Origins and Evolution of Terrorism

1. Why was the hostage crisis at the Munich Olympics a turning point in terrorism? 

2. The reading says that state-sponsored terrorism increased after the U.S. hostage crisis in Iran. What did many governments learn from that event?

3. The past fifteen years have seen a sharp rise in religious terrorism. What motivates these terrorists? 

4. How have these new terrorists changed the way terrorism is carried out? 

    1.The hostage crisis at the Munich Olympics was a turning point in terrorism.  This was because this was an act of terrorism that the public witnessed.  The television allowed many people to view the hostage incident take place.    The television also allowed for the terrorists to have a larger audience, making their acts affect more people.  Terrorists learned that if they targeted certain events and people, they could have a large audience, which was what they wanted.

     2.  Governments learned that sponsoring terrorists could be an effective way to fight against powerful countries.  They learned this by Iran sponsoring a terrorist group that captured Americans.  This attack was committed by terrorists, but the negotiations with the United States of America that came from the event benefited Iran, even though Iran would have been to weak to establish this type of deal on their own.  The weak countries were not fighting the powerful directly, they were just helping groups attack the powerful countries.  The terrorists were also able to then access the country's resources, so they benefited as well.

     3.  What often first motivates the terrorists is their belief that the world is becoming evil.  When there are changes they might believe that these changes are unwanted by their religion.  This leads them to fight for change.  Many may try to reverse what the world is doing wrong by being involved in politics, while others might use their religion.  Interpretations of religion can be created to justify the violence committed by terrorists and can be the motivation for terrorists.  They may even plan their attacks on days that are symbolic in their religion because it makes them feel like they know what they are fighting for.  Those are some of the motivations for religious terrorists.

    4.  New terrorist have changed when, how, where, and why terrorism is carried out.  Religious terrorists may attack on certain days that are symbolic in their religion. The way governments sponsor terrorists, like the group in Tehran, gives terrorists more resources so they are more deadly.  The Olympics in Munich showed terrorists that if they attack a certain event, like the Olympics, they can have a large audience. Also, the increase in religious terrorism in the past fifteen years has changed why terrorism takes place.