Patterns of Global Terrorism 1993

DEPARTMENT OF STATE PUBLICATION 10136

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

OFFICE OF THE COORDINATOR FOR COUNTERTERRORISM 

RELEASED APRIL 1994

Introduction

Global issues are a central focus of the Clinton administration, and
international terrorism is one of the deadliest and most persistent.
Terrorism made the headlines throughout 1993: 

-- The World Trade Center bombing in February.

-- The foiled Iraqi plat to assassinate former President Bush in
Kuwait in April.

--Numerous coordinated attacks by the Kurdistan Workers Party
throughout Western Europe on two separate dates in June and
November.

It is clear that terrorism is an issue that will remain with us for
quite some time.

The focus of the US counterterrorism policy for more than a decade
has been simple and direct:

-- Make no concessions.

-- Apply the rule of law and improve the capabilities of friendly
governments to counter the threat they face.

-- Apply pressure on state sponsors.

The key to a successful, long-term counterterrorism policy is
international cooperation on these three basic elements. The United
States enforced this policy in many ways during the past year:

--When it became clear that the Government of Iraq was responsible
for the foiled plot to kill former President Bush, the United States
used military force to demonstrate to Saddam Husayn that such
behavior would not be tolerated.

-- The United States encouraged ongoing international support for
and adherence to UN sanctions against Libya, which are mandatory and
represent the first such steps imposed by the United Nations on a
state solely because of its support for terrorism.

-- The US Senate ratified the "Convention on the Marking of Plastic
Explosives for the Purpose of Detection." This important convention
is a positive legacy from the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103; it
deserves and is receiving widespread international support.

-- A recent success was the well-coordinated apprehension last July
of Egyptair hijacker Mohammed Ali Rezaq, who was released from
prison in Malta after serving a partial sentence for murdering an
American and an Israeli aboard the hijacked plane in 1985. He was
apprehended and brought to the United States, where he is awaiting
trial for air piracy. He would have gone free had it not been for
close cooperation among several countries, including Ghana and
Nigeria.

-- We offer specialized antiterrorism training to friendly foreign
countries that face terrorism at home. The courses teach skills in
such areas as airport security, maritime security, VIP protection,
management of a  terrorist  incident, and hostage negotiation. Since
the program began 10 years ago, we have trained more than 15,000
civilian law enforcement personnel from 81 countries.

This administration is committed to maintaining an effective
international counterterrorism policy. Maintaining our vigilance
and increasing or adjusting our capabilities to ensure the safety
of Americans and American interests throughout the world is a high
priority.

Legislative Requirements

This report is submitted in compliance with Title 22 of the United
States Code, Section 265f(a), which requires the Department of State
to provide Congress a full and complete annual report on terrorism
for those countries and groups meeting the criteria of Section
(a)(1) and (2) of the Act. As required by legislation, the report
includes detailed assessments of foreign countries where significant
 terrorist  acts occurred, and countries about which Congress was
notified during the preceding five years pursuant to Section 6(j) of
the Export Administration Act of 1979 (the so-called terrorism list
countries that have repeatedly provided state support for
international terrorism). In addition, the report includes all
relevant information about the previous year's activities of
individuals,  terrorist  groups, or umbrella groups under which such
 terrorist  groups fall, known to be responsible for the kidnapping
or death of any American citizen during the preceding five years,
and groups known to be financed by state sponsors of terrorism.

Definitions

No one definition of terrorism has gained universal acceptance.
For the purpose of this report, however, we have chosen the
definition of terrorism contained in Title 22 of the United States
Code, Section 265f(d). That statue contains the following
definitions:

-- The term "terrorism" means premeditated, politically motivated
violence perpetrated against noncombatant 1 targets by subnational
groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an
audience.

-- The term "international terrorism" means terrorism involving
citizens of the territory of more than one country.

-- The term " terrorist  group" means any group practicing, or that
has significant subgroups that practice, international terrorism.

The US Government has employed this definition for statistical and
analytical purposes since 1983.

________

1 For purposes of this definition, the term "noncombatant" is
interpreted to include, in addition to civilians, military personnel
who at the time of the incident are unarmed and/or not on duty. For
example, in past reports we have listed as  terrorist  incidents the
murders of the following US military personnel: Col. James Rowe,
killed in Manila in April 1989; Capt. William Nordeen, US defense
attache killed in Athens in June 1988; the two servicemen killed in
the La Belle disco bombing in West Berlin in April 1986; and the
four off-duty US Embassy Marine guards killed in a cafe in El
Salvador in June 1985. We also consider as acts of terrorism
attacks on military installations or on armed military personnel
when a state of military hostilities does not exist at the site,
such as bombings against US bases in Europe or elsewhere.

In a number of countries, domestic <b>terrorism</b>, or an active
insurgency, has a greater impact on the level of political violence
than does international <b>terrorism</b>. Although not the primary purpose
of this report, we have attempted to indicate those areas where
this is the case.

Note

Adverse mention in this report of individual members of any
political, social, ethnic, religious, or national group is not meant
to imply that all members of that group are  terrorist s. Indeed,
 terrorist s represent a small minority of dedicated, often fanatical,
individuals in most such groups. It is that small group -- and
their actions -- that is the subject of this report.

Furthermore,  terrorist  acts are part of a larger phenomenon of
politically inspired violence, and at times the line between the two
can become difficult to draw. To relate  terrorist  event to the
larger context, and to give a feel for the conflicts that spawn
violence, this report will discuss  terrorist  acts as well as other
violent incidents that are not necessarily international <b>terrorism</b>.

Barbara K. Bodine, Acting

Coordinator for Counter<b>terrorism</b>

Patterns of Global Terrorism: 1993