Essay 3 You choose topic Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

3 You choose topic - Essay Example Terrorism must be defined in concrete terms enough to understand when it happens and to ensure that the public, media, and governments are not excluding states and organizations that accept, promote, support, and conduct some forms of terrorism. Terrorism and insurgency are not the same. Insurgency may refer to acts where groups or organizations are resisting occupying forces, colonizers, and usurpers, as well as constituted authority (Taskhiri). Insurgents can also claim that they are fighting a â€Å"lawful war† through tactics that international law will consider as acceptable and not related to terrorism (Libaw). An example would be a local insurgency group that attacks or defends itself from military operations. Terrorism, on the opposite, does not play by international rules. Yonah Alexander, director of the Institute for Studies in International Terrorism at the State University of New York, differentiates terrorism from insurgency and guerilla warfare. He states: â€Å"Terrorists are not insurgents, not guerrillas†¦Terrorists are beyond all norms. They dont recognize any laws† (Libaw). Terrorism does not have legitimacy that insurgency may have. Both could have political motivations, but terrorism does not respect international laws and norms regarding warfare. Not all militant organizations are involved in terrorism too, especially those that conduct social works or have legal national organizations fronts. Zohar Kampf explores the media’s use of terrorism. It notes that the Washington Post differentiates militants with a social cause from terrorists without one. It calls â€Å"Palestinian Hamas group ‘militants’ and members of al Qaeda ‘terrorists’† (Kampf 6). The Washington Post defends that Hamas performs social work and is driven by territorial and national sentiments, while â€Å"al Qaeda exists only as a terrorist