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From Monopoly To Orchestration: The Hilltop And Farm Youth And The Changing Organization Of State Coercion - The Israeli Case, Idan Yaron

Emancipations: A Journal of Critical Social Analysis

Drawing on more than a decade of ethnographic fieldwork – as a social anthropologist, studying the Far Right in Israel, on the ground, and through intimate and prolonged relationships with opinion leaders and rank-and-file activists – this essay examines the Hilltop and Farm Youth in the West Bank to reconsider Charles Tilly's influential account of state formation and the organization of coercion. It asks a simple but troubling question: why would a powerful modern state, fully capable of suppressing autonomous violent actors, sometimes allow them to persist? I argue that Tilly's theory should be confirmed, adapted, and amended. His fundamental …

“As The Developing Situation Warrants”: U.S. Counterterrorism Policy Considered Through The 1994 Gerry Adams Visa Debate, Olivia T. Sullivan

Swarthmore Undergraduate History Journal

This thesis analyzes the 1994 U.S. decision to grant Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams a visa and what it reveals about American counterterrorism policy in the immediate post–Cold War period. Long suspected of senior involvement in the Provisional Irish Republican Army during the Troubles (1968–1998), Adams had previously been denied entry under terrorism-related immigration provisions. His case became a flashpoint inside the U.S. government: officials debated whether diplomatic opportunity, domestic political incentives, and momentum toward peace in Northern Ireland warranted a departure from the prior “no concessions” posture toward IRA-linked figures. Situating the controversy within U.S. terrorism discourse from the …

Book Reviews, Usawc Press

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

No abstract provided.

Piracy, Terrorism, And The Law: Differential Equations In Hostage Situations, Gabriel Hallevy

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

Pirates have taken the crew of an American ship hostage. They promise to release the hostages only if another pirate who is held in an American prison for commission of piracy crimes against American citizens, is released. Should the U.S. government enter into negotiations with them? Should they send armed forces and risk the hostages? Should they release the prisoner immediately and unconditionally? The article models and analyzes possible policies regarding sensitive situations involving hostages and other related risks using differential equations. The solutions are surprisingly simple, but not necessarily intuitive. Our analysis aims to demonstrate how powerful mathematics is …

Book Review: A Military History Of The New World Disorder: 1989–2022, James Andrew Nichols

Parameters Bookshelf – Online Book Reviews

Author: Jonathan M. House

Reviewed by: Lieutenant Colonel James Andrew Nichols, US Army War College class of 2024

In A Military History of the New World Disorder: 1989–2022, Jonathan M. House explores how the collapse of the Soviet Union gave rise not to global stability, but to a chaotic new era of fragmented conflicts and shifting military strategies. From Iraq and Afghanistan to Syria and Ukraine, House examines how world powers adapted—or failed to adapt—to a world without a clear strategic framework. This sweeping analysis reveals the complex interplay between political decisions and battlefield realities in the post–Cold War …

Academic Year 2026–27 Annual Estimate Of The Strategic Security Environment, Us Army War College

Books, Monographs & Collaborative Studies

The Academic Year 2026–27 Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment provides a framework for those aspiring to tackle the Department of War’s most pressing challenges. This year’s authors highlight trending challenges and identify potential tension points across 10 sections organized under the broad themes of 1) Regional Challenges and Opportunities and 2) Institutional Challenges. This assessment represents the collective expertise of the US Army War College. The narrative is supplemented by a tailored list of 105 command-sponsored questions from 47 different Army and Joint organizations from across the Department of War. Combined, the distinct yet complementary narrative and question …

Critical Geopolitics And The Reconstruction Of Meaning: A Discourse Analysis Of The 'Terrorism' Label Applied To Hamas By Western Hegemony, Cahaya Mulyani Sakti, M.Hamdan Basyar

Journal of Terrorism Studies

The emergence of Hamas in 1987 cannot be separated from the configuration of modern colonialism and the continuity of occupation that shaped the political reality. Hamas’s early phase was rooted in socio-religious activities through education and community empowerment programs, before evolving into armed resistance against the occupation. The labeling of Hamas as a “terrorist” organization began in the mid-1990s in U.S. legal documents, which subsequently generated debate and gave rise to counter-narratives. This study employs the frameworks of critical geopolitics (Ó Tuathail & Agnew) and the Discourse-Historical Approach (Wodak) to analyze the labeling of Hamas as “terrorist” by Western hegemony. …

Hybrid Threats In The Lake Chad Basin: The Nexus Between Terrorism, Illicit Wealth, And Transborder Crime, Cletus C. N. Nwadiogbu

Journal of Terrorism Studies

Threats to security in the Lake Chad Basin have changed over the years and hybrid elements have become interweaved. Sustained Boko Haram and ISWAP activities have increased the insecurity in the region, enabling the mixing of armed insurgency and organized criminals, including narcotics dealers, extortion rackets, arms trafficking, drugs production and smuggling, kidnapping and fuel smuggling among Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon states. Nexus elements of illicit wealth, illicit transborder crime and terrorism were thus analysed as interdependent and contributing elements to Hybrid threats in the Basin. The study used a hybrid design (qualitative-quantitative) documenting data from the following institutions: …

Dividing To Survive, Fight, Or Ally: Understanding Terrorist Group Splintering, Makayla Wendland

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The splintering of terrorist groups is extremely common, with members breaking from the ranks of an existing organization to establish a new, independent organization. At times, the process of splintering has produced some of the deadliest terrorist groups globally, significantly affecting the trajectory and intensity of conflict. Conversely, there are times when splintering can produce groups that quickly dissipate without having an impact. This variation in lethality frames the question at the center of this dissertation: how do splinter groups behave and operate in their conflict landscape?

I develop a new theory-based typology to explain variations in the behavior and …

From Dissent To Terrorism: The Formation Of A Security Grammar In Malaysia, Haezreena Begum Binti Abdul Hamid Dr

Indonesia Law Review

The absence of a universally accepted definition of terrorism has enabled states to exercise wide discretion in naming, governing, and exceptionalising violence. This article argues that, in Malaysia, “terrorism” did not emerge as a neutral legal category but as the product of a historically evolving security grammar, a patterned way of interpreting ideology, dissent, and conflict through the lens of existential threat. Employing a qualitative doctrinal socio-legal methodology, the study integrates analysis of international and Malaysian legal frameworks with case-based examination of key episodes, including Memali, Al-Arqam, Al-Ma’unah, Lahad Datu, and ISIS-linked incidents. Statutes, judicial decisions, policy materials, and regional …

Cartels As Foreign Terrorist Organizations? How Mexican Americans Think About U.S. Security Policy, Jesus J. Garcia-Gomez

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This thesis examines the political, social, and security implications of the U.S. government’s designation of cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs), with a particular focus on its effects on U.S.–Mexico relations and Mexican American communities. While existing research has extensively analyzed counterterrorism and cartels, there is still an open debate regarding the justification to designating cartels as FTOs. Additionally, there is a gap in the scholarship focus on Mexican American communities’ opinion. This study addresses both gaps by analyzing how terrorism labels reshape security cooperation, legal authorities, and public perceptions of cartels, violence, and drug addiction in Mexico and the …

Twelve Mechanisms Of Radicalization To Terrorism, Sophia Moskalenko, Clark Mccauley

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Radicalization refers to changes in beliefs, feelings, and actions toward increased support for one side of an intergroup conflict. The extreme of action radicalization is political violence and terrorism. Twelve psychological mechanisms driving participation in political violence are identified.  At the individual level, motivation to engage in political violence can be based on personal grievance, political grievance, “slippery slope” participation in illegal political activity, love for already-radicalized friends and relatives, and social disconnection (”unfreezing”) that opens an individual to new ideas and new comrades.  At the group level, participation in political violence can emerge from extremity shift of like-minded group …

The Dynamics Of Terrorism And Counter-Terrorism: The South Africa Experience, Oluranti Samson Afowowe

Journal of Terrorism Studies

Defining Terrorism within the context of South African government promulgated Terrorism Act of 1967 as’ action(s) that endanger the maintenance of law and order’, innocuously suggest that the phenomenon of terrorism in South African political space is not a recent development. This study examines the historical, socio-economic and demographic dis-equilibrium as indicative factors of terrorism within the context of South Africa. Theoretical postulations on the phenomenon of terrorism within the context of South Africa state experience also engaged the attention of this study. Attempts are made to identify the nexus between social relationships and the nature, essence and political dimensions …

The Current State Of Islamic Extremism, Barkot G. Biniyam

Liberty University Journal of Statesmanship & Public Policy

Transnational Islamic Jihadists, particularly ISIS and Al-Qaida, have increased propaganda and recruitment efforts in an attempt to mobilize affiliates to increase attacks on overseas and domestic U.S. targets. There will likely be a steady increase in attacks on U.S. personnel and entities. Salafi Jihadist organizations, particularly ISIS and Al-Qaida, have increased mobilization and recruitment efforts since the fall of the ISIS caliphate in 2019. These terrorist groups have an expressed intent to conduct attacks on U.S. soil and overseas interests. Terrorist groups have exploited ongoing conflicts and power shifts in the Middle East, South Asia, and Africa to remobilize a …

Academic Year 2025–26 Annual Estimate Of The Strategic Security Environment, Us Army War College

Books, Monographs & Collaborative Studies

Maintaining strategic advantage demands professional discourse from across the force. The Academic Year 2025–26 Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment provides a framework for those aspiring to tackle the Department of Defense’s most pressing challenges. This year’s authors highlight trending challenges and identify potential tension points across 15 sections organized into four enduring themes. This survey of regional, domestic, and institutional challenges represents the collective expertise of the US Army War College. The narrative is supplemented by a tailored list of 100 command-sponsored questions from 43 different Army and Joint organizations from across the Department of Defense. Combined, the …

The Evolution Of India’S ‘Counter-Terrorism (Ct)’ Policy In The 21st Century, Mule Rohit Ashok

Journal of Terrorism Studies

The changing nature of modern terrorism has proved a major threat to the global security architecture. The 9/11 terrorist attack on the United States of America, the world's ‘Police State’, is apparent. Consequently, the international community launched collective fights at different levels to deal with it. However, the nation-state at the individual level also designed a ‘Counter-Terror (CT)’ policy mechanism within the scope of the foreign policy paradigm to safeguard national security. India, since its independence, has consistently faced security challenges from terrorism from its neighbours, and has followed the same suit. The major CT policy was grounded in the …

Emerging Technologies In Boko Haram's Operations And Counter-Terrorism Efforts In Central Africa, Abraham Ename Minko

Journal of Terrorism Studies

The interplay between terrorism and technology in Central Africa has intensified, particularly with Boko Haram’s rise. This research explores how emerging technologies enhance Boko Haram's operations and the corresponding counter-terrorism efforts. It examines Boko Haram’s use of social media for recruitment, encrypted messaging for secure communication, and advanced weaponry like drones and improvised explosive devices (IEDs). These technologies have expanded Boko Haram’s reach and operational efficiency, challenging security forces. The study also evaluates technological countermeasures implemented by Central African governments and international bodies, including surveillance, cyber intelligence, and data analytics. It assesses the effectiveness of these measures, noting successes and …

A Nexus Of Evil: An Analysis Of The Terror-Crime Link At The U.S.-Mexican Border, Miranda Brewen

Senior Honors Theses

As the nexus between terrorism and crime continues to expand, the threat of terrorism is now on our doorstep. The collaboration between terrorist groups and cartel operations at the U.S.-Mexican border is stimulated by the mutual benefits gained by both parties, and the instability in Mexico and the simultaneous market for drugs in the United States have created fertile soil for the growth of this nexus. The terrorist group, Hezbollah, has already demonstrated its alliance with Mexican cartels, and more alliances are likely to continue to be revealed. The ramifications of these alliances go beyond money laundering and fundraising, as …

Lawfare And Terrorism – Can Terrorism Justify The Use Of Force?, Joanna Siekiera

Graduate Research Conference (GSIS)

As the world became increasingly interconnected, the significance of international law has been augmented exponentially. International law encompasses a vast array of legal systems, written norms, and customary principles that govern the interactions between states, still being the primal and main norm creators, as well as to some extent international organizations, and other non-state actors (NSA) gaining more and more influence, and finally us - individuals. In recent times, the utilization of law as a tool of warfare has gained prominence, with public and private entities leveraging legal arguments and international institutions to achieve their military and political objectives. While …

The Lived Experiences Of Residents Of Casablanca, Morocco, And Their Exposure To Jihad In The Belgium Consulate Bombing : A Phenomenological Study, Idriss Bensassi

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examined if Casablancans believed violent Jihad had influenced terrorist activities inside Morocco by looking at the term Jihad from both cultural and religious in a historical context and the effect of both concepts on the residents of Casablanca. The study described the transformation of Jihad from its true spiritual meaning to its attraction to terror. Three research questions guided this study: (1) What are residents’ lived experiences of the Belgium Consulate terrorist attack in Casablanca in shaping their understanding of Islam and Jihads? (2) How do the experiences and exposure of residents of the Belgium Consulate terrorist attack …

Human Rights Violations In Counter-Terrorism Efforts: A Qualitative Study Of Victims Experiences In Nigeria, Ifeoma E. Okoye, Pius Adejoh

African Journal of Criminology and Justice Studies

Abstract

This study explores the complex nature of human rights violations in the context of countering terrorism in Nigeria. Consequent to the persistent threat of terrorism, especially since the 2009 Boko Haram terrorist' attacks, the Nigerian government has enforced several measures in order to provide national security and save its citizens from terrorist attacks. However, the implementation of these counterterrorism strategies has constituted human rights abuses. This study examined the complicated human rights violations that occurred in the government's counterterrorism framework by utilizing a detailed review of scholarly literature, legislations, media reports, United Nations' provisions, findings from non-governmental human rights …

Fentanyl, Narco-Terrorism, And National Security Politics, J. Richard Broughton

San Diego Law Review

This Article examines the use of a counterterrorism model to attack the fentanyl crisis. Rather than advocate for or against such a model, this Article envisions what employing a counterterrorism model against international drug traffickers would look like. Noting the dimensions of national security politics that intersect with counter-fentanyl policy, this Article will evaluate three distinct counterterrorism approaches: (1) using criminal counterterrorism statutes in federal indictments and prosecutions; (2) designating drug trafficking organizations as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs); and (3) authorizing the use of military force against Mexican cartels. While the current state of bellicose national security politics can inform …

German Art About War Today And A Century Ago: A Curator’S View, Martin Bayer

Kritika Kultura

The First World War was a true caesura for mankind, also including the world of art. In its beginning, most German artists supported it, similar to many other intellectuals. The realities of the first global war turned artists such as Ernst Barlach into pacifists. Especially in Germany, expressionism was often chosen to address the horrors of war. Today, only a few artists are still well-known, such as Otto Dix, while the majority and their powerful works need to be rediscovered. German pacifism is deeply rooted in the dreadful experiences of both World Wars, and not the least of bearing the …

Signs, Meaning, Interpretation: C. S. Peirce's Critique Of Deconstruction And Post-Structuralism, E. San Juan Jr.

Kritika Kultura

From the perspective of Peircian semiotics, this paper presents a prolegomenon of “a science of pragmaticist aesthetics.” Following the fundamental epistemological categories of C. S. Pierce, San Juan reads Michael’s Ondaatje’s Anil’s Ghost as unraveling the anatomy of terror in Sri Lanka. Such a reading, for San Juan, “elicit signs of whether we, and others in the collaborative enterprise, embody,” quoting Pierce, “an intelligence capable of learning by experience.”

The Digital Battlefield: Extremists On Social Media, Daniel P. Shanks

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

The rise of social media has transformed the battleground for extremist groups like ISIS and the Taliban, enabling them to reach global audiences with unprecedented ease. This dissertation investigates the social media strategies employed by the Taliban and ISIS. These social media strategies are used to further their strategic objectives in propaganda, recruitment, and operational coordination. Through a comprehensive analysis, the study explores how these extremist groups adapt their digital tactics in response to evolving military and political landscapes. Utilizing case studies from key military engagements and applying theoretical frameworks of rational actor theory, social identity theory, and finite and …

Atmospheric Geographies Of (Counter)Terrorism, Sara Fregonese, Paul Simpson, Damien Masson, Simon Runkel, Carrie Benjamin, Sam Berlin, Katha Ciax, Angeliki Drongiti

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

How are terror threats and counterterrorism measures experienced in everyday urban spaces? We argue that thinking atmospherically about the spaces of urban encounters with (counter)terrorism is important, firstly, to identify and question feelings and dispositions shaped by discourses, practices, and infrastructures of (counter)terrorism; secondly, to contribute spatial perspectives of felt experience to literatures on security and (counter)terrorism in geography and beyond; thirdly, to connect official understandings of (counter)terrorism with its everyday felt experiences and materialities. We highlight two conceptual and empirical arenas - the crowd and the question of difference - where atmospheric approaches to urban (counter)terrorism can be developed.

Creation Of Eco-Terrorism: A History Of Actions By The Earth Frist!, Earth Liberation And Animal Liberation Front From The 1980s-2000s, Zachary Smith, Zachary C. Smith

History Theses

From the nineteen eighties to the early two thousands, the United States saw a raise in awareness and activity from ecological activist groups. The United States government labeled ecological activist groups as the one domestic terrorist group that was the largest threat to the safety and well-being of the American public. Given the current environmental crisis facing the world, there should be encouragement and rise of green activism not an active dismissal. How did these activists become the number one on the United States government list? The groups that are primarily responsible for this claim are Earth First!, Earth Liberation …

Constructive Instability And Operation Unified Protector: The Destruction Of The United States-Led World-System, Devin Bryant Gillen

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

In 2011, NATO ended the 42-year-long rule of Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi, and plunged the country into over a decade of unending strife, while an arc of crisis emanating from Libya struck much of the region. This study examines the United States' geostrategic approach in the Libyan intervention to illustrate the dialectic intersectional relationships between processes of globalization, American hegemony over the world-system, and American foreign policy in the post-Cold War period (1992-2024) with consideration to world-systems analysis to characterize the United States post-Iraq warfighting strategy in Libya as an adaptation of the purposeful destabilization of Afghanistan and cultivation of an …

It’S Not A Few, It’S All: How Political Elites Create And Construct The Meaning Of Terrorism And Apply It To An Entire Group, Jamarne Mcgill

Publications and Research

In the aftermath of the September 11th terror attacks, we witnessed political elites make adequate use of coded language in order to justify the implementation of an aggressive and punitive foreign policy in the Middle East. Terror attacks are disruptive, catastrophic events that tend to produce feelings of racial resentment and a desire for collective punishment toward an entire group of people. Although the perpetrators of a terror attack do not represent or speak for the majority of a much larger group, the general population of the nation or state that was attacked may not feel this way. Therefore, an …

The Metaverse As A Future Threat Landscape: An Interdisciplinary Perspective, Sam T. Hunter, Alexis L. D'Amato, Joel Elson, Austin C. Doctor, Averie E. Linnell

Reports, Projects, and Research

In response to the emergence of new, paradigm-shifting technology that increases capability for the benefit and – as is the focus of this work – harm, we sought to provide contributions across three key areas. First, as a foundation, we provide a definition of the ambiguous and, at times, confusing term ‘metaverse’ and outline its unique characteristics as an emerging ecosystem. Second, we synthesise definitional framing with the violent extremist literature to offer guidance on how the metaverse can (and currently is), manifest in terrorist and extremist activities, such as recruitment, planning, finance, and malevolent creativity. We offer that while …