Terrorism is an issue that highly affects the global human society mainly because of the adverse effects such as fear. Terrorism is the ideology of using intimidation and violence to enhance fear among the targeted population, namely, the non-combatants (Christopher, 2004). Targeting the non-combatants is an intimidation technique for the military and the government. An excellent example is the terrorist attacks carried out by Osama Bin Ladin in New York City on September 11, 2001. According to Bin Ladin (2002), the bombing of the World Trade Center was an intimidation technique targeting the Americans due to the violence against the Islamic community. One distinction between terrorism and conventional war is the lack of adherence to the principles of just war laid down by the United Nations. However, these laws prevent non-governmental organizations from fighting for what they consider a just cause. The term “terrorism” is biased and aims to delegitimize those with little power like Al-Qaeda. Terrorism is a biased ideology globally mainly because of the dynamic objectives of attaining peace and unity.
Terrorism is one of the gradients that negatively impacts the growth and development of human society. Before launching the World Trade Center bombing, Bin Ladin explained to his followers the just cause for the war against the Americans. One of the reasons that contributed to Bin Ladin resolving to launch an attack was America’s support for the attacks by Jewish-Christian alliance authorities against the non-combatant Muslim population in Palestine, Lebanon, and Iraq. The disregard for Islam by the alliance has made the Muslim blood the cheapest in the world (Bin Ladin, 2002). As such, his declaration of war was based on restoring the dignity of Muslims globally. Primarily, Bin Ladin launched the bombing attacks as a retaliation technique for America’s support for the war against the Muslim population. Therefore, Bin Ladin was compliant with the principle of just cause for war, and the intentions for declaring the war were noble.
Islamic law is an independent legal framework with the authority to enhance the declaration of war. Bin Ladin (2002) establishes that only Allah is superior to the institutional laws and statutes. Further, Bin Ladin also considers his organization to represent the people, unlike the state. In this case, Bin Ladin took charge and the responsibility to protect the Islamic population from westernization that disregards diversity and inclusivity. Since the government was incapable of fulfilling its responsibilities, other organizations, including Al-Qaeda, had a legitimate right to defend the people with reasonable chances of success.
Lastly, the doctrine of just war suggests that the means must be proportional to the end. However, this principle has been ignored continuously by foreign powers seeking to occupy Muslim lands. The massacres in “Tajikistan, Burma, Kashmir, Assam, Philippines, Pattani, Ugadin, Somalia, Eritrea, Chechnya Bosnia-Herzegovina” are examples of violation of power by foreign nations (Bin Laden, 2002, p. 1). In all these cases, there were massive deaths and civilian casualties that far exceeded the deaths and casualties of combatants. As such, this principle has been ignored when it is convenient. Al-Qaeda should have the same privileges when bombing American citizens. Failure to do so would be to acknowledge that Muslim blood is cheaper than other blood.
The profound argumentation by Bin Ladin is an insight that indicates the biased interpretation of the term terrorism. Both regime and non-regime forces have caused massive casualties and damage to property to civilians. The increase in the foreign military troops in Islamic nations is a concept that highly affects the perception of peace and unity, hence the retaliation by Al Queda by launching attacks on non-Islamic nations. As such, terrorism is a biased term used by larger powers on organizations with little power to fight a conventional war.
References
Bin Laden, O. (2002). Declaration of jihad against the Americans occupying the land of the two holiest sites. Web.
Christopher, P. (2004). Terrorism and war. In The ethics of war and peace: An introduction to legal and moral issues (3rd ed). Pearson/Prentice Hall.