Topic > Researching Four Significant Terrorist Attacks

IndexShots by Aaron DriverSimilarities and DifferencesFuture Evolution of TerrorismConclusionIn the following paper, four significant terrorist attacks will be researched and explored critically. The four terrorist attacks that will be mentioned are the hijacking of a Southern Airways flight, the Oktoberfest bombing, the 9/11 terrorist attack, and the killing of Aaron Driver. This article will begin with a brief introduction of each event, followed by a comparison of the key similarities and differences between these attacks. Next there will be key sections that focus on the evolution of terrorism and how terrorism will continue to evolve based on previous models and research. The final section of this document will examine the significance of these terrorist attacks and clearly demonstrate the relevance of the facts provided. These terrorist attacks are extremely significant because they greatly impact how terrorism progresses and is addressed in society. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Terrorist attacks play a vital role in creating more effective counterterrorism techniques to help society prevent similar situations. Hijacking of a Southern Airways flight The hijacking of a Southern Airways flight in Birmingham occurred on November 10, 1972. Three men - Melvin Cale, Lewis D. Moore and Henry Jackson - were involved in the hijacking for political reasons. These three men had specific, thoughtful requests they wanted from Detroit. They asked for $10 million from the city and stated that if they did not receive the funds they would crash the plane into a nuclear reactor, which was a factor in determining their crime as an act of nuclear terrorism (Embry, 2017, para. 3 ). Interestingly, when they received the money, which was 8 million less than they had hoped for, they were so ecstatic that they distributed cash to everyone on the flight (Koerner, 2013, para. 6). In fact, Moore stated that he did not actually intend to hurt anyone, and although a gunshot was fired, Moore was adamant that it went off by accident (Allen, 2016, para. 7). In terms of motivations, Lewis Moore in particular was motivated to hijack this plane to rebel against Detroit police accusing him of rape after he stood up for Black lives regarding police brutality (Allen, 2016, para. 2). However, all three of these men were facing sexual assault and burglary charges which motivated them to rebel against the Detroit police (Koerner, 2013, para. 3). They attempted to do this by carrying hidden weapons and hijacking a plane to demonstrate their power to the Detroit police (Allen, 2016, para. 3). Oktoberfest Bombing Almost ten years after the Southern Airways flight hijacking, another politically motivated attack occurred in Munich, Germany on September 26, 1980. A man named Gundolf Kohler who had far-right ideologies and built a bomb at home with the intention of detonating it at the Oktoberfest (Konzert-Wenzel, 1985, par.1). 200 people were injured by the bomb detonation and 13 were killed (Smale, 2017, para. 2). For many years, Kohler was believed to be acting alone, but it was assumed that his right-wing ideologies were linked to his work with right-wing associations as well (Smale, 2017, para. 3). Kohler was among the 13 people killed in this attack, so the hypothesis remained unresolved. September 11 terrorist attack After the Oktoberfest attack, another terrorist attack occurred on September 11, 2001.plane hijacking, this time much more violent. A terrorist group called Al-Qaeda sent 19 men to hijack four commercial planes that crashed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon headquarters in New York (Bergan, 2018, para. 1). This terrorist attack resulted in approximately 2,700 confirmed and identified deaths (Owoseje,2018, para. 4). The terrorist group Al-Qaeda has politically extreme views and believes that Islam should dominate the world. They wanted to weaken the United States but knew they were no match for the US military, so they decided to attack monumental symbols of American power to inflame fear in Americans (9/11 FAQ, 2018, para. 1). This is one of the most significant events in American history and has created extreme pain across the nation. Aaron Driver Shooting A more recent event that occurred on August 10, 2016 was the shooting of Aaron Driver in Strathroy, Ontario. Aaron Driver was a terrorist sympathizer and aligned his ideologies with an extremist group called ISIS (Bell, 2016, para. 6). He had planned to detonate a homemade explosive bomb at Union Station in Toronto (Bell, 2016, para. 10). The FBI notified Canadian authorities about Aaron Driver (The Canadian Press, 2016, para. 3). After investigating and realizing the threat, they were able to identify him sitting in a taxi, wearing a mask and holding a backpack. The RCMP shot him to death when he detonated an explosive device in the back of the taxi, but prevented him from carrying out his terrorist attack in Toronto (Bell, 2016, para. 5). Similarities and Differences All four of these terrorist attacks have significant commonalities. They are all led by political extremists, the victims of their crimes are targeted in large numbers, and they are inspired by ideologies encouraged by large like-minded groups. Mahdi Abdile, author and researcher on the topic of terrorism, conducted a study at the European Institute for Peace which found that 21% of terrorists join organizations for a sense of belonging. Furthermore, 27% of individuals who join terrorist organizations do so for the financial compensation they receive for doing so (European Institute, 2015, para. 2). It also believes that individuals are unlikely to act on their radical views unless they are encouraged to do so by an organization (European Institute, 2015, para. 4). All four of these attacks were carried out by individuals who were encouraged or inspired by a large organization to do so. For example, the hijacking of the Southern Airways flight was carried out to rebel against a large organization, the Detroit police, and to defend the rights of African Americans. The Oktoberfest attack was inspired by German right-wing ideologies and is speculated to be involved with right-wing associations. The September 11 terrorist attack was carried out by an organization known as Al-Qaeda which believes in extreme Islamic views. The killing of Aaron Driver was a preventative measure to ensure that a man who sympathized with a terrorist organization did not follow an attack in Toronto. However, they also differ significantly. The Southern Airways flight hijacking was supposed to be a harmless crime with no injuries, while the 9/11 plane hijacking was supposed to kill thousands of people. The Oktoberfest bombing injured 200 people and killed 13, where the shooting of Aaron Driver prevented a situation like this from happening again. Evolution of Terrorism Since the 1970s After the Southern Airways plane hijacking, many precautions were taken to ensure that an event like this would not happen again. All over the world, airports have been asked.