Acts of Terrorism

An investigation into the reasons that acts of terror are committed. This paper explores the motivations behind acts of terror. It is written in the light of the September 11thattack on the USA in 2001 and it studies recent acts of terrorists both in the United States and elsewhere in the world. It focuses on the personality of Osama Bin Laden and what he symbolizes for the American people.A great deal has been written about terrorism since 11 September 2001, but this should not blind us to the fact that terrorism is hardly a new phenomenon. Although it is hard to believe that there is anyone in the world who is not now more aware of the possible reach and effects of terrorism than they were six months ago, if we are to come to a better understanding of the ways in which terrorists operate and the basic human psychology of terrorism than we must take a longer view of the phenomenon (McDermott 2002). Only if we do soif we look at terrorism over a period of centuries and include an analysis of both religiously motivated and other forms of terrorismcan w e come to any clear understanding of what happened in the United States in September as well as what has happened since then (Miller 2002).