Political & Religious Terrorism
Religious Studies: KS3, topic 3.3.16
Political and Religious Terrorism
It can be difficult to separate political and religious terrorism. Sometimes both religious and political change is demanded.
Islamic Terrorism
- Some Islamic terrorists want to impose their extreme version of Islam.
- But they also complain about Western involvement in the Middle East.
- They object to Western support for Israel, for example, and to the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan.
- But such terrorist groups as ISIS and Al Qaeda also hope that terror will help them impose an extreme version of Islam on large parts of the world.
The Red Army Faction
- Examples of purely political terrorism were common in the 1970s.
- The Red Army Faction was a German left-wing terrorist group that grew out of student protests in 1968.
- They used a campaign of bombing of buildings to promote a Marxist revolution.
Misinformation
- Some terrorists understand fully what they are doing and why.
- But terrorism often also relies on recruiting followers.
- This is where propaganda comes into play.
- Using social media and other platforms, terrorists put out false stories.
- These stories might be about government policies or about atrocities they say were committed against them and their group.
- People believe the stories, become angry, and join the cause.