88-577: The Special Security Unit (SSU) is a specialized counterterrorism and security unit of the Sindh Police in Pakistan . It is a Karachi -based unit, with its operational jurisdiction extending throughout Sindh as a whole. It was established in 2010 in response to increased rates of terrorism . The unit reports to the IG Sindh and DIGP Security/Commandant Mr. Maqsood Ahmed is the founding head of
176-659: A bomb shelter in every building and school, but also deploying active protection systems such as the Arrow ABM , Iron Dome and David's Sling , which intercept the incoming threat in the air. Iron Dome has successfully intercepted hundreds of Qassam rockets and Grad rockets fired by Palestinians from the Gaza Strip. A more sophisticated target-hardening approach must consider industrial and other critical industrial infrastructure that could be attacked. Terrorists do not need to import chemical weapons if they can cause
264-474: A consensus definition published by Schmid and A. J. Jongman in 1988, with a longer revised version published by Schmid in 2011, some years after he had written that "the price for consensus [had] led to a reduction of complexity". The Cambridge History of Terrorism (2021), however, states that Schmid's "consensus" resembles an intersection of definitions, rather than a bona fide consensus. The United Nations General Assembly condemned terrorist acts by using
352-711: A briefing paper for the Australian Parliament in 2002, Angus Martyn stated: The international community has never succeeded in developing an accepted comprehensive definition of terrorism. During the 1970s and 1980s, the United Nations attempts to define the term floundered mainly due to differences of opinion between various members about the use of violence in the context of conflicts over national liberation and self-determination. Diaz-Paniagua (2008) has noted that, to "create an effective legal regime against terrorism, it would be necessary to formulate
440-539: A broad sense that was satisfactory for legal purposes. There was also some scepticism as to the necessity, desirability and feasibility of producing an agreed and workable general definition." Nonetheless, the same committee of the United Nations General Assembly which authored the 1997 Bombing Convention and the 1999 Financing Convention has been working on a proposed Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism , given renewed impetus by
528-618: A comprehensive definition of that crime that, on the one hand, provides the strongest moral condemnation to terrorist activities while, on the other hand, has enough precision to permit the prosecution of criminal activities without condemning acts that should be deemed to be legitimate". Nonetheless, due to major divergences at the international level on the question of the legitimacy of the use of violence for political purposes, either by states or by self-determination and revolutionary groups, this has not yet been possible." In this sense, M. Cherif Bassiouni (1988) notes: to define 'terrorism' in
616-513: A concept, the more it lends itself to opportunistic appropriation. As scholar Bruce Hoffman (1998) has noted: "terrorism is a pejorative term. It is a word with intrinsically negative connotations that is generally applied to one's enemies and opponents, or to those with whom one disagrees and would otherwise prefer to ignore. (...) Hence the decision to call someone or label some organization 'terrorist' becomes almost unavoidably subjective, depending largely on whether one sympathizes with or opposes
704-670: A definition would only be necessary if the punishment of the relevant offences were made conditional on the existence of a specific 'terrorist' intent; but this would be counter-productive, inasmuch as it would result in unduly restricting their suppression. Following this approach, the international community adopted 12 sectoral counter-terrorism conventions, open to the ratification of all states, between 1963 and 2005 (see below), relating to types of acts (such as aboard an aircraft , taking hostages , bombings , nuclear terrorism, etc.). Analyzing these treaties, Andrew Byrnes observed that: These conventions – all of which are described by
792-531: A first attempt at defining terrorism. Article 1.1 of the League of Nations ' 1937 Convention for the prevention and punishment of Terrorism defined "acts of terrorism" as "criminal acts directed against a State and intended or calculated to create a state of terror in the minds of particular persons or a group of persons or the general public". Article 2 included as terrorist acts, if they were directed against another state and if they constituted acts of terrorism within
880-403: A largely impossible undertaking. That is why the search for and internationally agreed upon definition may well be a futile and unnecessary effort. Sami Zeidan, a diplomat and scholar, explained the political reasons underlying the current difficulties to define terrorism as follows (2004): There is no general consensus on the definition of terrorism. The difficulty of defining terrorism lies in
968-523: A major industrial accident such as the Bhopal disaster or the Halifax Explosion . Industrial chemicals in manufacturing, shipping, and storage thus require greater protection, and some efforts are in progress. Equipping likely targets with containers of pig lard has been used to discourage attacks by suicide bombers. The technique was apparently used on a limited scale by British authorities in
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#17327728058611056-624: A national response might be required for a nuclear, biological, radiological, or significant chemical attack. Fire departments , perhaps supplemented by public works agencies, utility providers, and heavy construction contractors, are most apt to deal with the physical consequences of an attack. Again under an incident command model, local police can isolate the incident area, reducing confusion, and specialized police units can conduct tactical operations against terrorists, often using specialized counterterrorist tactical units. Bringing in such units will typically involve civil or military authority beyond
1144-475: A public statement. This meaning originated with Russian radicals in the 1870s. Sergey Nechayev , who founded the People's Reprisal (Народная расправа) in 1869, described himself as a "terrorist". German radicalist writer Johann Most helped popularize the modern sense of the word by dispensing "advice for terrorists" in the 1880s. According to Myra Williamson (2009): "The meaning of 'terrorism' has undergone
1232-637: A section on confronting terrorism in the recommendations in the Madrid Agenda arising from the Madrid Summit on Democracy and Terrorism (Madrid March 8–11, 2005): Democratic principles and values are essential tools in the fight against terrorism. Any successful strategy for dealing with terrorism requires terrorists to be isolated. Consequently, the preference must be to treat terrorism as criminal acts to be handled through existing systems of law enforcement and with full respect for human rights and
1320-712: A security-cleared Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation , whose often influential reports are submitted to Parliament and published in full. One of the primary difficulties of implementing effective counterterrorist measures is the waning of civil liberties and individual privacy that such measures often entail, both for citizens of, and for those detained by states attempting to combat terror. At times, measures designed to tighten security have been seen as abuses of power or even violations of human rights. Examples of these problems can include prolonged, incommunicado detention without judicial review or long periods of 'preventive detention'; risk of subjecting to torture during
1408-424: A single, all-encompassing, comprehensive definition of terrorism—the international community has also adopted a "...'sectoral' approach aimed at identifying offences seen as belonging to the activities of terrorists and working out treaties in order to deal with specific categories thereof". The treaties that follow this approach focus on the wrongful nature of terrorist activities rather than on their intent : On
1496-403: A transformation. During the reign of terror a regime or system of terrorism was used as an instrument of governance, wielded by a recently established revolutionary state against the enemies of the people. Now the term 'terrorism' is commonly used to describe terrorist acts committed by non-state or subnational entities against a state". Definitions include: Bruce Hoffman notes that terrorism
1584-422: A way that is both all-inclusive and unambiguous is very difficult, if not impossible. One of the principle difficulties lies in the fundamental values at stake in the acceptance or rejection of terror-inspiring violence as means of accomplishing a given goal. The obvious and well known range of views on these issues are what makes an internationally accepted specific definition of what is loosely called 'terrorism,'
1672-418: Is "ineluctably about power". Terrorism has been described as: Definitions of terrorism typically emphasize one or more of the following features: The following criteria of violence or threat of violence usually fall outside of the definition of terrorism: Scholar Ken Duncan argues the term terrorism has generally been used to describe violence by non-state actors rather than government violence since
1760-490: Is a great challenge with the security of cell-based systems, since the ideal, but the nearly impossible, goal is to obtain a clandestine source within the cell. Financial tracking can play a role, as a communications intercept . However, both of these approaches need to be balanced against legitimate expectations of privacy. In response to the growing legislation. Since 1978 the UK's terrorism laws have been regularly reviewed by
1848-463: Is embedded in a person's or nation's philosophy. Thus, the determination of the 'right' definition of terrorism is subjective". While discussing the definitional and ethical difficulties of terrorism, philosopher Jenny Teichman argues that "it ought not to be impossible to find an agreed definition, and then ask whether one wants to condemn or applaud all or some of the things that fall under that description". Experts disagree on "whether terrorism
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#17327728058611936-423: Is its capacity to stigmatize, delegitimize, denigrate, and dehumanize those at whom it is directed, including political opponents. The term is ideologically and politically loaded; pejorative; implies moral, social, and value judgment; and is "slippery and much-abused." In the absence of a definition of terrorism, the struggle over the representation of a violent act is a struggle over its legitimacy. The more confused
2024-515: Is of particular importance in the case of terrorism. The criminalization of terrorist acts expresses society's repugnance at them, invokes social censure and shame, and stigmatizes those who commit them. Moreover, by creating and reaffirming values, criminalization may serve, in the long run, as a deterrent to terrorism, as those values are internalized." Thus, international criminal law treaties that seek to prevent, condemn and punish terrorist activities, require precise definitions: The definition of
2112-665: Is ornamented with the rank and training badge, and arm badge of the SSU placed on the upper part of the left sleeve. The operational uniform of the SSU comprises black trouser, black T-shirt or polo shirt with SSU logo printed on the front left side, along with the name of the unit the back side, P-Cap displaying SSU logo and DMS shoes. All SSU personnel wear a bulletproof jacket, helmet, and other body protective gears when on operational duty. SSU had played an active role in counterterrorism and special operations in Pakistan. Incident in which it
2200-448: Is sometimes directed to specific ethnic or religious groups, which are the sources of political conversy. Mass surveillance of an entire population raises objections on civil liberties grounds. Domestic terrorists , especially lone wolves , are often harder to detect because of their citizenship or legal status and ability to stay under the radar. To select the effective action when terrorism appears to be more of an isolated event,
2288-423: Is the uncertainty of the future: the threat of terrorism may increase, decrease or remain the same, the type of terrorism and location are difficult to predict, and there are technological uncertainties. A potential solution is to incorporate engineering flexibility into system design, allowing for flexibility when new information arrives. Flexibility can be incorporated in the design of a counter-terrorism system in
2376-461: Is to directly engage terrorists and prevent terrorist attacks. Such units perform both in preventive actions, hostage rescue, and responding to ongoing attacks. Countries of all sizes can have highly trained counterterrorist teams. Tactics, techniques, and procedures for manhunting are under constant development. These units are specially trained in military tactics and are equipped for close-quarters combat , with emphasis on stealth and performing
2464-446: Is to place hostile vehicle mitigation to enforce protective standoff distance outside tall or politically sensitive buildings to prevent car bombings . Another way to reduce the impact of attacks is to design buildings for rapid evacuation. Aircraft cockpits are kept locked during flights and have reinforced doors, which only the pilots in the cabin are capable of opening. UK railway stations removed their garbage bins in response to
2552-446: Is very large in physical terms and in other dimensions, such as type and degree of terrorist threats, political and diplomatic ramifications, and legal concerns. Ideal counterterrorist systems use technology to enable persistent intelligence , surveillance and reconnaissance missions, and potential actions. Designing such a system-of-systems comprises a major technological project. A particular design problem for counterterrorist systems
2640-450: Is wrong by definition or just wrong as a matter of fact; they disagree about whether terrorism should be defined in terms of its aims, or its methods, or both, or neither; they disagree about whether states can perpetrate terrorism; they even disagree about the importance or otherwise of terror for a definition of terrorism ". To elaborate an effective legal regime to prevent and punish international terrorism—rather than only working on
2728-895: The Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), house most of the federal agencies that are prepared to combat domestic and international terrorist attacks. These include the Border Patrol , the Secret Service , the Coast Guard and the FBI . Definition of terrorism There is no legal or scientific consensus on the definition of terrorism . Various legal systems and government agencies use different definitions of terrorism , and governments have been reluctant to formulate an agreed-upon legally-binding definition. Difficulties arise from
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2816-923: The Malayan Emergency , the Mau Mau uprising , and most of the campaigns against the IRA during the Irish Civil War , the S-Plan , the Border Campaign , and the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Although military action can temporarily disrupt a terrorist group's operations temporarily, it sometimes does not end the threat completely. Repression by the military in itself usually leads to short term victories, but tend to be unsuccessful in
2904-797: The Provisional IRA threat, as convenient locations for depositing bombs. Scottish stations removed theirs after the 7 July 2005 London Bombings as a precautionary measure. The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority purchased bomb-resistant barriers after the September 11 attacks. Due to frequent shelling of Israel's cities, towns, and settlements by artillery rockets from the Gaza Strip (mainly by Hamas , but also by other Palestinian factions) and Lebanon (mainly by Hezbollah ), Israel has developed several defensive measures against artillery, rockets, and missiles. These include building
2992-542: The September 11 attacks in 2001. The international community has worked on two comprehensive counter-terrorism treaties, the League of Nations ' 1937 Convention for the Prevention and Punishment of Terrorism, which never entered into force, and the United Nations' proposed Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism , which has not yet been finalized. In the late 1930s, the international community made
3080-472: The 1940s. The approach stems from the idea that Muslims perpetrating the attack would not want to be "soiled" by the lard in the moment before dying. The idea has been suggested more recently as a deterrent to suicide bombings in Israel. However, the actual effectiveness of this tactic is likely limited. A sympathetic Islamic scholar could issue a fatwa proclaiming that a suicide bomber would not be polluted by
3168-545: The 1977 Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts , which applies in situations Article 1. Paragraph 4 "... in which peoples are fighting against colonial domination and alien occupation and against racist regimes...", contains many ambiguities that cloud the issue of who is or is not a legitimate combatant. In
3256-469: The 19th-century Anarchist Movement . Schmid (2004) summarised many sources when he wrote: "It is widely agreed that international terrorism can only be fought by international cooperation". If states do not agree on what constitutes terrorism, the chances of cooperation between countries is reduced; for example, agreement is needed so that extradition is possible. Ben Saul has noted (2008): "A combination of pragmatic and principled arguments supports
3344-762: The 20th and 21st centuries are listed below. See list of hostage crises for a more extended list, including hostage-takings that did not end violently. Sea , south of the French coast ; subsequently Mogadishu International Airport , Somalia March 30, the Manawan Police Academy in Lahore attack – 8 gunmen, 8 police personnel and 2 civilians killed, 95 people injured, 4 gunmen captured. Plaza Cinema Chowk attack – 16 police officers, an army officer and unknown number of civilians killed. As many as 251 people injured. The scope for counterterrorism systems
3432-487: The CSH was reorganized to ensure effective span of command and supervision, along with the creation of post SP Security-I to provide security to important personalities. It was reorganized in light of the ambition of SP Maqsood Ahmed to execute the security issues to initiate a change culture in the police unit. Additionally, on 7 July 2010, SSU was formed to handle the security issues on a provincial level. The post of SP Security-I
3520-547: The Latin verb terrere , "to frighten". The French National Convention declared in September 1793 that "terror is the order of the day". The period 1793–94 is referred to as La Terreur ( Reign of Terror ). Maximilien Robespierre , a leader in the French Revolution proclaimed in 1794 that "Terror is nothing other than justice, prompt, severe, inflexible." The Committee of Public Safety agents that enforced
3608-607: The Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Elite Police Training Center Razzakabad, Karachi through the Police personnel appointments, and are advanced to the anti-terrorism unit. The following Courses are taken by the personnel: The SSU personnel wear a black outfit, protective gears, and M-4 rifle. The regular SSU uniform consists of black trouser and full-sleeve shirt, black barrette representing the SSU logo and DMS shoes. The shirt
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3696-643: The United Kingdom and elsewhere. The International Conference of Rome for the Social Defense Against Anarchists has been identified as the first international conference against terrorism. The first tactical counterterrorist unit was GSG 9 of the German Federal Police , formed in response to the 1972 Munich massacre . Counterterrorist forces expanded with the perceived growing threat of terrorism in
3784-657: The United Kingdom, the United States, and Russia have taken this approach, while Western European states generally do not. Another major method of preemptive neutralization is the interrogation of known or suspected terrorists to obtain information about specific plots, targets, the identity of other terrorists, whether or not the interrogation subjects himself is guilty of terrorist involvement. Sometimes more extreme methods are used to increase suggestibility , such as sleep deprivation or drugs. Such methods may lead captives to offer false information in an attempt to stop
3872-418: The United Nations as part of its panoply of anti-terrorist measures – share three principal characteristics: (a) they all adopted an "operational definition" of a specific type of terrorist act that was defined without reference to the underlying political or ideological purpose or motivation of the perpetrator of the act – this reflected a consensus that there were some acts that were such a serious threat to
3960-449: The above-mentioned Munich massacre. Most counterterrorism strategies involve an increase in policing and domestic intelligence gathering. Central techniques include intercepting communications and location tracking . New technology has expanded the range of military and law enforcement options for intelligence gathering. Many countries increasingly employ facial recognition systems in policing. Domestic intelligence gathering
4048-539: The appropriate government organizations need to understand the source, motivation, methods of preparation, and tactics of terrorist groups. Good intelligence is at the heart of such preparation, as well as a political and social understanding of any grievances that might be solved. Ideally, one gets information from inside the group, a very difficult challenge for human intelligence operations because operational terrorist cells are often small, with all members known to one another, perhaps even related. Counterintelligence
4136-475: The case for defining terrorism in international law". Reasons for why terrorism needs to be defined by the international community include the need to condemn violations to human rights ; to protect the state and its constitutional order, which protects rights; to differentiate public and private violence; to ensure international peace and security, and "control the operation of mandatory Security Council measures since 2001". Carlos Diaz-Paniagua, who coordinated
4224-514: The criminal nature of the tactics used. Historically, the dispute on the meaning of terrorism arose since the laws of war were first codified in 1899. The Martens Clause was introduced as a compromise wording for the dispute between the Great Powers who considered francs-tireurs to be unlawful combatants subject to execution on capture, and smaller states who maintained that they should be considered lawful combatants. More recently
4312-485: The effective inclusion of human rights protection as a crucial element in that cooperation. They argue that international human rights obligations do not stop at borders, and a failure to respect human rights in one state may undermine its effectiveness in the global effort to cooperate to combat terrorism. Some countries see preemptive attacks as a legitimate strategy. This includes capturing, killing, or disabling suspected terrorists before they can mount an attack. Israel,
4400-550: The enduring underlying inequalities which fuel terrorist activity. Causal factors need to be delineated and measures implemented which allow equal access to resources and sustainability for all people. Such activities empower citizens, providing "freedom from fear" and "freedom from want". This can take many forms, including the provision of clean drinking water, education, vaccination programs, provision of food and shelter and protection from violence, military or otherwise. Successful human security campaigns have been characterized by
4488-472: The external candidates, the age limit is 28 years. The standard height required for external male and female candidates is 5’.6" and 5’.4" respectively; however, candidates with greater height and built-up physique are given preference. The National Testing Service (NTS) conducts the screening test to recruit the new candidates that made the process transparent. After the NTS test, the selected candidates appear in
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#17327728058614576-529: The fact that the term has become politically and emotionally charged. A simple definition proposed to the United Nations Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) by terrorism studies scholar Alex P. Schmid in 1992, based on the already internationally accepted definition of war crimes , as "peacetime equivalents of war crimes", was not accepted. Scholars have worked on creating various academic definitions, reaching
4664-557: The failure to achieve universal consensus regarding the definition of terrorism, not least that it is such a "complex and multidimensional phenomenon". In addition, the term has been used broadly, to describe so many different incidents and events that scholar Louise Richardson has said that the term "has become so widely used in many contexts as to become almost meaningless". An analysis of 73 different definitions in 2004 came up with only five common elements, which excluded any reference to victims, fear/terror, motive, non-combatant targets or
4752-607: The following political description of terrorism in December 1994 (GA Res. 49/60): Criminal acts intended or calculated to provoke a state of terror in the general public, a group of persons or particular persons for political purposes are in any circumstance unjustifiable , whatever the considerations of a political, philosophical, ideological, racial, ethnic, religious or any other nature that may be invoked to justify them. The term "terrorism" comes from French terrorisme , from Latin : terror , "great fear", "dread", related to
4840-575: The form of options that can be exercised in the future when new information is available. While some countries with longstanding terrorism problems have law enforcement agencies primarily designed to prevent and respond to terror attacks, in other nations, counterterrorism is a relatively more recent objective of law enforcement agencies. Though some civil libertarians and criminal justice scholars have criticized efforts of law enforcement agencies to combat terrorism as futile and expensive or as threats to civil liberties, other scholars have analyzed
4928-410: The homogeneous application of the treaty's obligations on judicial and police cooperation. This function is of particular importance in extradition treaties because, to grant an extradition, most legal systems require that the crime be punishable both in the requesting state and the requested state. Fourth, it helps states to enact domestic legislation to criminalize and punish the wrongful acts defined in
5016-411: The instinct of most people when confronted with innocent civilians being killed or maimed by men armed with explosives, firearms or other weapons. None is satisfactory, and grave problems with the use of the term persist. Terrorism is after all, a tactic. The term "war on terrorism" is thus effectively nonsensical. As there is no space here to explore this involved and difficult debate, my preference is, on
5104-456: The interests of all that they could not be justified by reference to such motives; (b) they all focused on actions by non-state actors (individuals and organisations) and the State was seen as an active ally in the struggle against terrorism – the question of the State itself as terrorist actor was left largely to one side; and (c) they all adopted a criminal law enforcement model to address
5192-455: The international terrorist lists. Today, the United Nations views Palestinians as freedom fighters, struggling against the unlawful occupation of their land by Israel, and engaged in a long-established legitimate resistance, yet Israel regards them as terrorists [...] The repercussion of the current preponderance of the political over the legal value of terrorism is costly, leaving the war against terrorism selective, incomplete and ineffective. In
5280-565: The late 20th century. After the September 11 attacks , Western governments made counterterrorism efforts a priority. This included more extensive collaboration with foreign governments, shifting tactics involving red teams , and preventive measures. Although terrorist attacks affecting Western countries generally receive a disproportionately large share of media attention, most terrorism occurs in less developed countries. Government responses to terrorism, in some cases, tend to lead to substantial unintended consequences, such as what occurred in
5368-635: The local level. Emergency medical services are capable of triaging, treating, and transporting the more severely affected individuals to hospitals, which typically have mass casualty and triage plans in place for terrorist attacks. Public health agencies , from local to the national level, may be designated to deal with identification, and sometimes mitigation, of possible biological attacks, and sometimes chemical or radiological contamination. Many countries have dedicated counterterrorist units trained to handle terrorist threats. Besides various security agencies , there are police tactical units whose role
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#17327728058615456-477: The long run (e.g., the French doctrine used in colonial Indochina and Algeria ), particularly if it is not accompanied by other measures. However, new methods such as those taken in Iraq have yet to be seen as beneficial or ineffectual. Whatever the target of terrorists, there are multiple ways of hardening the targets to prevent the terrorists from hitting their mark, or reducing the damage of attacks. One method
5544-453: The mission with minimal casualties. The units include assault teams, snipers , EOD experts, dog handlers, and intelligence officers. Most of these measures deal with terrorist attacks that affect an area or threaten to do so, or are lengthy situations such as shootouts and hostage takings that allow the counterterrorist units to assemble and respond; it is harder to deal with shorter incidents such as assassinations or reprisal attacks, due to
5632-585: The most important dimensions of the policing of terrorism as an important dimension of counter-terrorism, especially in the post-9/11 era, and have discussed how police view terrorism as a matter of crime control. Such analyses highlight the civilian police role in counterterrorism next to the military model of a war on terror . Pursuant to passage of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 , federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies began to systemically reorganize. Two primary federal agencies,
5720-441: The negotiations of the proposed United Nations Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (proposed in 1996 and not yet achieved), noted in 2008 the need to provide a precise definition of terrorist activities in international law: "Criminal law has three purposes: to declare that a conduct is forbidden, to prevent it, and to express society's condemnation for the wrongful acts. The symbolic, normative role of criminalization
5808-502: The offence in criminal law treaty plays several roles. First and foremost, it has the symbolic, normative role of expressing society's condemnation of the forbidden acts. Second, it facilitates agreement. Since states tend to be reluctant to undertake stringent obligations in matters related to the exercise of their domestic jurisdiction, a precise definition of the crime, which restricts the scope of those obligations, makes agreement less costly. Third, it provides an inter-subjective basis for
5896-411: The participation of a diverse group of actors, including governments, NGOs , and citizens. Foreign internal defense programs provide outside expert assistance to a threatened government. FID can involve both non-military and military aspects of counterterrorism. A 2017 study found that "governance and civil society aid is effective in dampening domestic terrorism, but this effect is only present if
5984-832: The person/group/cause concerned. If one identifies with the victim of the violence, for example, then the act is terrorism. If, however, one identifies with the perpetrator, the violent act is regarded in a more sympathetic, if not positive (or, at the worst, an ambivalent) light; and it is not terrorism." For this and for political reasons, many news sources (such as Reuters ) avoid using this term, opting instead for less accusatory words like "bombers", "militants", etc. The term has been depicted as carrying racist, xenophobic and ethnocentric connotations when used as an ethnic slur aimed at Arabs or Middle Easterners, or at someone of Arab or Greater Middle Eastern descent or when used by white supremacists. These difficulties led Pamala Griset (2003) to conclude that: "the meaning of terrorism
6072-435: The physical and psychological test. Further, the interviews are conducted to check the suitability and competency of the selected candidates. After the completion of the recruitment process, the recruited police personnel join the SSU. The personnel are sent to specified training institution for training course to enhance an integrated response mechanism against terrorism at National level. The training programs are initiated at
6160-526: The policies of "The Terror" were referred to as "Terrorists". The word "terrorism" was first recorded in English-language dictionaries in 1798 as meaning "systematic use of terror as a policy". Although the Reign of Terror was imposed by the French government, in modern times "terrorism" usually refers to the killing of people by non-governmental political activists for political reasons, often as
6248-421: The practices, military tactics , techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement , businesses, and intelligence agencies use to combat or eliminate terrorism . If an act of terrorism occurs as part of a broader insurgency (and insurgency is included in the definition of terrorism ) then counterterrorism may additionally employ counterinsurgency measures. The United States Armed Forces uses
6336-559: The principle of non-retroactivity. If the law is to admit the term, advance definition is essential on grounds of fairness, and it is not sufficient to leave definition to the unilateral interpretations of States. Legal definition could plausibly retrieve terrorism from the ideological quagmire, by severing an agreed legal meaning from the remainder of the elastic, political concept. Ultimately it must do so without criminalizing legitimate violent resistance to oppressive regimes – and becoming complicit in that oppression. There are many reasons for
6424-448: The problem, under which States would cooperate in the apprehension and prosecution of those alleged to have committed these crimes. Byrnes notes that "this act-specific approach to addressing problems of terrorism in binding international treaties has continued up until relatively recently. Although political denunciation of terrorism in all its forms had continued apace, there had been no successful attempt to define 'terrorism' as such in
6512-413: The recipient country is not experiencing a civil conflict." Terrorism has often been used to justify military intervention in countries where terrorists are said to be based. Similar justifications were used for the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan and the second Russian invasion of Chechnya . Military intervention has not always been successful in stopping or preventing future terrorism, such as during
6600-588: The risk it entails of taking positions. The political value of the term currently prevails over its legal one. Left to its political meaning, terrorism easily falls prey to change that suits the interests of particular states at particular times. The Taliban and Osama bin Laden were once called freedom fighters (mujahideen) and backed by the CIA when they were resisting the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. Now they are on top of
6688-550: The rule of law. We recommend: (1) taking effective measures to make impunity impossible either for acts of terrorism or for the abuse of human rights in counter-terrorism measures. (2) the incorporation of human rights laws in all anti-terrorism programs and policies of national governments as well as international bodies." While international efforts to combat terrorism have focused on the need to enhance cooperation between states, proponents of human rights (as well as human security ) have suggested that more effort needs to be given to
6776-434: The same vein, Jason Burke (2003), a British reporter who writes about radical Islamist activity, said: There are multiple ways of defining terrorism, and all are subjective. Most define terrorism as "the use or threat of serious violence" to advance some kind of "cause". Some state clearly the kinds of group ("sub-national", "non-state") or cause (political, ideological, religious) to which they refer. Others merely rely on
6864-518: The short warning time and the quick exfiltration of the assassins. The majority of counterterrorism operations at the tactical level are conducted by state, federal, and national law enforcement or intelligence agencies . In some countries, the military may be called in as a last resort. For countries whose military is legally permitted to conduct domestic law enforcement operations, this is not an issue, and such counterterrorism operations are conducted by their military. Some counterterrorist actions of
6952-475: The swine products. For a threatened or completed terrorist attack, an Incident Command System (ICS) may be invoked to control the various services that may need to be involved in the response. ICS has varied levels of escalation, such as might be required for multiple incidents in a given area (e.g. 2005 London bombings or the 2004 Madrid train bombings ), or all the way to a National Response Plan invocation if national-level resources are needed. For example,
7040-719: The term " foreign internal defense " for programs that support other countries' attempts to suppress insurgency, lawlessness , or subversion , or to reduce the conditions under which threats to national security may develop. The first counterterrorism body to be formed was the Special Irish Branch of the Metropolitan Police , later renamed the Special Branch after it expanded its scope beyond its original focus on Fenian terrorism. Various law enforcement agencies established similar units in
7128-625: The transfer, return and extradition of people between or within countries; and the adoption of security measures that restrain the rights or freedoms of citizens and breach principles of non-discrimination. Examples include: Many argue that such violations of rights could exacerbate rather than counter the terrorist threat. Human rights activists argue for the crucial role of human rights protection as an intrinsic part to fight against terrorism. This suggests, as proponents of human security have long argued, that respecting human rights may indeed help us to incur security. Amnesty International included
7216-603: The treatment, or due to the confusion caused by it. In 1978 the European Court of Human Rights ruled in the Ireland v. United Kingdom case that such methods amounted to a practice of inhuman and degrading treatment , and that such practices were in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights Article 3 (art. 3). The human security paradigm outlines a non-military approach that aims to address
7304-605: The treaty in conformity with their human rights' obligations. The principle of nullum crimen sine lege requires, in particular, that states define precisely which acts are prohibited before anyone can be prosecuted or punished for committing those same acts. Saul noted in this sense that, missing a generally agreed, all-encompassing, definition of the term: 'Terrorism' currently lacks the precision, objectivity and certainty demanded by legal discourse. Criminal law strives to avoid emotive terms to prevent prejudice to an accused, and shuns ambiguous or subjective terms as incompatible with
7392-415: The unit. The SSU provides personal protection to individuals in the following roles: The SSU also provides security arrangements for ceremonies and public events, carrying out threat level assessment, risk assessment inquiry, and security surveys. Centralized Security Headquarter (CSH) was formed on 31 July 2008 with the aim to provide security to important personalities and institutions. On 7 April 2010,
7480-433: The whole, for the less loaded term "Militancy". This is not an attempt to condone such actions, merely to analyse them in a clearer way. The political and emotional connotation of the term "terrorism" makes difficult its use in legal discourse. In this sense, Saul (2004) notes that: Despite the shifting and contested meaning of "terrorism" over time, the peculiar semantic power of the term, beyond its literal signification,
7568-427: The whole, therefore, the 'sectoral' conventions confirm the assumption that some offences can be considered in themselves as offences of international concern, irrespective of any 'terrorist' intent or purpose. Indeed, the principal merit of the 'sectoral approach' is that it avoids the need to define 'terrorism' of 'terrorist acts' ... So long as the 'sectoral' approach is followed, there is no need to define terrorism;
7656-628: Was involved included: And other protective gears. The SSU established Pakistan's first SWAT team. As of 2016, 50 specialized police personnel (commandos) have been trained to support the efforts of police in critical situations. In 2015, the SSU established the Hostile Environment Awareness Training (HEAT) program, intended to teach civilians how to respond during terrorist attacks. Counter-terrorism Counterterrorism (alternatively spelled: counter-terrorism ), also known as anti-terrorism , relates to
7744-517: Was renamed as AIGP Security Sindh and positioned under the Inspector General of Police, Sindh. In 2013, SSU began recruiting new candidates. The aspirants for the SSU, existing or external candidates (new), are required to pass a certain set of assessments which are aimed at determining their suitability and fitness. The maximum age limit for existing police personnel is 45 years, and 35 years for officers and soldiers respectively, while for
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