What motivate suicide bombers?
Outline
I. Introduction:- The driving force behind suicide attackers is not solely based on religion; in fact, it has just as much to do with revenge, humiliation, and indoctrination. II. Suicide bombers decide to take such actions as an act of vengeance III. Humiliation can play a determining factor in suicide bombings. IV. There are general misunderstandings on the motives and root causes of suicide bombings. V. The second phase of the indoctrination process is the recruitment stage.
Conclusion:- The reasoning behind suicide bombings is various and wide-ranging. Many factors come in to play such as retribution, degradation, and propaganda. Terror groups justify this action as the only way to respond due to the fact they may not have sophisticated weaponry or military. The fact remains there are constantly gaining new candidates to replace every suicidal mission, which compels terrorist groups to believe it is the right action to take. Furthermore, fear, terror and death caused by suicide bomb explosions can devastate people psychologically and alter societal life

Essay

The idea of killing oneself for a cause is unimaginable for most people; however, for some individuals, it is a heroic act. Young men, women, and even children have taken their own lives enacting this fatalistic practice. Suicide bombers truly define the meaning of the word terror. This phenomenon is far from new to the world, in World War 2; Japanese pilots called kamikazes voluntarily committed suicide by slamming their planes into American war ships in a last-minute effort to avoid losing the war. Similarly, suicide attackers strap their bodies with explosives and explode their selves in crowds, hotels, marketplaces, and embassies throughout the world. Alarmingly, there are many people willing and committed to carrying out such missions. The driving force behind suicide attackers is not solely based on religion; in fact, it has just as much to do with revenge, humiliation, and indoctrination.
In some cases, suicide bombers decide to take such actions as an act of vengeance. Paul J. Smith, Author of “The Terrorism Ahead” notes that revenge is the driving force behind certain suicide attacks as a direct response to an event, such as a death of a family member. In the Middle East, this scene plays out daily. On May 19, 2003, Hiba Daragmeh detonates herself at Amaquim shopping mall in Alfula, Israel to retaliate against her brother’s imprisonment in Israel (Smith 142).The ageless land conflict between Israel and the Palestinians have led to many casualties on both sides. A suicide bomber detonates a bomb in Israeli territory and kills Israeli civilians. Israel retaliates, and attacks suspected terrorist cites, during some skirmishes Innocent Palestinians and Israelis are killed which drives the thirst for revenge mutually on both sides.
Besides settling of scores, humiliation can play a determining factor in suicide bombings. In Palestine, the people desire for statehood and the ability to govern their selves without Israeli control. Maxine Rosales the author of “Hamas” describes how Palestininians are unable to move freely through sections of the West Bank or the Gaza strip and how they have to deal with complex identification processing and checkpoints .The feeling of occupation is present everywhere in Gaza. Laurie S. Friedman “Author of Terrorist Attacks” states Terrorists have differing reasons for enacting violence; however, they share the same philosophy of appalling and drastic methods to express their frustrations.
The inability of Palestinians and Israel to finalize a peace accord to pave the way for Palestinian statehood is driving up frustrations and indignity among the people in Palestinian territories. Aleya El Bindari-Hammad an Egyptian professor, states, “Many suicide bombers come from relatively educated, middle-class back-grounds and are not direct victims of material desperation. However, they suffer from desperation no less painful-the conviction that they have been collectively and utterly humiliated. The expansion of Israeli settlements on Palestinian land is a complicated issue that fuels such sentiments. Palestinians view Israeli settlements as theft of their land, and thus propel certain individuals to take drastic measures to sacrifice their selves to halt the buildup of Israeli settlements.
There are general misunderstandings on the motives and root causes of suicide bombings. One misunderstanding is the role religion plays in suicidal bombings. There are cases were religious extremists use god as a rallying cry for enacting violence. However, Andrew Silke author of “Suicidal Terrorism” states, “The roll of religious indoctrination has received much attention, but this has to be treated in a balanced manner. There are different motivating factors behind each individual and group that conducts suicide attacks. Friedman explains that some terrorist groups are not religiously driven; for example, the Tamil tigers of Sri Lanka that are Marxist-Leninist nationalists who are atheists.
Terrorists use the perception of shame and bitterness to drive recruitment by employing Indoctrination tactics such as, glorifying suicide bombers as heroes and fearless martyrs that sacrificed their lives for a great cause. This propaganda is fed to children at an early age. The terrorist’s philosophy is to program children while their young and to have them committed to the idea of committing suicide as a weapon to terrorize their enemies. Groups such as Hamas utilize technology to brainwash children at an early age to their ideology. According to a publication in The Middle East Quarterly, since the election of 2006 and the military coup in June 2007, Hamas continually exercise indoctrination through their popular children’s website Al-Fateh (Manor and Ido 31-40). The use of children websites, books, and cartoons to spread hatred is an effective tool to brainwash and recruit future suicide bombers.
The second phase of the indoctrination process is the recruitment stage. Terrorists Cells search mosques, neighborhoods, and schools for potential suicide candidates. Silk notes, “Most suicide terrorists are young, typically ranging in age from 16-28. Silk’s article highlights the fact of how successful the terrorist have become in manipulating young people to their cause. Once a willing candidate materializes, he or she is prepared to carry out a suicidal attack. Friedman explains Terrorists are assignee with a handler who prepares the suicidal bomber for his or her mission .The preparation process is extensive and well planned. The handler’s job is to prepare the bomber for a trial run of the attack, and to foresee any potential disruption that can hinder the plan. Once the suicide bomber completes the mission, the family of the suicide bomber receives compensation and becomes a celebrity in the community.
The reasoning behind suicide bombings is various and wide-ranging. Many factors come in to play such as retribution, degradation, and propaganda. Terror groups justify this action as the only way to respond due to the fact they may not have sophisticated weaponry or military. The fact remains there are constantly gaining new candidates to replace every suicidal mission, which compels terrorist groups to believe it is the right action to take. Furthermore, fear, terror, and death caused by suicide bomb explosions can devastate people psychologically and alter societal life.