Questions tagged [terrorism]

Questions about terrorism or related events, directly or indirectly.

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Are there countries which have a policy of ignoring bomb threats?

Every day there are news stories from various countries around the world about bomb threats phoned in by various perpetrators. Sometimes it's school kids who want to skip a day in class, sometimes it'...
JonathanReez's user avatar
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3 answers
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What is the difference between war and terrorism?

As the title states, what is the difference between war and terrorism? Terrorism, as I understand it, has one primary purpose: to destabilize the enemy. Hence, the killing of innocent civilians, ...
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14 votes
2 answers
5k views

When is an act considered domestic terrorism in regards to US policy?

Fifty people were killed yesterday during a mass shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada. When is a mass shooting or killings considered domestic terrorism by the U.S. federal government?
LegendofLegends's user avatar
1 vote
5 answers
370 views

Why are outlier events not a reason to take action?

What is meant by "politicizing" an event and how to avoid it? In an answer there, someone recommends that one should not use outlier events to recommend action on gun control policy. He ...
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1 vote
5 answers
821 views

What is meant by "politicizing" an event and how to avoid it?

Whenever events such as those in Las Vegas occur, people often accuse others of "politicizing" the event. What is meant by this, and how do we avoid doing it? I am looking for example of some ...
Donk's user avatar
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3 votes
4 answers
5k views

When did modern Middle-Eastern terrorism start?

Terrorism, specifically coming from the Middle East, has been an epidemic. It has spread across the globe, to the US, France, UK, Somalia, Yemen, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Germany and even to parts of ...
Noah's user avatar
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37 votes
9 answers
10k views

What is the point of "we are not scared"-responses to terror?

Every time there's a terror attack in Europe, people will come out with messages such as "we are not scared". What is the point of these messages? Each individual human is very unlikely to be a ...
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0 votes
1 answer
328 views

Why is North Korea threatening the South and US more in 2017 than prior?

Why North Korea is constantly threatening US (who has allied with South Korea) with latest missile drills, nuclear drills in 2017? This is quite happening after 2016 & is now revving thru any ...
Ehsanz Prof01's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
689 views

Why are most terrorists kind of .... ineffective? [closed]

In Spain, a terror cell of 12 people managed to kill only 14 people. That's 1.16 victims per terrorist. This is a pattern one notices elsewhere in Europe as well, that is, terrorist attacks that ...
Jaood's user avatar
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1 vote
5 answers
631 views

Why are Americans more scared of terrorism than other more common death causes? [closed]

This is a link to a study which suggests that Americans are very scared of terrorist attacks (second place, after corrupt politicians). However, only a few hundred people have died due to terrorism ...
Jaood's user avatar
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18 votes
7 answers
10k views

What do terrorists hope to accomplish by killing muslims?

Most victims of terrorism are Muslim. I can understand why they kill non-Muslims, there seems to be many reasons from their twisted perspective, but most often, they are killing Muslims. What is the ...
Jaood's user avatar
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48 votes
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Why is Islamic State (IS) referred to as "so-called"?

Often in news articles, I see that IS are referred to as "so-called" Islamic State. For example, in a BBC News article: On Bastille Day last year, along the coast in Nice, more than 80 people were ...
Cthulhu's user avatar
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12 votes
1 answer
547 views

What are the conditions needed to declare ISIS as defeated?

Late last month, ISIS blew the symbolic mosque where the caliphate was declared in 2014. Mosul was finally conquered. Its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, was allegedly killed last May. Raqqa, ISIS' "...
luchonacho's user avatar
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2 votes
2 answers
351 views

Why do various officials insist on the fact that people should expect more terrorist attacks?

During the last years I have seen news covering in great details all the terrorist attacks, mostly those that happened in West Europe and US. It is highly plausible that most people that have access ...
Alexei's user avatar
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14 votes
6 answers
2k views

Does Iran sponsor terrorists?

After yesterday's ISIS attacks in Tehran, U.S. president Trump said in reference to Iran, "states that sponsor terrorism risk falling victim to the evil they promote." Prima facie, the claim that ...
henning's user avatar
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5 votes
2 answers
179 views

Would ECHR affect Theresa May's announcement to combat extremism?

Theresa may has announced on twitter that she is willing to change human rights laws to help fight extremism. I'm clear: if human rights laws get in the way of tackling extremism and terrorism, ...
Bradley Wilson's user avatar
10 votes
3 answers
631 views

How would even more internet regulation hinder terrorism?

In light of the London Attacks, Theresa May blames the internet: “We cannot allow this ideology the safe space it needs to breed – yet that is precisely what the internet, and the big companies that ...
Bradley Wilson's user avatar
52 votes
11 answers
17k views

Would it save lives in London to arm every individual police officer?

Cressida Dick, the Commissioner of the London Metropolitan Police, said on the radio this morning that she continued to be opposed to ordinary police officers in London being routinely armed. Britain ...
WS2's user avatar
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1 vote
2 answers
203 views

Has an election ever been called off due to a terror attack?

This morning, UK Prime Minister Theresa May announced that the general election on June the 8th will go ahead despite the London Bridge Terror Attack. Is there a precedent of an election being called ...
SleepingGod's user avatar
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3 votes
1 answer
329 views

Why is the government of India probing Dr Zakir Naik for connection with terrorism after 26 years?

According to Dr Zakir Naik's biography, he started his preaching and founded IRF in 1991. Even though numerous terrorist incidents took place in India and Bangladesh during the last 26 years, nothing ...
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4 votes
1 answer
231 views

How is the policy of Theresa May different to that of Jeremy Corbyn in relation to security and terrorism?

How is the policy of Theresa May different to that of Jeremy Corbyn in relation to security and terrorism? Good answers should refer to both manifestos, be specific to the general election of 2017 ...
Curious's user avatar
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88 votes
10 answers
29k views

Why does ISIS continue to do things to make their "enemy" even more determined to go after them?

Why do groups such as ISIS and Al Qaeda continue use terrorism attacks, which only do temporary physical damage. It seems to have the primary effect of aggravating huge military entities such as N.A.T....
preston's user avatar
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7 votes
2 answers
1k views

Has the Dalai Lama ever promoted violence against the Chinese?

I go to school with Chinese exchange students that became very defensive when the history teacher described the Dalai Lama as "peaceful". They said he is a separatist that promotes violence against ...
KevinZ's user avatar
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5 votes
3 answers
986 views

Are car bombs considered a conventional weapon under international law?

If a "Red line" is drawn by the Obama administration over the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government, because it is unconventional weapons, why is there no red line drawn for the use of a ...
Dylan Czenski's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
702 views

Is there a correlation between terrorism and invasion of the Middle East?

We have witnessed the rise of many terrorist organizations. From Al-Qaeda to the Taliban, Al-Shabaab and now the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria which spawned from the war in Syria. They recently ...
Noah's user avatar
  • 4,797
13 votes
4 answers
786 views

The disproportionate impact of terrorism upon policy and public opinion

Taking the recent London incident as an example, most of the UK's media is still dominated by its coverage. The media's obsession with it, is a result of the public's demand for the coverage. Why do ...
mrnovice's user avatar
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25 votes
5 answers
7k views

Why is recent international (Europe, N-America, …) Islamist terrorism exclusively perpetrated by Sunnis?

According to the Global Terrorism Database, the number of terrorist attacks with fatalities in Western Europe has recently started to rise for the first time since the 1970s: Source: Global Terrorism ...
gerrit's user avatar
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-2 votes
2 answers
276 views

Rise of Domestic Terror Groups in the US

Do the formation of domestic terror groups in the US, (Symbionese Liberation Army, Animal Liberation Front (ALF), Environmental Liberation Front (ELF), Black Panthers, the Weathermen, the KKK, other ...
user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
268 views

How Would Trump Go About Adding Other Nations to the Travel Restriction List?

I ask this because everyone is accusing Trump of banning 7 majority-Muslim countries which were already part of the "Terrorist Travel Prevention Act of 2015" and "Visa Integrity and Security Act of ...
Jadius5's user avatar
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1 vote
1 answer
348 views

Did President Obama put any conditions of the aid to Palestinians to prevent funding terrorists?

There has been a rapprochement of sorts between Hamas and the PLO recently. The Palestinian Authority's announcement that it will send 3,000 police officers to Gaza as part of a unity agreement ...
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3 votes
1 answer
2k views

What are the benefits of mass surveillance on U.S. citizens?

In 2013, Reuters reported that the Snowden leaks reveal how the NSA has been giving information to a division of the DEA called the Special Operations Division. Apparently they've been using this ...
Cannabijoy's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
495 views

Why aren't police obliged to keep the information about terrorists secret?

After the terrorist attack in Berlin, the media started to broadcast much information about the people involved. It seems to me that this just supports the terrorists' motivation of fame and allows ...
Probably's user avatar
  • 1,511
3 votes
2 answers
494 views

How are potential terrorist organizations evaluated for inclusion on terrorist watch list?

How are potential terrorist organizations evaluated for inclusion on terrorist watch list? Is it a panel of independents or academics or law enforcement? Does it have political appointee input? Is ...
user avatar
18 votes
3 answers
3k views

Who supplies Saudi Arabia with weapons?

More than 140 people were killed and over 525 wounded on Saturday, by a Saudi Arabian airstrike on a funeral. (See nytimes, rt, theguardian, and foxnews.) The questions are: Who supplies Saudi ...
user 1's user avatar
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28 votes
10 answers
7k views

What are the drawbacks of the US making tactical first use of nuclear weapons against terrorist sites?

The US presidential Republican nominee Donald Trump stated that he did not rule out using nuclear weapons in the fight against the terrorist organization ISIS. I would like to gain more information ...
Wuschelbeutel Kartoffelhuhn's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
3k views

Percentage of European terrorists who are refugees

What percentage of terrorists in the recent attacks in Europe have ever held the refugee immigration status in any EU country? I am primarily interested in the data for the last 3 years or so. Any ...
EugeneO's user avatar
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6 votes
2 answers
796 views

How can 30 000 fighters control ISIS?

In some Czech news they say there are about 30 000 men actively fighting for the so-called Islamic State over all. It comes from the reports of CIA and Soufan group (20 000 according to the newest ...
Probably's user avatar
  • 1,511
6 votes
2 answers
632 views

Why hasn´t Israel been a victim of IS terror (so far)?

I can´t recall that IS has committed a terrorist attack on Israel. Why is that the case?
Deschele Schilder's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
107 views

Are the "the 28 pages" and "Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act" interrelated? [closed]

We know that US news of "The 28 pages" and "Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act" were spread almost at the same time period and both of them concerned Saudi Arabia interests. ...
Mohammad Hossein's user avatar
26 votes
4 answers
2k views

Is President Erdogan of Turkey staging a coup attempt?

With the currently unfolding events in Turkey (attempted coup by the military) one of my first harsher reactions is this: Is President Erdogan trying to have a quasi coup (or quasi terrorist plot) ...
Drux's user avatar
  • 1,131
9 votes
2 answers
1k views

Why US has a biased approach towards Shia Militants

I have been observing Middle-east for past 5/6 years and have observed a clear biased approach by US towards Sunni and Shia militants US Behaviour towards Sunni Militants Countless Drones in North-...
Failed Scientist's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
1k views

Why won't NATO leave Syria?

After Russia has joined the fight it's sure that Isis won't be able to take Syria like in Iraq as both Assad and Putin are against Isis. What is the remaining American interest in elongating the war ...
Allahjane's user avatar
  • 327
2 votes
1 answer
413 views

What has happened when terrorists attack high-profile sporting events?

The motivating question is, in case of a terrorist attack, similar to the one on the Bataclan in Paris, would the games continue or would the rest of the games be cancelled? What have been typical ...
Chris's user avatar
  • 141
4 votes
1 answer
249 views

Why US is supportive of YPG despite their links with PKK

PKK has been engaged in many terrorist activities and has been declared as terrorist organization by US herself. Merely a month ago the US defense chief openly admitted the links between PKK and YPG ...
Failed Scientist's user avatar
19 votes
2 answers
3k views

Why isn’t Israel fighting ISIS?

According to Jürgen Todenhöfer who spent 10 days in the “Islamic State” last year, Israel is the only country in the world that ISIS fears. Apparently, ISIS is not intimidated by the U.S. nor the U.K.,...
Paraney's user avatar
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23 votes
9 answers
5k views

Why does Daesh not attack or even threaten to attack Israel?

How come Daesh/ISIS does not attack Israel, who are supposed to be their worst enemy? Precision: I'm not asking the reason for the other way around, why isn't Israel attacking IS I'm asking why isn'...
jon's user avatar
  • 363
7 votes
4 answers
12k views

How come ISIS does not attack China or Japan or other Asian countries?

How come ISIS does not attack China or Japan or other Asian countries? Do they have no hatred for Asian countries? Is it solely the Western society that they are after? But that wouldn't make sense:...
user9999's user avatar
48 votes
7 answers
13k views

Why did the Islamic State target Brussels when Belgium isn't bombing them?

This Freakonomics podcast says the number one reason for terrorism is military occupation. Robert Pape says that the overwhelming reason for 'suicide' (homicide) bombers is occupation by a foreign ...
Chloe's user avatar
  • 6,020
4 votes
3 answers
1k views

How exactly Russia benefits from recent terrorist strikes in Brussels?

After the terrorist attacks in Brussels in March, 2016, a Russian top official Zhirinovsky, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma of the Russia, the leader of the second biggest party on Russia and a five ...
Be Brave Be Like Ukraine's user avatar
9 votes
3 answers
9k views

Can I sue the government for not enforcing criminal laws?

A year after the 2014 Bundy standoff, the U.S. government has failed to arrest the members of a group that threatened law enforcement officers with deadly force. Can an individual or legal (a ...
j3435027's user avatar