Root causes of suicide terrorism : the globalization of martyrdom

Author(s)

    • Pedahzur, Ami

Bibliographic Information

Root causes of suicide terrorism : the globalization of martyrdom

edited by Ami Pedahzur

(Cass series on political violence)

Routledge, 2006

  • : pbk

Available at  / 2 libraries

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Note

Includes bibliographical references and index

Description and Table of Contents

Description

This highly topical new study clearly shows how there are at least two reasons to question the central role that is assigned to religion, in particular Islam, when explaining suicide terrorism. suicide terrorism is a modern phenomenon, yet Islam is a very old religion. Except for two periods in the twelfth and eighteenth centuries, suicide was never part of Islamist beliefs and behaviours. Actually, Islam clearly forbids suicide, hence, the argument that Islamic religious beliefs are the main cause of suicide terrorism is inherently dubious many suicide attacks have been carried out by secular organizations with little connection to fundamentalist Islam: Palestinian Fatah; the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine; and the Kurdish Workers Party. Moreover, one of the organizations that has employed this strategy devastatingly and regularly is the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam). Not only are members of this organization not Muslim, most of them are not religious at all. This superb new book contains essays by some of the world's leading scholars of terrorism and political violence. It is essential reading for students of terrorism, political science and Middle Eastern politics, and useful to students of social psychology, theology and history.

Table of Contents

1. Dying to Kill: The Allure of Suicide Terror 2. Root Causes of Suicide Martyrdom Warfare and its Effectiveness 3. The Roots of Suicide Terrorism: A Multi-Causal Approach 4. Religious and Secular Forms of Suicide Terrorism 5. Islam and Al Qaeda 6. Al Qaeda and the Global Suicide Terrorism Epidemic 7. The Banality of the Sacred: Community Structure and Bombing Variance in Low- and High-Generating Palestinian and Iraqi Villages 8. Dying to be Martyrs: The Culture of Palestinian Suicide Bombers 9. The Challenge of Countering Suicide Terrorism

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Details

  • NCID
    BA88302697
  • ISBN
    • 9780415770309
  • LCCN
    2005034792
  • Country Code
    uk
  • Title Language Code
    eng
  • Text Language Code
    eng
  • Place of Publication
    London
  • Pages/Volumes
    xix, 202 p.
  • Size
    24 cm
  • Classification
  • Subject Headings
  • Parent Bibliography ID
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