Routledge Handbook of Terrorism and Counter-terrorism

This new Handbook provides a comprehensive, state-of-the-art overview of current knowledge and debates on terrorism and counter-terrorism, as well as providing a benchmark for future work.

The attacks of 9/11 heralded a huge increase in political, public and academic interest in terrorism and counter-terrorism. The ‘global war on terror’ and its various legacies have dominated international politics in the opening decade of the 21st century. Never before in history have the issues of what causes terrorism and how should it be combatted attracted so much attention and controversy. The study of terrorism itself has been catapulted from academic obscurity to a mainstream multi-disciplinary subject routinely taught at most universities. The field now produces an unprecedented level of research and writing, though the quality of a great deal of this leaves much to be desired. The need for accessible, comprehensive and richly informed works on these controversial areas remains profound.

This handbook offers a wide-ranging overview of the current state of academic analysis and debate on terrorism and counterterrorism, as well as a detailed survey of key historical and contemporary terrorist groups and major counter-terrorism campaigns. Adopting a wide focus, the volume highlights key trends in these areas as well as cutting-edge topics and emerging critical issues. It also has a strongly international flavour, intentionally drawing on conflicts and case studies from across the globe.

In order to contain such a wide-ranging topic within an accessible and informative framework, the volume is divided into two key parts. Part I deals with the nature of terrorism; the history of terrorism; its causes and characteristics; major tactics and strategies; the targets and victims of terrorism; the role of states; major trends and critical contemporary issues such as radicalisation, CBRN terrorism and cyber-terrorism. This part concludes with a series of detailed case studies of major terrorist groups of historical and contemporary importance such as the IRA, Red Army Faction, Hamas, Boko Haram, LTTE and Al-Qaeda.

Part II focuses on counterterrorism, again drawing on the major themes and critical issues. Chapters review the major counter-terrorism strategies and policies, highlighting key events and trends. The impact and effectiveness of different approaches will be assessed across different contexts. The section also ends with a substantial series of case studies focused on major counter-terrorism campaigns including those waged by Israel, the USA (pre and post 9/11), the United Kingdom, Spain, India and Russia.

This book will be of much interest to all students of terrorism and counter-terrorism, political violence, counter-insurgency, criminology, war and conflict studies, security studies and IR more generally.