State-sponsored terrorism is designated as the support a government provides to another country based on repeated support on international terrorism. One of the most notable countries in North Korea. According to Richard et al. (2017), North Korea was added as a result of the 1987 bombing of the South Korean air flight landing near Myanmar. Former president, Geroge W. Bush, announced the introduction of North Korea to the list of state-sponsored terrorism under various factors. The reason that North Korea is under state-sponsored terrorism is that the country sponsored terrorist acts, including the bombing of the Korean Airline flight in 1987.
The purpose was to encourage asylum accommodation to Japanese communist Red Army Faction members who were responsible for the attack of the airline. The goal of the government as a financier is to ensure that the Japanese government, which is fully supported by the American government, no longer has the most robust stand in Asia (Martin, 2006). Japanese government since then sought support for the full account of the fate of the 12 Japanese individuals involved in the bombing which of whom, only five have been repatriated to Japan for sentencing.
Reports from Marcus (2006) indicate that North Korea, historically, has been involved in numerous attacks against South Korean interests, including the Korean Airlines flight 858, which exploded in Burma. Despite the country being removed from the list of state-sponsored terrorism, former Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, reignited the conversation indicating that North Korea is still involved with other countries including sponsoring terrorism under Kim Jong-Un (Martin, 2006).
Dissident Terrorism
Martin (2014) describes dissident terrorism as terrorism that is committed by non-state movements as well as groups against the administration or other groups that could be religious or perceived enemies. One of the known dissident terrorist groups is the FARC of Colombia. In English, it is referred to as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People’s Army (Carpenter, 2018). The FARC is popularly known for its attacks on the government of Ecuador and Colombia. As such, the goal of the faction is to force the government to cease any anti-narcotic warfare it has on the terrorist group. According to Carpenter (2018), FACR has also outrageously asked the Ecuador government to release all of its members which was fueled after the Oliver Sinisterra Front. To ensure that its acts are known, the FACR is known to kidnap foreign journalists or visitors to Ecuador or Colombia and use them to claim requests from the government (Carpenter, 2018). Currently, the faction has signed a peace deal with the government, allowing the group to continue bribing government officials and carryout narcotics trafficking.
International Terrorism
International terrorism, as Martin (2014) states is terrorism that spills solely onto the world stage. As such, it targets selected values or global interests either within a country or beyond state boundaries. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is an Iranian branch of the Armed Forces. The goal of the terrorist group is known to be protective of the Iranian political and religious views. Therefore, its actions include being an ideologically driven faction group.
The reason is that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps wants to extend Iranian concepts from social, political, economic as well as military-based (Slackman, 2009). Among its pivotal terrorist actions include the 2009 Presidential election as a military coup in which the Iranian government was overthrown through an authoritarian military-based security government. Another attack was when the United States government accused the terrorist group of being directly responsible for the attack on commercial ships in the Gulf of Oman through mines on four oil tankers at the Port of Fujairah (Slackman, 2009).
Religious Terrorism
Martin (2014) elucidates that religious terrorism as terrorism that is motivated by the belief that an outward power had commanded the application of violence through terrorism for the greater glory for a deity. An example is the Egyptian Islamic jihad. It is in Egypt, and the terrorist group was made since 1970. The terrorist group was formed as a merger of two Islamic groups, including the Cairo branch led by Mohammed Abdul-Salam and Saidi branch led by Karam Zuhdi.
It was after the assassination of President Anwar Sadat of Egypt, and the two faction groups members were arrested but, their trial, according to Wright (2008) was non-lenient allowing the group to re-emerge and become stronger. It is known to be an affiliate of Al-Qaeda. According to Wright (2002), Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ) main goal was to overthrow the Egyptian government and install the new Islamic State. Along the way, the terrorist group has been involved in American attacks as well as Israeli interest in Egypt and other countries. During the Egyptian revolution, the EIJ was engaged in targeting the high-level government personnel through car bombings and assisted suicides (Wright, 2008). It is noted that the terrorist group is financed by Al-Qaeda and followers of Osama Bin Laden.
References
- Carpenter, R. (2018). Terrorist dissidents threaten undermine peace process in Colombia. Heritage. Retrieved from https://www.heritage.org/terrorism/commentary/terrorist-dissidents-threaten-undermine-peace-process-colombia
- Martin, G. (2014). Types of Terrorism: In exchanging terrorism oxygen for media airwaves: The age of terroredia. IGI Global.
- Martin, G. (2006). Understanding terrorism: Challenges, perspectives and issues. Sage Publications.
- Paddock, R.C. , Sang-hun, C. & Wade, N. (2017). In Kim Jong-nam’s death, North Korea lets loose a weapon of mass destruction, New York Times.
- Slackman, M. (2009). Hard-line force extends grip over a splintered Iran. New York Times.
- Wright, L. (2002). The man behind Bin Laden. The New Yorker. Retrieved from https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2002/09/16/the-man-behind-bin-laden
- Wright, L. (2008). The rebellion within, an Al Qaeda mastermind questions terrorism. The New Yorker.
