Terrorism research often tends to anachronistically impose current conceptions of terrorism onto historical events, comparing and equating modern terrorism to selected historical incidents, thus decontextualizing them and ignoring that these historical acts had different aims, used different tactics, and were interpreted in different ways at the times in which they took place. This thesis proposes a new framework which not only reconceptualises terrorism, but also provides a sound means by which the evolution and spread of techniques associated with terrorism can be surveyed. To this end, this thesis argues that terrorism should be viewed as an umbrella term for a wide range of techniques viewed (by the societies in which they are enacted) as illegitimate means of collective actions aimed at making political claims and seeking to influences political processes and outcomes. The proposed framework – based on an evolutionary approach – advances three arguments: (1) techniques of political violence have variation in fixed traits and behavioural patterns; (2) these traits and patterns can be transferred either through reproduction or emulation; and (3) the relative rate of transmission is partially determined by a trait's usefulness in adapting to the technique's ever-changing environment. This evolutionary approach allows us to conceptualise different techniques of political violence as variants among many, all of which have undergone a range of mutations, thereby allowing us to trace each technique's development by looking at its predecessors. This framework is in turn applied to a survey of the evolution of aeroplane hijacking – with a specific focus on the various adaptations the technique has undergone since its inception, the means by which such variations spread, and the factors leading to its adoption or rejection by different claim makers operating in different environment and seeking to advance diverse claims – and concluding that modern examples of hijacking are nothing more than one mutation along a long evolutionary path which began in the jungles of Peru nearly 85 years ago.

M.A. / For the past 135 years, four waves of terrorism have arisen. Sparked by various circumstances, the Anarchist, Anti-Colonial, New Left and Religious Waves have plagued the international system. Emerging from these waves are five types of terrorist groups, namely national-separatists, social revolutionaries, religious fundamentalists, religious extremists and right wing groups. Terrorism is therefore not a new phenomenon, but the events of recent years have reflected a dramatic change in its scale and destruction. The 11 September 2001 attacks have precipitated a swell in terrorist literature, especially in the field of counter-terrorism strategy. However, sufficient in-depth analysis of individual terrorist groups remains lacking. In an effort to better understand the workings of terrorism, this study presents a comparative analysis of three terrorist groups originating in three consecutive and overlapping waves of terror. The groups are the Irish Republican Army (IRA), Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), and Al Qaeda. This study investigates the similarities and differences between the groups and addresses specific aspects of terrorist group analysis, which are important tools of clarification. The “why” of the group is reflected in its historical and socio-political context. The “what” and “how” are explained through the group’s organisation, characteristics and operational methods. Terrorists cannot operate in a vacuum and consequently the actors affecting the groups are also explored. Finally, international responses to the IRA, FARC and Al Qaeda are examined in an effort to determine whether these reactions have any impact on the workings of the groups. A main finding of the study is that despite overt differences there are many underlying similarities between the IRA, FARC and Al Qaeda and although terrorism is dynamic, common indicators do exist that may aid efforts to counter it. If the international community or indeed individual states are to combat terrorist activity, their principal objective should be to understand the terrorist’s background, ambitions and means. The present inquiry is designed with these aspects in mind and is intended to contribute to the field. / Prof. D.J. Geldenhuys

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 330-356). / Also available by subscription via World Wide Web / viii, 356 leaves, bound 29 cm

Terrorism has become a focus of much political thought over the past few years, and with good reason, yet most quantitative studies of terrorism investigate the likelihood of a terrorist incident while ignoring the precursors to terrorist group formation. I examine cases of new terrorist group formations between the years 1968 and 1999 as a function of domestic demographic, geographic, governmental and societal factors. This is done by Poisson regression analysis, which determines the significance of the independent variables on a count of new international terrorist group formations per country year. The results indicate that higher levels of material government capability, high levels of political freedom, the availability of low-cost refuge, and a cultural tradition of terrorism all have a positive impact on the number of new terrorist group formations, while a higher degree of governmental durability has a negative impact.