencing Arab governments to prevent building new churches for their Christian minorities and prohibiting Christian literature. In addition to repressing other religions, Islamic extremists have intimidated Muslim secular thinkers and university professors by labeling them apostates if they oppose their views (Isam, 2006). Furthermore, these extremists have infiltrated most of the Islamic Countries educational system, such as the Egyptian system. Such infiltration was deliberate to ensure that their teachings are included in all levels of the educational systems (Isam, 2006). Governments have been pressured to increase the number of hours of Muslim religious programming and censor secular TV programs.

This growing wave of Islamic religious influence has been accompanied by the attempted or actual killings of several prime ministers and highly ranked government officials, tourists, academics, and others intellectuals and writers who oppose their extreme views. The most notable assassination was the killing of the Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in 1981 (Hafez, 2003). Extremists have also been preaching loyalty of all Muslims to the religion of Islam rather than to their country or a secular political system and were successful in establishing roots in Western countries through immigration and claiming refugee status for known terrorist It seems that their goal is to overwhelm the West by increasing the number of Muslims with the eventual goal of enforcing their views, culture, and religion through Muslim population growth, and then using the democratic process to their advantage.

Destruction of the World Trade Center buildings and the attack on the Pentagon now referred to simply as 9/11 was the most spectacular and devastating terrorist act outside the Muslim world. Since then, several more completed or attempted terrorist acts took place in Western countries. In some countries critics have said that this is due to liberal emigration policies of the Western countries that provide asylum to terrorist ideologues from the Islamic world.

This phenomenon has resulted in what is being referred to as home-grown terrorists. There are several tenets that underlie the religious portion of the terrorist ideology. These tenets have been drawn from the Qur'an and, according to some Muslim scholars, have been misapplied, taken out of both historical and cultural context. These teachings include the assertion that there must be a continuous state of war between the house of peace (Islamic countries) and the house of war. This state should continue until the non-believers the infidels are converted to Islam, killed or enslaved, or subjugated to the Muslim community as inferior and pay extra taxes in order for them to retain their lives and property (Loza, 2006).

These teachings assert that current man-made rules and laws that govern Muslim societies are laws made by ungodly rulers (apostates) and must be overturned in favor of the laws made by God contained in the Qur'an. Thus, Muslims are encouraged to overthrow the current ungodly (secular) leaders of the Muslim world. Western civilization with their democracy and modernity is viewed as morally corrupt. It is taught that only Islam possesses the values that are needed for a good and just world and that Muslim societies have decayed and become vulnerable to Western intrusion because Muslims have strayed from their religion.

A just world will only be guaranteed and achieved by going back to the true Islam. Infidels (non-believers) must be fought until they become weak, their state disappears, and they submit to the law of Islam. It is the adherence to the purest sources of Islam that is seen as the deliverance of Muslim societies of the world from the ills of our time. Important also is that there be a revival of religion and a relationship between God and man via Jihad (holy war), to establish the true Muslim state. As such it is taught that it is the duty of every Muslim to wage holy war against the unbelievers or the infidels. The eventual goal therefore is to create pure Islamic societies all over the world by creating a nucleus of true Muslims to spread authentic Islam.

To convince the masses to believe in their ideologies and to recruit new terrorists, extremists use many verses from the Qur'an (the Holy book of Islam) that the prophet received during the initial stages of establishing Islam. Examples of the quotes they use are: “O Believers, do not take Jews nor the Christians as your friends: they are one another's friends only”. “Indeed, Islam is the only right way of life in the sight of Allah”. “I am now going to fill the hearts of the disbelievers with awe: so smite their necks and beat every joint of their bodies”. “Strike terror into the enemies of Allah and your enemies”. “The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger and run about to spread mischief in the land is this: they should be put to death or crucified or their alternate hands and feet should be cut off, or they should be banished from the land”. “It is Allah Who sent His Messenger with the Guidance and the Religion of Truth that He may prevail over all religions” (Loza, 2006).

Justifications for terrorism

Political justifications:

Several investigators have suggested that the goal of Islamic extremists/terrorist organizations is to politicize religionby toppling secular governments and establishing authentic Islamic governments and implement Islamic laws. These observers suggest the following as the causes for the surge of Islamic extremism/terrorism in Islamic countries.

First, the undemocratic political systems that exist in the Arab countries. Second, is the political exclusion and repressive political environments in which the vast majority of Muslims have been living such as deprivation of freedom, incarceration and suffering under repressive regimes. Third, is the decline of the Muslim world from a strong civilization into a marginalized region of the world. Fourth, includes the immense portrayed discrepancy between the rich West and the poor Islamic world (Shalaan, 1993). Fifth, is the history of occupation of Islamic countries by Western countries. Sixth, includes the history of conflict between Israel and the Arab world (the Israeli–Palestinian conflict) and the humiliating defeat of three Arab countries by Israel in 1967 (Ameen, 1993).

This exposed the impotency of Arab regimes to the extent that Islamic population felt hatred, alienation and handicap, particularly against the Americans and Israelis. Seventh, are the extra efforts by Islamic governments to show that they are also religious. This has been manifested in the substantial increase of religious programs on television, radio, and in newspapers and books. This allowed Islamic extremists to penetrate the educational system and spread extremism. An eighth cause for the surge in Islamic extremism/terrorism is use of religion by ruling governments to fight communism or other political opponents (Ameen, 1993).

A ninth potential cause is the availability of funds from the extremely wealthy Arab countries to control the political agenda through religion in the Arab world (Ameen, 1993). This includes Saudi Arabia's immense financial support of the Islamic movement and exporting its extreme Islamic ideologies and teachings in Islamic countries and around the Western world. One manifestation of this is the Saudi government's financing of all Muslim schools in the West, including Canada. This resulted in the deterioration of moderation in some Arab countries in the last five decades and introduced radicalized Muslim views (Wahhabism) in Western institutions, such as American prisons and university campuses.

Tenth, is the Iranian Islamic revolution and Khomeini's use of rhetoric such as Islam is the defender of ‘the weak, disinherited, the oppressed’. An eleventh potential cause is the frustration of the masses in the Muslim world against their own governments because of the unequal distribution of power, corruption with the prevalence of nepotism, unrepresentativeness and inefficiency of government; the enormous police, military power that lacks large-scale public support; political deficits, while the masses are left struggling under totalitarian regimes.

This includes the perception among the masses that Arab governments are influenced by Western governments. The final potential cause for the surge in Islamic extremism/terrorism is the constant propaganda of the extremists and the anti-Government slogans in the Islamic world. Some of these slogans advocate that “Islam is the solution” and that the creation of an Islamic state is the solution to the problems of the masses. The people are told that the Islamic state that uses the Sharia Law would guarantee them a better society with respect, a job, a house, and marriage.

Social justifications/socialization:

Several sociological/socialization reasons have been suggested as the causes for the surge of Islamic extremism in the Islamic world; among them is poverty, to the extent that it was suggested that the majority of people in the Arab world are living a miserable economic life and that would be better for them to die then remain alive (Ameen, 1993). This includes: the enormous discrepancy between the rich and the poor, the control of the government of the sources of wealth, the general economic decline, the high rate of unemployment, the cultural insulation and sense of being disenfranchised from their community, and a culture of feeling hopeless and ineffective.

The extremists' strategy to spread their views was to take advantage of these economic conditions. Backed by finances from Arab oil rich countries they offered free social services to the poor and needy at the grace root level. This was an alternative to the poor services provided by their Governments (Ameen, 1993). In addition, most extremists/terrorists have been socialized, early in life, into extreme ideologies or theologies. The number of affected increased because of the tremendous population increase in the 1970s among countries of the Middle East and North Africa.

It is estimated that 70–75% of the population is under twenty-five years of age (Kepel, 2002). Due to new policies of free education, these young had higher educational achievements than their parents. This created a huge feeling of disarray, deprivation, frustration, and injustice of their social structure. Consequently, these youth were ready to bring about an alternative to their situation (Kepel, 2002). Extreme Islamic leaders offered them a solution through aggressive confrontations with authority in the name of social justice. During the 1990s many Egyptian employees and teachers from other Muslim countries were loaned to oil rich countries, particularly Saudi Arabia. They spent extended periods employed there which helped to radicalize their thinking and behavior. Most of them tried to import their radicalized ideas upon their return to their native countries.

reference

Ameen, H. A. (1993). The youth and the problem of extremism. El-Mowagha: Gzoor El-Erhab, 10−18.

Hafez, M. M. (2003). Why Muslims rebel: Repression and resistance in the Islamic World. Lynnes Rienner, 35-38

Isam, E. (2006, April 24). How the terrorist's brothers invaded the Egyptian educational system. Cairo, 203- 276.

Kepel, G. 2002. The trail of political Islam Cambridge, Mass. Harvard University Press, 1-38

Loza, W. 2006. The psychology of extremism and terrorism: A Middle-Eastern perspective. Science direct, 141–155.

Shalaan, M. (1993). El Tafseer El Nafsi Lil-tatarof [Psychological explanation for extremism]. The Confrontation, 45−51.