Terrorist Group Organization
A few decades ago, the threats of terrorism were a problem only associated with certain countries in the world and often followed a somewhat predictable pattern. Recently, however, terrorism has become a global issue of concern with countries across the globe being targeted. No matter how infrequent they might be, the fear of terrorist attacks is always with us. The attacks involve the use of violence or the threats of violence by an organized group of terrorists to create an environment of terror that enhances the achievement of certain financial, political, social, or religious goals. Various analysts, intelligence officials and other experts in the field have studied the behaviour of terrorist group organizations in a bid to establish a pattern that can help predict and identify their activities. In chapter seven of the “Terrorist Recognition Handbook”, Malcolm Nance provides practitioners with a guide to the quest.
Common Characteristics Associated with a Terrorist Group
Understanding the common characteristics associated with terrorists can help practitioners differentiate terrorist activities from other criminal activities. Nance (2008) provides practitioners with a number of characteristics that I too believe are a blueprint to identifying terrorist groups. The use of violence or threats of violence is a characteristic that is synonymous to a terrorist group. Although most of them inhabit rural areas for the privacy they offer, they can operate their attacks on any environment. Most of the terrorist groups operate in secrecy albeit some of them like the public attention their warnings of attack offer. The groups are often well organized, a trait that ensures the success of their undertakings irrespective of their size. No matter how much they try to make their attacks seem random, their operations are calculated and deliberate. The groups choose the mode of transport that will offer a relatively high mobility depending on the nature of the attack. They also ensure that the weapon of attack will provide the desired outcome according to their objectives. Depending on the media for public attention is another characteristic that Nance observed to be common with terrorist group organizations (Bruneau, 2016).
Areas of Operation
Albeit various terrorist groups are associated with certain areas of operations, I strongly agree with Nance that the groups can change their areas of operation as they please. Local terrorists mainly operate within a small locality; Regional terrorists concentrate their operations within certain defined boundaries within a nation; Domestic/national terrorists limit their attacks within a nation’s boundaries; transnational terrorists conduct their operations in two or more nations whereas international terrorists operate all over the globe in multiple countries.
Their Sources of Support
Knowledge of terrorist groups’ sources of support not only helps practitioners to identify and predict their activities but also to brace themselves for their encounters. Nance classifies the sources of support into state-sponsored terrorism which refers to the terrorist group(s) ordered and controlled by a nation as a tool to see to its policies; governmental terrorism where official agencies carry out terrorist acts against their own people, or foreign nations or dissidents; the terrorist groups that receive approval and support from a foreign state or more but retain their independence of operations are classified under state-supported terrorism; independent terrorism is presumably the most potentially dangerous form of terrorism as its complete independence of both support and command allows to operate freely without political limitations.
Structures and Organizational Models
Determining a terrorist structure or model of organization is not an easy task as Nance makes it appear in the Terrorism Recognition Handbook. According to Training and Command (2007), terrorist organizations can either have a hierarchical or a network model or a combination of both. In the hierarchical, there are certain levels of support where power and command flow downwards from the most top level to the most bottom level. Here, most of the terrorist group organizations have an overall leader who is the most identifiable figure associated with the organization as they provide a face for the airing of grievances and making negotiations. The leaders give orders of attack to their juniors depending on the organizational structure and model of the group. Albeit the composition in different levels of the structure may differ, most of the groups contain a pyramidal support structure where orders are passed and implemented from one level to another. Network is a contemporary model in which the groups’ structures are loosely connected. The model offers a layered security, a flexibility of operations and speed of communication. Although some hierarchical terrorist groups are integrating some aspects of the network model, the model is highly associated with the groups that have no central point of control and command.
As Nance (2008) referred from the Defense Intelligence Agency, terrorist group organizations can either have a centralized or a decentralized structure of control and command. In the centralized structure, the terrorists’ cells and manpower receive all their provisions such as weapons, intelligence and support from a central source. As Nance points out, the large group associated with this structure makes it easy to infiltrate and spy on them. A terrorist group organization with a decentralized authority structure provides its manpower and cells with minimal support and direction leaving them to make most of their decisions. The structure does, however, enhance rogue operations in a terrorist group organization.
Conclusion
Identifying and predicting terrorist activities is an important skill that if well mastered, can help mitigate their risks and combat their operations. Malcolm Nance in his Terrorist Recognition Handbook provides practitioners with a guide to the quest. In chapter seven, the scholar highlights the major traits that distinguish terrorist group organizations from other criminal groups. Although his ideas are logical, some of them seem overly theoretical and difficult for practitioners to use in the fight against terrorism. This is because, as he points out in the common characteristics of terrorist groups, the groups are highly covert with most members having an oath of secrecy. However, Nance provides the practitioners with a practical framework that can help establish a behavioral pattern that enables the identification and prediction of terrorist activities.
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