11.4 International Terrorism

WHO? International Terrorists.

WHAT? Are foreign agents committed to terrorist action against the US.

WHEN? This singular view precludes any alternative consideration as a patriot.

WHERE? US National Counterterrorism Strategy seeks to capture or kill international terrorists.

WHY? You can run but you cannot hide from the long arm of US justice.

As noted last topic, the FBI classifies terrorists into two groups: 1) domestic, and 2) international. International terrorists are foreign agents who commit terrorist acts in the US, or against US citizens and property overseas. There’s one big problem with international terrorism: there’s no agreement on the subject. One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter. This is true even for the US. Consider US revolutionary history. Sam Adams and the Sons of Liberty were terrorists. The Boston Tea Part was an act of terrorism, certainly in the eyes of the British. If the US had lost the Revolution, Sam Adams and perhaps all our founding fathers would have been hung as terrorists. And there are many other examples, both past and present. Menachem Begin, Israeli Prime Minister and arbiter of peace with Egypt, helped bomb the King David Hotel killing 91 people in 1946. It remains the biggest terrorist attack on British forces. Mahatma Gandhi, although he advocated non-violent protests, was considered a terrorist by Britain for his role in leading India towards independence. The Dalai Lama, Buddhist spiritual leader, a religion founded on compassion and nonviolence, is considered a terrorist by China for his repudiation of their occupation and advocating a free Tibet. So what is the dividing line between terrorist and patriot? There is no clear demarcation, except one’s own ideology. Like it or not, some who we clearly despise as evil terrorists are revered as heroes elsewhere. As our own history shows, death and violence are not disqualifications for veneration. In other words, we can’t say WE are right and THEY are wrong. But as a sovereign nation, under the laws of the Constitution, and even the United Nations Charter, we have the right to self-defense the same as every other country.   The 2018 National Strategy for Counterterrorism has six strategic objectives.

1. Diminish the capacity of terrorists to attack US territory and interests

2. Sever any resource support to terrorists

3. Reduce terrorist’s ability to recruit or radicalize individuals

4. Strengthen border security

5. Preclude access to WMD

6. Empower the private sector

Unlike domestic terrorists, international terrorists ARE considered terrorist by affiliation. If you are not a US resident and you belong to a group listed by the State Department as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, then YOU ARE A TERRORIST. If you are an international terrorist, and you live overseas, then according to US strategy, our objective is to try and capture or kill you. As we learned in Chapter 26, legal extradition is the first choice for capture, followed by rendition, another name for kidnapping. Killing is the option of last resort, reserved for high-risk targets, or if it is just easier than capture. International Terrorists are not protected by due process. The White House “Disposition Matrix” may place them on the wrong end of a Predator Hellfire missile, as we discussed in Topic 6.1. The State Department also keeps a list of State Sponsors of Terrorism. As of 2019 there are only four countries on the list: North Korea, Iran, Sudan, and Syria. Listed nations are ineligible for US aid programs, and may find themselves subject to diplomatic, economic, and even military pressure to try and dissuade them from their indiscretions. The bottom line is it doesn’t matter if you consider yourself a patriot. If the US considers you an international terrorist, then you may find your remaining days brutal and short.