6 ms·

terrorism has a very simple definition : to aim at civilians to accomplish a political goal. (and no, israel and the US never aimed at civilians. They've used

• runarberg 2y ago
  Terrorism does not have a simple definition and it for sure isn’t limited for civilian targets. The hijacking of American Airlines Flight 77 which targeted and hit the Pentagon—a military target—was a terrorist attack, albeit with heavy civilian casualties. The suicide bombing of USS Cole by al-Qaeda in October 2000 is considered a terrorist attack. It is hard to find less civilian target then a military attack missile destroyer. The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 are not considered terrorist attacks despite the targets being civilians and the goal being political (unconditional surrender and a regime change of imperial Japan). Wikipedia describes terrorism as “the use of intentional violence and fear to achieve political or ideological aims.” Wikipedia also warns this is a very broad definition, hinting that it is not that simple. Later in the article Wikipedia admits: “The definition of terrorism lacks universal agreement” This is in contrast to e.g. Genocide, which Wikipedia offers a precise criteria outlined by the UN Genocide convention. The truth is there is nothing simple about what is and isn’t terrorism. It varies by who is using the term and in what context. It is one of these Wittgensteinian prototypical terms which only gets defined via its use.