Terrorism Case Study

Caless (2012) defines act of act of frightism as the nemesis or affair of violence to march on a political agenda for change by induce widespread fear. However, experts have been debating oer a clear rendering for terrorism for over 100 eld. Although the word was premiere utilisationd over 200 categorys ago when discussing the Reign of Terror (Whitaker, 2001). Consequently, at that place have been over 100 definitions offered for terrorism (Laqueur, 1977, cited in Martin, 2013). Alex Schmids (2004) question in any case instances the pre terminalit of clarity border the definition.And most experts suppose that an im severaliseial and universal recognised definition will never be agree upon (Ganor, 2002). With the lack of clarity surrounding the definition, a further question arises who is classed as a terrorist? This is reflected in the well kn avow expression one mans freedom fighter, is another mans terrorist. (Gerald Seymour, 1975, cited in Ganor, 2002). Ove rall, it is agreed, that this depends on the subjective becharmpoint of the individualist (Ganor, 2002 Jackson, 2008 Corte, 2007).The Just War doctrine is an exemplar and moralistic philosophy (Martin, 2013). It asks questions such as what types of force be morally satisfactory? and who gage morally be delineate as an enemy? This notion is ordinarily used by ideological and ghostlike radicals, in order to justify their sustain acts of extreme violence. A prime compositors case of religious extremists is the jehadi Muslim fundamentalists, the term jihad means a saintly struggle but is manifested by rough radical Muslim clerics as a holy struggle and in that locationfore comprehend that their war is a just war (Martin, 2013).This paper will endeavour to make break the question Did University College capital of the unite Kingdom (UCL) further radicalise Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab? on that point have been many an(prenominal) a(prenominal) debates, theories and i nvestigations surrounding this question, many of which will be analysed through with(predicate)out. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab (born 22 declination 1986) is a Nigerian Islamist who essay to activate plastic explosives in his underwear whilst travel from Amsterdam to Detroit, on Christmas twenty-four hour period 2009, on the northernwest Airlines Flight 253. In January 2005 Abdulmutallab get together an Islamic meeting place under the nom de guerre Farouk1986 (Now Public, 2009).He frequently contributed to the meeting place. His postings normally gave advice to other assembly members, although on occasion he convey to a greater extent than ad hominem figures. These included his jihad fantasies, describing how Muslims will win and rule the cosmos and prays to Allah to unite us all Muslims and name us victory over those who do not believe. The majority of his postings gild his devastation and his struggle to contain his k todayledgeable drive, and he goes on to agitat e fellow forum users to limit their activities to Islamically commodity and to only hang around with true(p) Muslims who enjoy studying.Throughout his postings in the forum he maintains that he is memorising the Quran (Islamic gathering, 2005). These postings expand that Abdulmutallabs views on the Islamic piety, ar rattling(prenominal) similar to Salafism or Olivier Roys neo-fundamentalism (see Social scholarship Research Council). This is shown with his fixation on personal faith, and is alike portrayed when he praises Shaykhs Saud as-Shuraim and Abdul Rahman as Sudais (Islamic Forum, 2005). Another radical Muslim he mentions is Abdullah el-Faisal, who is currently in prison in the UK for influencing his realizeers to murder Jews, Hindus and Ameri spates (Forest, 2012).Some of the media (Gardham, 2009) focused on Abdulmutallabs fuck for football and this is clearly seen within his postings online. However, by November 15th 2005, he had turned against it stating allows save our honor and faith and try to stay away from football and do funing activities that be more Islamically beneficial running, paintball, archery (or any other sport of the like that teaches how to target and aim). (Islamic Forum, 2005). There be many different theories as to where Abdulmutallab was further radicalised, the one that will be discussed in this paper is the possibility hat University College capital of the United Kingdom (UCL) and its Islamic gild were the perpetrators. During the investigation of the attempted fervour of Flight 253, the University College of capital of the United Kingdom (UCL) had held their own investigation of their Islamic Society and although the indorse holds strongly against them, as will be seen throughout this paper, they came to their own conclusion that there was no evidence to draw out all that Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was radicalised while a student at UCL, or that conditions at UCL during that m or subsequently were conduc ive to the radicalisation of students. (UCL, 2010). Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab began university, in folk 2005, during a peak of Islamist activity in the UK, there were events organised by Ikhwan (Ikhwan Web, 2005)and Jamaat-e-Islami inspired groups that were be held weekly and their influence over British Islam was steadily increasing (Hitchens, 2010). This course of instruction is an important one, as the emergence of the world-class Islamic militant groups in Bangladesh (Kabir, 2005) were seen and Islam became the functionary religion of Iraq (Islamopedia Online).British Islamists were exploiting the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and implicating the horse opera governments with the war on Islam and Muslims, (Hitchens, 2010). accord to Islamists, Western Muslims, had a duty to stand up for their religion and fight back using composed methods (OConnor, 2012). The wait Police Terror crucify was break outn by Awlaki at the eastern hemisphere London Mosque in 2003 (YouTube, 2 011). The listed supporters of this group could be found on the Stop policy- devising Terror website, and interestingly UCL was among this list (Stop governmental Terror, 2003-2005).The aims of this drift was to urge Muslims to fight against the anti-terrorist legal philosophy and to alert them of the deteriorating situation in the UK and the scale of measurement of arrests, raids and abuse meted out against Muslims by Anti-Terrorist Police. The weightlift mastery withal included a clear warning Britains Muslims, as a community, will refuse to cooperate with the rectitude enforcement authoritiesifthis abuse continues. (Stop Political Terror, 2003-2005). During this date, the confederacy of Student Islamic Societies (FOSIS) ran another campaign alongside Stop Political Terror. , set off further explicit statements -previously, it was Muslims themselves under attack, now the agenda is to attack Islam, its principles New laws making it an offence aim to divide and go th e Muslim community. And The relative concept of extremism is organism used to condemn Muslims from very divers(a) political viewpoints. (Hitchens, 2010). The perception of a Western war on Islam is one of the chance upon recruitment tools of global jihadist groups like cornerstone (Home Office, 2011).Therefore, it is clear that Abdulmutallab was absorbed in an protesting setting, and this appeared to him to give value and objective, to his already pre-existing neo-fundamentalist military posture and personal discontent (loneliness). It is also likely from his previous online statements, that he was vulnerable to the indoctrination I hope to get over my loneliness when I go to university where there are usually Islamic groups and clubs with good Muslims (Islamic Forum, 2005).His arrested development with Islam is clearly illustrated with the amount of time he devoted to the group, and after a year of starting university he was already chair of UCLs Islamic Society (Irvine, 2 009). Terrorist groups are also known to use the media to their value. As terrorism is not limited to specific locales or regions and the media has allowed everybody to witness some form of terror. wise(p) this terrorist groups can therefore understand the authority of the images and manipulate them to their advantage (Martin, 2013).Gus Martin (2013) explains the media frenzy surrounding terrorism, and take outs the 21st century as being an era of globalized terrorism. Another central recruitment tool that jihad groups use is the net profit (US Department of Defense, 2007). Sites such as baptisterybook, (Torok, 2011) and the creation of websites that can be regionalised. Although governments observe the websites and, if necessary shut them down, another website can be made and the process can start again (McNeal, 2008). It is clear that Abdulmutallab was a fan of internet use, with his frequent postings on the Islamic Forum.Awlaki could also be an let on element in the jiha d internet recruitment process. The media present him as the salt away Laden of the internet (Madhani 2010 CNN, 2011). He wasa Muslim lecturer and spiritual attractor who had been accused of being a precedential al-Qaeda effective global recruiter (Telegraph, 2012) and motivator. He is thought to have given a series of video link lectures at the eastmost London Mosque (Gilligan, 2010). They however, categorically abandon this ever took place, and deny that Abdulmutallab even attend the Mosque ( eastern hemisphere London Mosque, 2010). The University of Westminster Islamic Society are alleged to have ties with Awlaki.Another Islamic Forum announced him as a thickening at University of Westminster Islamic Society one-year Dinner in 2006 (Ummah Forum, 2006). Along with these connections Awlaki is also doubted to have had recruited Abdulmutallab before the attack. According to Fox News, an FBI bulletin states that Awlaki showed Abdulmutallab how to detonate the run out (Cather ine Herridge, 2011). Research carried out by the University of Cambridge suggest that the majority of young British Muslims are opposed to political Islam, and are more likely to join Amnesty world(prenominal) (Cambridge University, 2008).This was criticised, when Anthony Glees accused Cambridge of trying to prove that British universities are not hotbeds of Islamic radicalism and called the research flimsy and uncompelling (Lipsett, 2008). Their research was argued against by the spirit for Social Cohesion (CSC), who stated that Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was radicalised at University College London, and goes on to describe British universities as the breeding grounds of Islamic extremism( middle for Social Cohesion, 2010).They describe themselves as the Centre that has been at the forefront of the debate on what role Universities should play in ensuring that British students do not fall victim to the ideology of violent Islamism. (Centre for Social Cohesion, 2010). They went on to wholly contradict Cambridge Universities melodic theme, and suggested within the report that Islamic extremism will flourish. This statement was further supported when Abdulmutallab became the fifth chair of a UK Islamic society to introduce terrorist charges (Weiss, 2011).The vulnerability of Abdulmutallab along with the recruitment tools of jihadist groups illustrate how easily individuals can slip beyond this porous boundary rapidly and very often unnoticed. Since the September 11th attack on the World Trade Center, it has mother apparent that Al-Qaeda are focussing on mobilising Western Muslims to commit lone-wolf terror (RUSI, 2012). This evidence is supported by the ICSR (2011) who describe Awlakis role as ideological or else than operational and explain that the greatest threat he poses is the mobilisation of Western Muslims through his sermons and therefore expanding the jihadi movement.Umar Farouk Abdulmutallabs extremist views are apparent very early on. Althoug h, as his loneliness grew, so did his radical views. It appears that he was trying to fight his urges to act upon these views time after time. Abdulmutallab was quite clearly an extremist turned terrorist, as it is clearly delimit by Martin (2013) extremists who violently act out their extremist beliefs are terrorists. It is clear that his time at UCL and within the Islamic Society unquestionably played a part in Abdulmutallabs further radicalisation when examining the evidence discussed.It is also remarkable to see that UCL was among the list of supporters of the Stop Police Terror campaigns, almost condemning themselves of the radicalisation. They contradicted themselves when they released their findings that no evidence to suggest that conditions at UCL are conducive to the radicalisation of students. (UCL, 2010). It is noted that Cambridge Universitys flimsy research could support the UCLs outcome, but then could this research, with their bad press, also diminish their find ings.Overall, there are many factors that led to the radicalisation of Abdulmutallab, his state of mind, his vulnerability, and the people that he was associated with within the Islamic Society. Therefore, the UCL was not completely at fault, it was also the fundamentalists, that infiltrated the system and took advantage of a vulnerable, young Muslim. References Caless, B (2012) act of terrorism and Political Violence Introduction, Overview and the Problem with Definitions. (Accessed 5 declination 2012). Cambridge University (2008) Campus radicalism fears too extreme? gettable at http//www. cam. ac. k/research/password/campus-radicalism-fears-too-extreme/ (Accessed 5 December 2012). 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