4 Steps That can Limit Terrorism

…because you want to raise your kids in a world of safety, not a world of fear…

By Adina

Are humans inherently good or inherently evil?

Good vs Evil? First responders meet terrorism head on at Ground Zero days after the attack.
Photo Credit: US Navy, Wikimedia

Despite what my eight grade English teacher taught in Lord of the Flies, I’ve always believed, humanity is essentially good. Most of my friends and colleagues are “salt of the Earth.” Individual humans have the potential to save other’s lives and lift other’s spirits.

On the flip side, human nature also contains the formula for base and immoral deeds. Terrorism falls into that flip side. The evil inherent in human nature is a historical constant, that isn’t going anywhere. In other words, completely eradicating terrorism is unlikely.

However that doesn’t mean we need to surrender to evil. There are actionable steps the world can take to decrease the spread of terror and limit its devastating impact. Keeping in mind that every attack averted means lives saved, The United Nations has developed a global anti-terrorism strategy that includes four solidly based pillars.

The First Pillar: Stop the Spread of Terror

It wasn’t hard for Ali Patra’s Pakistani handlers to radicalize the teen. Orphaned at a young age, Ali grew up in desperate poverty. He also grew in an environment rife with misinformation and incitement.

When the radical group, Lashkar-e-Taiba offered the boy the equivalent of $300 USD to train to carry out an attack in the volatile J&K region, the impoverished teen jumped at the chance. And that’s how a 19 year old, with his whole life ahead of him nearly got involved in violent terrorism .

The Indian army caught Patra before he could carry out his attack. But the fact that a desperate kid, barely out of his teen years was ready to commit acts of violence is telling.

What role do you think a country’s military should play in counter-terrorism?
Photo Credit: Indian Army, Wikimedia

An environment of poverty, war, and misinformation is fertile recruiting ground for terrorist organizations. This axiom plays out globally.

Stopping the spread of terror means preventing the seeds of terrorism from taking root. Eliminating (as much as possible) desperate poverty, misinformation, and incitement, and monitoring recruiters can curb terrorist groups’ recruitment bases. That means less terrorists to apprehend, less attacks to prevent, less children to deradicalize.

A better life for all is a safer life for all.

The Second Pillar: Prevention

Even if recruitment potential is halved, radicalization will still exist. Can its effects be prevented? Can lives be saved, in the face of terrorist entities and radicalized individuals?

Traditional counter-terrorism strategies rely on strong governments, intelligence gathering, and pre-emptive sanctions. An example of terror prevention you are probably familiar with was the 2006 airplane bombing plot.

After British intelligence uncovered a plan to mix liquids into an explosive on board a flight from London to the USA, they upped their security game . From 2006 onwards, travelers were asked to avoid taking liquids, over 4 oz, on-board. Instead of hundreds dying on board a flight, we have to deal with the much less inconvenient need to purchase bottled water for $4.50.

Counterterrorism intelligence means not just giving money to the bottled water industry, but more to the point, taking it from terrorism groups. Sanctions, smuggling busts, and investigation of supply chains are all important facets in a global counterterrorism strategy. In other words, the USA doesn’t just keep the “terrorist entity” blacklist around for fun.

Another layer of prevention is protecting people from terrorism itself. Grace , a Northern Nigerian villager, knows too well what government failure in this area means . When Boko Haram attacked her village, they quickly overwhelmed the local army. Dozens were killed. The insurgents kidnapped Grace and her husband. The couple managed to escape two years later, but they couldn’t track down their son.

When terrorism strikes, the innocent suffer the most. Boko Haram insurgents regularly target villages where ordinary folks live.
Photo credit: AK Rockefeller, Wikimedia

Counter terrorism means a strong army, or armed citizens who can prevent attacks and save lives.

The Third Pillar: Supporting Countries

Grace’s story makes it clear that countries can’t go it alone and hope to be successful. Not only are there countries that lack resources, have more challenging borders, or have more radicalized individuals living therein, but terrorism often spreads and crosses borders.

Remember how ISIS started in Syria and Iraq, but shortly after the “Caliphate’s” inception, hundreds of people died in France in ISIS’s name? Terrorism doesn’t care about borders. That means counter-terrorism can’t either.

Remembering the 2015 attacks in France. Honoring the victims.
Photo Credit: Stolbovsky, Wikimedia

A counter terrorism framework needs to be global. Intelligence agencies, and international policing agencies, like Interpol need to work together. Countries need to share military resources when necessary. For example, the United States recently agreed to send military aid to the Somali government, who requested it due to and ongoing and deadly insurgency.

The Fourth Pillar: Respecting Human Rights

Gulbahar Haitiwaji can speak to the importance of this pillar. Haitiwaji is a Uighur Muslim. She was born in Xinjiang, China. In 2006, she and her husband sought asylum in France, due to pervasive discrimination and growing regional tension.

Separatist Uighur militia carried out a number of terrorist attacks, that killed many people. The response of the Chinese government was swift and forceful. Millions of Uighur were carted off to “vocational camps.”

Ignore any counter-terrorism strategy that ignores basic human rights.
Photo Credit: SFT HQ, Wikimedia

Amid the peak of the repression, Haitiwaji had no choice but to travel back to her birthplace. She had to get legal documents renewed. Shortly after her arrival in China, Haitiwaji was arrested and deported, after photos of her daughter at a protest surfaced.

In the camp, Haitiwaji met with inadequate and rough living conditions. She was also prevented from speaking her language or observing her religion. People who were suspected of praying were beaten.. Haitiwaji had to attend hourlong classes focused on indoctrination.

Stopping terrorist attacks from occurring? Fundamentally a good thing.

Doing so by rounding up an entire ethnic group and stripping them of their right to observe their cultural. Fundamentally not a good thing.

However, with respect for human rights as a cornerstone, a global counter-terrorism strategy that is based on international cooperation, prevention of risk factors, and prevention of attacks, can limit the impact of terrorism.

The saying goes “one who saves a single life, it’s as if he saved the world.” Even if it can’t rid the world of terrorism, the international community can save many worlds within our imperfect reality.

Hi Reader! I hope you enjoyed this answer and learned something new. My goal is to learn new things everyday and share them with others.