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Defining Terrorism

A lthough terrorism is a tactic that has been used for centuries, it is not easy to define. In fact, although the United Nations has been attempting to define the term terrorism since 2005, today there remains no international consensus over the meaning of this term. In recent years, several U.S. government agencies have developed their own specific definitions of terrorism. The U.S. Department of Defense defines terrorism as “the calculated use of unlawful violence or threat of unlawful violence to inculcate fear; intended to coerce or to intimidate governments or societies in the pursuit of goals that are generally political, religious, or ideological.” The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) defines terrorism as “the unlawful use of force and violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any seg- ment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.” The U.S. Department of State defines terrorism to be “premeditat- ed politically motivated violence perpetrated against non-combatant targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an audience.”

While most people who study or write about terrorism agree with the definition above, there is no worldwide agree- ment on exactly what terrorism is. Indeed, many organizations whose activities fit this definition would deny that they were terrorists. This is because the word terrorism is regarded by most people as something bad or negative—terrorists are usu-

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What Is Terrorism?