Give the five distinct forms of terrorism, according to White (1991), and a brief description of each

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Criminal terrorism involves the use of terror for profit or psychological gain (Wilkinson, 1974). Criminal terrorism fails to merit the same attention as does nationalistic violence. Criminal terrorists seem to lack the political sophistication and support of other types of terrorists (Bell and Gurr, 1979). Thus, the control of criminal terrorist activity typically becomes a law enforcement matter.

Ideological terrorism is normally an effort to change the current political power. It has
been argued that ideological terrorism involves a revolution, but this is not always the case. For
example, some governments employ the use of death squads, whose actions might appear to be
part of a repressive government, but this could be an extension of revolutionary terrorism.

Nationalistic terrorism is characterized by activity that supports the interests of an ethnic
or nationalistic group, regardless of its political ideology (White, 1991). Nationalistic terrorists
often align with either Western or Eastern ideologies. This could be viewed in terms of superpower support (food, supplies, weapons, etc.) for nationalistic interests. In other words, we could say that the West tends to supply our terrorists, while the East tends to supply theirs. Stated differently, the goals of democracy are opposed to those of Marxist socialism (White, 1991).

State-sponsored terrorism occurs when governmental regimes use or threaten to use violence
in international relations outside established diplomatic protocol. The term became somewhat popular during the Reagan administration in describing low-level violence used against U.S. diplomatic and military installations. This form of terrorism is typified by such events as the 1979 takeover of the U.S. embassy in Tehran and the bombings aimed against U.S. military personnel in the Middle East. Countries that support such activities are known as terrorist states. Iran, Syria, Afghanistan, Chile, Argentina, El Salvador, and Libya are among the most notorious state sponsors of terrorism.

Revolutionary terrorism involves persons whose guerrilla-like tactics invoke fear in those
holding political power and their supporters. The goal is to overthrow the current power base and
replace it with political leaders who share the terrorists' views. Common tactics used by revolutionary terrorists are kidnappings, bombings, and assassinations, all of which are skillfully
designed to force the existing government to respond with repressive measures. The terrorist then
uses media coverage in an attempt to expose the government as being inhumane and in need of
being overthrown. Examples of revolutionary terrorism are Mao Tse-tung's takeover of China
from Chiang Kai-shek and Fidel Castro's successful takeover of the Cuban government from the
Batista regime during the late 1950s.