• Produce widesrpead fear

• Obtain worldwide, national, or local recognition for their cause by attracting the attention of the media

• Harass, weaken, or embarrass government security forces so that the the government overreacts and appears repressive

• Steal or extort money and equipment, especially weapons and ammunition vital to the operation of their group

• Destroy facilities or disrupt lines of communication in order to create doubt that the government can provide for and protect its citizens

• Discourage foreign investments, tourism, or assistance programs that can affect the target country’s economy and support of the government in power

• Influence government decisions, legislation, or other critical decisions

• Free prisoners

• Satisfy vengeance

• Turn the tide in a guerrilla war by forcing government security forces to concentrate their efforts in urban areas. This allows the terrorist group to establish itself among the local populace in rural areas.

Causes of terrorism:

• Political

• Ethnic

• Strategic

• Psychological (Individual)

• Group Psychology / Sociological

• Socio-Economic

• Religious

Different types of terrorism have been defined by lawmakers, security professionals and scholars.

• Bioterrorism

• Cyberterrorism

• Ecoterrorism

• Nuclear terrorism

• Narcoterrorism

• Assassination

The most common types of terrorist incidents include:

• Bombings

• Kidnappings and Hostage-Takings

• Armed Attacks and Assassinations

• Arsons and Firebombings

• Hijackings and Skyjackings

Terrorism has become a part of modern life. Hijackings, bombings, and assassinations on different continents of the world may seem like isolated attacks, but they reflect an easy reliance on violence as a way to promote social, political, and religious change. They are elements of a pervasive end justifies the means philosophy being followed to its most perverse conclusions.

Terrorism is a threat to all states and to all peoples, which can strike anytime, anywhere.

It is a direct attack on the core values the United Nations stands for: the rule of law; the protection of civilians; mutual respect between people of different faiths and cultures; and peaceful resolution of conflict.

So of course the United Nations must be at the forefront in fighting against it, and first of all in proclaiming, loud and clear, that terrorism can never be accepted or justified, in any cause whatsoever.

This simple paradigm of "us vs. them" or "good vs. evil" does not work well in today's terrorist environment.

The fight against terrorism has become one of the most important issues in the international and national security policy. Since 11 September 2001 the governments has made every effort to increase the fight against terrorism worldwide.

Every terrorist act entails serious consequences such as numerous victims, death of people, spiritual, financial and social destruction and damage of cultural monuments that can’t be rebuilt during centuries. Numerous terrorist acts led to the creation of the certain organizations that fight against terrorism.

What can be done to counter, or at least to defuse, the danger of terrorism in the future? Some movements are open to political solutions—especially those demanding greater political autonomy, such as the Kurds in Turkey and the Chechens in Russia. But the more radical groups like al Qaeda are not interested in compromises; they demand total victory.

In the long term, such white-hot fanaticism may burn out and even disappear, making way for new kinds of zealotry. But in the meantime, we are faced with one of the most dangerous passages in human history. For the first time ever, terrorists—these small and unpredictable groups of people, stateless, tethered to no morality other than their own—have a potential for harm that defies the imagination, should weapons of mass destruction fall into their hands. Civilization will prevail—it always has—but there can be no final victory in the "war on terror," which, in one form or another, will continue as long as there are conflicts on Earth.

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