Terrorism as an extreme form of demonstration of extremism and radicalism is diverse. All types of terrorism are based on the forcible imposition of a worldview, ideology, morality, politics using violence, threats of murder or other forms as the primary means of achieving goals. There are two primary forms of terrorism: domestic, transnational and one of its variable – maritime terrorism. The fundamental differences are the territory where it is practiced, destructive factors and their level of expanse.
The central distinction between domestic and international is the area of terrorist sabotage. Internal terrorism is performed on one state’s territory; terrorists and victims are citizens of this country (Berkebile, 2017). On the contrary, transnational violence is conducted by rebels against representatives of foreign states and international organizations (Berkebile, 2017). National terrorism can be defined as the illegal use of force or violence by terrorist groups against individuals and property to undermine the government’s authority and intimidate the civilian population.
Meanwhile, transnational terrorist organizations appeal to international organized crime for support when they lose financial assistance in countries’ sponsors of terrorism. The primary forms of manifestation of this terrorism form are air piracy, hostage-taking, abduction of diplomats, and political leaders (Carter & Fay, 2019). The radicals, using modernized ships, began to transfer their operations to the coast of the developed states, sometimes invading their territorial waters, aggressively attacking in ports and roadsteads (Carter & Fay, 2019). Consequently, transnational maritime terrorism poses a serious threat to the safety of navigation.
Thus, the organization of effective counteraction to all terrorism forms has already become a global issue and an object of the most urgent need of the entire civilized world. The number of groups that specialize in crimes using the seas and oceans’ waters has grown dramatically. In the near future, international terrorism may focus on maritime attacks and emerge to large-scale operations against its targets, including cargo, passenger and military ships, ports and shipyards.
References
Berkebile, R. E. (2017). What is domestic terrorism? A method for classifying events from the global terrorism database. Terrorism and political violence, 29(1), 1-26. Web.
Carter, B., & Fay, E. M. (2019). Responding to terror: An empirical analysis of US military activity, public opinion, and transnational terrorism. Journal of Applied Security Research, 14(2), 140-168. Web.