State Sponsors of Terrorism

Subject: Warfare
Pages: 2
Words: 279
Reading time:
< 1 min

The moral support of politically sympathetic groups occurs when a government embraces the terrorist group’s course, but not the tactics they use. The ideology that these terrorist groups stand for is supported in this notion, but not the acts of violence or terrorism they are using to further their course. By offering both technical and logistical support, a country directly or indirectly facilitates the terrorist movement. The states stay passive towards the course, and they do not take direct action against the terrorist’s enemies. The support offered by these states can consist of supplies, training, and other forms of indirect support. Selective participation or episode-specific sponsorship takes place when the state sponsors a specific incident or series of incidents. In this situation, the states’ interests are being met via what the terrorist group is doing.

Active participation or joint operations is another form of participation where the state and the terrorist organization carry out operations in cooperation with each other. The state and the terror groups partner in all possible ways in order to facilitate an attack. This kind of scenario happens when the state and the terrorists have a common interest. In this case, the state becomes not only a supporter but also an active member in the attacking and promotion of terror activities. This kind of observation clearly indicates the critical role that states play in facilitating terror activities around the world. All the operations and activities of terrorist groups would be paralyzed around the world if they were not receiving any direct or indirect support from states. State sponsors are therefore responsible for increased terrorist attacks across the world.