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Al-Quds University President Sari Nusseibeh discusses the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with Mishal Husain.
Watch the video
or read the transcript.
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Does suicide terrorism present a unique threat to freedom?
How have local conflicts led to similar terrorist activities around the world? Find out in our briefing (below), by expert Yoram Schweitzer.
Suicide Terrorism:
Historical Background and Risks for the Future
By Yoram Schweitzer
June 18, 2004
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Suicide terrorism is not a new phenomenon. From the 11th-century Assassins -- whose brazen and usually public murders of their rivals invited immediate death to the perpetrators -- to Vietcong sympathizers who blew up themselves and U.S. soldiers in Vietnam, many people have proven their willingness to perish while carrying out attacks in pursuit of their political goals. Yet, the "modern" expressions of the suicide terror phenomenon surfaced with the appearance of the first suicide terrorists in Lebanon, more than 20 years ago.
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| 1967 |
In a six-day war with its Arab neighbors, Israel captures the West Bank, Gaza, Sinai, and the Golan.
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| 1979 |
Egypt becomes the first Arab state to recognize Israel, which returns the Sinai Peninsula in exchange for peace.
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| 1993 |
The Oslo accord is signed. Palestinians recognize Israeli statehood and Israel cedes Palestinian autonomy in parts of the West Bank and Gaza.
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| 1995 |
A right-wing Israeli extremist assassinates Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin at a peace rally in Tel Aviv.
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| 2000 |
U.S.-backed talks between Yasser Arafat and Prime Minister Ehud Barak are inconclusive. The second intifada, also known as the Al-Aqsa intifada, begins.
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| 2001 |
Shortly after the start of the second intifada, Ariel Sharon is elected Israeli prime minister.
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| 2004 |
Within a one-month period, the Israeli military kills the Hamas leader Sheik Ahmed Yassin and his successor, Abdel Aziz Rantisi.
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Suicide attacks began in Lebanon in 1983 (some say 1981, when a sole suicide attack hit the Iraqi embassy in Beirut), at the instigation of Hizbollah, a Lebanese Shiite terror organization. Six months after an attack on the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, simultaneous truck bombings killed 241 U.S. Marines and 58 French paratroopers; just four months later, U.S. troops left Lebanon. Five other organizations (most of them not religious) in Lebanon carried out about 50 suicide attacks before this modus operandi was exported to other areas of the world. The use of suicide attacks garnered considerable prestige for the perpetrators and their organizations -- particularly in light of the withdrawal of foreign troops from Lebanon, which many attributed to the bombings -- and turned the act into a symbol of martyrdom and a source of inspiration for other terror organizations worldwide.
What made these actions unprecedented was their scale: driving cars or trucks filled with explosives, an individual (or individuals) could kill scores, if not hundreds, of people. After 1983, many terror groups adapted the concept, giving bombers explosives to carry on their bodies. The resulting bombings were smaller, though more precise, allowing the bomber to be a "guided human missile." Therefore, modern suicide terror attacks can be defined as violent, politically motivated actions executed knowingly, actively, and with prior intent by individuals who kill themselves while destroying their chosen civilian or military targets. Terrorist groups often choose this tactic because it is available and inexpensive, and the damage caused to the morale of the rival population is grave. A suicide attack, like all other terror attacks in the modern era, is meant to magnify the "power image" of the perpetrating organization.
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Is political violence against civilians ever justifiable?
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 Join the Discussion
Debate the issues presented in this show in our online forum!
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Inside This Episode
 Explore the history behind the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in our Timeline.
Learn about recent suicide attacks across the globe on our Interactive Map.
Test your knowledge of international and local issues with our Interactive Challenge.
Majdi Amer, a Hamas bomb builder, is led by Israeli prison officals.
Photo: Courtesy of Channel 4 (U.K.)
What approaches might lead to improvements in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?
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