The Future of Terrorism
The Future of Terrorism
Mass Hostage Taking in Russia and Mumbai
by Luke Allison
Download the full article: The Future of Terrorism
Terrorism has a future; terrorism always has a future. The question is: can the application of terror morph into something inherently capable of distorting strategic countermeasures? The answer is probably yes, because a states’ fundamental responsibility is to maintain sovereignty by protecting its population. The problem with this responsibility in relation to terrorism is that it is debilitating in terms of being predictable. Predictability is not a strategy; it is the absence of strategy.
The future of terrorism is to isolate instances where the state is compelled to act predictably. The best example of this type of terrorism is an approach that involves mass hostage taking in conjunction with the use of barricades. This is quite remarkable, because ” . . . the idea of taking hostages and placing the responsibility for their fate into the hands of the opposing government was a highly effective tool . . . ” For the purposes of this article, a mass hostage taking incident occurs when between one hundred and two thousand people are held involuntarily under the threat of serious physical injury. Examples of mass hostage taking incidents will be restricted to those occurring in public buildings such as: schools, theaters, hospitals, and hotels. Similar incidents taking place on air planes, busses, or other modes of transportation will be considered outside the scope of inquiry.
Download the full article: The Future of Terrorism
Luke Allison holds an MA in International Security from the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver. He holds a BA in Communications Studies from Loyola University New Orleans. Mr. Allison has presented original research on counterinsurgency and terrorism at conferences around the United States.
