Making of a Martyr: Chechen Suicide Terrorism

• NCJ Number: 215021
• Journal: Studies in Conflict & Terrorism Volume: 29 Issue: 5 Dated: July-August 2006 Pages: 429-492
• Author(s): Anne Speckhard; Khapta Ahkmedova
• Date Published: July 2006
• Length: 64 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article presents findings from a psychosocial analysis of suicide terrorism in Chechnya involving interviews with 51 individuals involved in suicide terrorism.

Abstract

The main finding is that Chechen suicide terrorists are simply traumatized men and women who have been turned into misguided warriors by jihadist ideologies that teach them to avenge themselves with a show of self-sacrifice on behalf of the group. The current research project sought to develop a descriptive model of the nature of suicide terrorism in Chechnya and to compare this model to existing data on suicide terrorism in other regions of the world. Specifically, the analysis focused on regional ideological, demographic, and technological differences in the genesis and mechanisms of suicide terrorism. The types of suicide terrorist attacks attributed to Chechens are examined, including an analysis of their targeting trends which show movement away from strictly military targets to civilian targets. The motives for suicide terrorism were analyzed on the organizational, individual, and societal levels. While little is understood about individual motives, it is clear that a volatile mix occurs when individuals vulnerable to self-recruitment unite with groups who are able to equip them with the ideology and means for suicide terrorism. The authors illustrate how the ideology that supports suicide terrorism in Chechnya is similar to the ideology espoused by the global jihadist movement. The differences are that the Chechnya focus is nationalist and enjoys little social support while the jihadist focus is global and widely supported in Palestine. Research methodology involved interviews with 51 individuals involved in suicide terrorism, including 34 suicide terrorists, 2 would-be suicide terrorists, 32 close family members and friends of suicide terrorists, and 11 victims. The discussion provides a detailed qualitative analysis of the narratives obtained from the interviews as well as simple statistical analyses that present information such as the age, gender, and martial status of suicide bombers and the posttraumatic behavioral and emotional changes observed in suicide bombers. 20 tables, 81 notes