NCJ Number
88219
Editor(s)
D Carlton
Date Published
1981
Length
246 pages
Annotation
Papers on terrorism focus on nuclear terrorism, the media and terrorism, Chinese and Soviet attitudes towards sub-state violence in the United Nations context, hostage-taking, the future of political sub-state violence, and case studies of terrorism in Federal Germany, Italy, and Northern Ireland.
Abstract
In considering the possibility of terrorist use of nuclear weapons, it is advised that in a world in which nuclear weaponry becomes commonplace in the arsenals of nations, it will be impossible to keep such weapons out of nongovernmental hands indefinitely. Cooperation in nonproliferation policies is viewed as the most hopeful approach for countering the obtaining or construction of nuclear weapons by a nongovernmental entity. In another essay, the media is viewed as both a positive and negative force in countering terrorism, and it is suggested that media policy for covering terrorist incidents be considered cooperatively by representatives of those institutions involved in responding to terrorist incidents. A conceptual model for explaining the dynamics of hostage-taking is presented in another paper, followed by a projection of the future of political sub-state violence. It is not expected that terrorism will subside but will grow in an uneven fashion, and terrorist use of weapons of mass destruction is likely to be discouraged by states sponsoring terrorist groups. It is advised in another paper that both the Chinese and Soviet attitudes towards violence at the sub-state level will be determined by ideological commitment to 'class struggle' and the final victory over the 'class enemy' throughout the world. Case studies of terrorism in Federal Germany, Italy, and Northern Ireland focus on the particular historical and political circumstances that have affected the forms and destinies of terrorist movements in those countries. Notes accompany each presentation, and a subject index is provided.