A recent study by the Institute for Economics and Peace shows that terrorism is on the rise,
and groups like ISIS and Boko Haram are obviously still making headlines.
So, what do we do?
Is there a way to stop terrorist groups?
Well the good news, is that all terrorist groups will end at some point.
In fact, the Global
Terrorism Database found that almost 75% of active terrorist groups before 1997 lasted
less
than one year.
One Harvard study examined the post-9/11 world and found that terrorist groups
that ended before 2008 lasted an average of 14 years.
So for the most part, terrorist groups are
temporary.
The real question is, why do they break up?
The most common reason a terrorist group stops committing terrorism, is because they
eventually become a political party.
A study of 648 terrorist groups found that 40% of them
end for this reason.
There are many examples of this; The Kosovo Liberation Army, which
was called a terrorist group by President Clinton, made the transition to the Kosovo
Protection
Corps, which now works closely with NATO.
Sinn Fein, the political wing of the
IRA, is currently one of the most popular political parties in Northern Ireland.
But this doesn’t
mean that verifying a terrorist group as a political party necessarily ends terrorism.
Hezbollah
holds numerous seats in Lebanon’s parliament, but still remains on most terrorist watch
lists and
has been connected to recent terrorist acts.
Another major way terrorist groups come to an end, is by unknowingly recruiting police
or
military intelligence whose goal is to break up the organization from the inside.
Studies show
that 40% split up for this reason.
Intelligence agencies gather information, infiltrate groups and
arrest leaders.
They can also make it harder for terrorist groups to raise money or recruit.
Complete military action is 7% of why terrorist groups break up, but that number is deceiving
because military actions aren’t used against smaller terrorist organizations, which make
up the
majority of the 648 groups we are talking about.
The study also shows that 10% of terrorist groups end because they achieved the goals
they
set out to achieve.
A good example is the National Liberation Front, which ceased all terrorist
activities after Algeria achieved independence from France.
Of course, those aren’t all of the ways terrorist groups end.
Some end by splintering off into
other terrorist groups, but that’s not really terrorism ending, so much as it is shifting
allegiances.
For more on the rise of terrorism, check out our video on the rising death toll caused
by
terrorism.
And if you have any ideas or questions you’d like us to explore, please let us know on
Facebook or in the comments below.
Thanks for watching.