Veronica G Salinas
The Evolution of Terrorism
Terrorism existed even before the 9/11 attacks occurred in the United States; however, what is defined as being a terrorist attack or what is terrorism has changed over the past several years. These changes are partly because terrorism is a social construct, not a physical entity. Still, also now these terrorist attacks have changed from terrorist members to lone wolfs who have been self-radicalized (Weissman et al., 2014). These shifts keep creating changes in the definition of terrorism but also define the evolution that has been going on. Even more significant attacks were carried out by these organizations. Terrorism has been around for decades, mainly in the Middle East, where notary terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda, The Islamic State, ISIS-K, Taliban, and Abu Sayyaf formed and made their mark on the rest of the world (Department of Homeland Security, 2022). These terrorist organizations eventually plotted one of the deadliest attacks on United States soil. Still, they would also cause them to shift their focus on recruiting others to carry out these deadly attacks in the name of Jihad. The evolution of these terrorist organizations has been noticeable, especially in recent years, where the goals have remained the same but have shifted to include more objectives (Pratt, 2011). These objectives now include carrying out attacks worldwide to communicate that they are still in existence and more potent than before.
Before 9/11 Attacks
According to Taylor and Swanson (2019), the so-called terrorism in France started in the eighteen century. In the United States, it was a racial labor that was associated with anarchist. The authors add that this anarchist believed in political theories and wanted to overthrow the rulers and government so they could run the nation based on their beliefs. While so-called terrorism was already in the United States, it did not pose a significant threat because there was no major attack within the country, and it only occurred in the Middle East (Pratt, 2011). Furthermore, the threat of terrorism was confined to the Middle East, and it was deemed a regional challenge as those countries had to figure out how to combat these terrorist organizations and prevent them from committing further attacks. However, the turning point came when the leader of Al-Qaeda, Osama Bin Laden, believed that U.S. troops in Saudi Arabia during the Gulf War violated the sacred space between Mecca and Tanzania and therefore caused him to declare war on the United States (Reed, 2020). The authors add that right away Al-Qaeda plotted terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in 1993, which was partially successful. With the attack, the United States was made aware that Al-Qaeda had further intentions of attacking. Still, they believed that the terrorist group did not have the resources or capabilities to carry out such a sophisticated attack. However, the United States was wrong and did not know about the country’s vulnerabilities and weaknesses until the major attack occurred. Al-Qaeda was determined to carry out a massive attack, and the surprise assault came on September 11th, 20221, with the twin towers’ destruction and badly damaged the Pentagon leaving 3,000 dead (Taylor & Swanson, 2019).
After 9/11 Attacks
The major weakness and vulnerabilities were exposed during the 9/11 attacks, which were one after the other and made the United States have no choice but to make extreme changes before another major attack occurred. After the attacks occurred, President Bush declared War on Terrorism, and soon after, thousands of troops were sent to the Middle East to fight Al-Qaeda and ensure that they were demolished. It also led to the creation of the Department of Homeland Security. Numerous changes were made to airport security, and strict guidelines for creating the Department of Homeland Security meant that multiple agencies would work with individuals coming in from well know terrorist countries (Department of Justice, n.d). Together these agencies would help gather intelligence and share valuable information with outside agencies. Defense counterintelligence and security agency were explicitly created to defend the United States against all threats and to gather intelligence on these terrorist groups so a plan could be set to foil future attacks (Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency, n.d). In addition, after the 9/11 attacks, it was no longer a regional threat but a global issue that must be addressed from all angles. The war on terrorism was now a global war, as international countries were not joining the United States in combating these terrorist groups now, almost every part of the world had been affected by terrorism, and something needed to be done to stop it. The evolution of terrorism further indicates that the United States must keep up with the counterintelligence made on terrorist groups in the Middle East and lone wolfs that have been self-radicalized by propaganda videos posted online by these terrorist groups (Buzan, 2006). The United States now must deal with the fact that there are homegrown terrorists within this country who are trying to commit terrorist attacks on behalf of these terrorist organizations.
Conclusion
Terrorism has existed for centuries, but its creation was related to the anarchists due to the United States’ racial labor. While terrorism did exist in the United States, government officials did not worry about that much, unlike the Middle East, which has been dealing with terrorist attacks for years and has that regional threat of violence. Terrorist groups in the Middle East, such as Al-Qaeda, began to form quickly under the direction of Osama Bin Laden, who viewed an incident during the Gulf War as a violation against the United States and declared war. Soon after, the plotting began, and while the first attack on the twin towers was successful, it was not enough for them, so significant planning began, and a major incident occurred on September 11, 2001. These attacks displayed the immense vulnerabilities and weaknesses the United States had, which they did not even realize. Soon after the attacks, President Bush declared war on terrorism and sent thousands of troops to hunt down Bin Laden and ensure the terrorist organization was dismantled. The significance was that the Department of Homeland Security and Defense Counterintelligence and Security agency was created to gather intelligence on these terrorist groups and possible plots that may be in progress. “God has established the authorities that exist” ( King James Bible, 2013/2016, Romans 13:1). God implies that he has established government and that government will be used to endued with God’s authority to protect its citizens and punish those who terrorize them. God implies that those who commit acts of violence are going against the humanity of God as he forbids acts of violence and implies that we shall condemn those who commit violence and continuously pursue peace.
