Non-State Actress Special Addition #7: All Those Red Flags Aren't For Decoration

[A repost with the opportunity to learn more]. We need to talk about terrorism.

Oct 01, 2024

UPDATE:

This post is nearly a year old and is to date one of only two things I’ve written directly, or indirectly, the ongoing situation in the Middle East. I’ve hesitated to do more because I was not convinced I had something useful to offer, and I stand by that hesitation on this platform.

However, at the urging of some friends with real (read: non-natsec nerd) lives, I recently started a pilot on WhatsApp Community where I’m offering daily explainers on various national security issues, concepts, and news items and direct links to additional resources for those looking to make national security make sense for them. There is also an optional group chat function where you can ask me questions, see what others want to know, and more.

I intended to wait another few weeks before opening it up to the masses, but here we are.

Access is limited to Paid Subscribers, and I’m running a special Early Adopters Discount for the next week. All new paid subscribers will get the link to join in their welcome email.

If you’re an existing paid subscriber who can’t find the link let me know and I will happily resend.

BLUF

What I am about to say may not be in ‘good taste,’ but as a brilliant person (who is not me, I promise) recently said: “Facts don’t care about taste.”

Considering the amount of information the average millennial woman, regardless of her sexuality, can confirm about The Man Her Friend Saw on Bumble and the conclusions drawn from that information and the enthusiasm with which that information is received, when a group or person is designated as a terrorist by the US government: recognize it’s bad. The Red Flags are not decorations, friends. Confusing them as such is a poor choice which only leads to disaster. Just like Your Toxic Ex doesn’t get to be redeemed by remembering your birthday one time, the Taliban don’t suddenly become Not Terrorists simply because they pave a road.

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What is Terrorism?

Terrorism is bad.

Terrorism is also a crime, which means it has a definition. And just meeting that definition is not enough for the person/organization/act to BE a terrorist entity.

Unlike the wild conclusions we often jump to about one another based on tiny amounts of unverified information, there is a process in order for an organization, act, or person to be designated as a terrorist - and an opportunity for the person or organization to overturn that designation.

Why does that matter? It matters because it means calling Al Qa’ida, the Lord’s Resistance Army (Kony 2012, anyone?), or ISIS terrorist organizations is not a hot take, or even a morality-focused one - it’s a statement of fact.

Most millennials know what terrorism is - or they think they do. We came of age following 9/11 and we are the last generation to remember walking through airport security with a filled water bottle. A few of us even have friends who fought or are fighting war(s) against it. However over the last few weeks, the number of people who have used the word terrorist or terrorism in ways that don’t make sense (and I don’t just mean grammatically) suggests others.

In my experience, there are two reasons people argue over the use of the word terrorism referring to various groups:

They did not know there was a legal definition and formal process, with opportunities for dissent, and that correct use of the label is a legal/literal action.
They do not trust the process by which an FTO is designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization and think it is all political window-dressing.

Let’s address both!

Examples

Here is a list of terrorist attacks, where they occurred, the organization responsible, and the responsible organization’s motives. The data is sourced directly from the Director of National Intelligence’s public website and academic sources which include primary documents like the organization’s charter. I am not linking directly to any FTO websites, or websites that comment on the organization’s goals or aims in this section. Just the facts.

August 24, 1975: Turkish ambassador to France and driver murdered in Paris. Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia claims responsibility with the goals of scientific socialism, violence against Turkey as retribution for the Armenian genocide, and the establishment of what is called ‘United Armenia’ which includes Armenia, parts of Georgia, and Azerbaijan explicitly through what the group calls ‘revolutionary violence.’

October 9, 1983: North Korean commandos attack South Korean state delegation visiting Rangoon attempting to assassinate South Korean Dictator Chun Doo-hwan. He survives but 21 Burmese and Korean officials are murdered.

June 27, 1994: Sarin gas attack kills 7 and wounds 600 in Matsumoto, Japan. Aum Shinrikyo claims responsibility. Aum Shinrikyo, now known as ‘Aleph’ , is a religious doomsday cult.

September 11, 2001: Hijackers flew planes into both World Trade Center towers in NYC, the Pentagon immediately outside Washington, DC, and into a field in Pennsylvania. Al Qaida claims responsibility. Al Qa’ida (al Qa’eda, etc.)’s goal is to establish and enforce a radical Islamic government. It declares the United States as its main enemy.

October 12, 2002: 202 people are murdered by car bomb explosions outside a nightclub in Bali, Indonesia. Attack executed by a member of Jemaah Islamiyah, an organization devoted to the establishment of a radical Islamic state in Indonesia governed by Sharia.

August 19, 2003: 20 people are murdered and 140 are injured by a suicide bomber on a bus in Jerusalem. Islamic Resistance Movement, a group devoted to the violent eradication of Jews and dissolution of the State of Israel, claims responsibility.

September 1-3, 2004: 330 people are murdered and 776 wounded in Belsan, Russia. Chechen terrorists, aiming to break free from Russia and establish a separate Islamic state, claim responsibility. There are a number of different different, loosley organized, separatist groups. The largest efforts are funded by Al Qaeda - and other US designated terrorist entities.

September 31, 2004: 16 people are murdered on public buses in Beersheba, Israel. Islamic Resistance Movement claims responsibility. Review its charter again.

October 13, 2005: 250 armed terrorist actors murder 50 people and wound 195 in Nalchik, Russia. Kabardino-Balkariyan Sector of the Caucasus Front, a violent separatist organization, claims responsibility

August 5, 2010: Ten medical aid workers are murdered in Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan. Taliban, which means ‘students’ in Pashtu claim responsibility. The Taliban are currently a Specially Designated Global Terrorists.

January 7th, 2015: 12 people are murdered at the office of Charlie Hebdo, a magazine in France, because of a political cartoon. Al Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) claims responsibility. Al Qa’ida (al Qa’eda, etc.)’s goal is to establish and enforce a radical Islamic government. It declares the United States as its main enemy.

January 9th, 2015: 4 people murdered in a kosher Deli because they are (assumed) Jews. ISIL (ISIS) claims responsibility. ISIL goal is to establish and enforce a radical Islamic government over all territory once ruled by early Muslim caliphs and to govern through implementation of its strict interpretation of sharia. ISIL sees any individuals within its geographic area of intended control who disagree with their doctrine, including Muslims, as the enemy.

April 2, 2015: More than 147 people are murdered at Garissa University in Kenya. al-Shabaab, a group that aims to establish Islamic state in Somalia, claims responsibility.

June 26, 2015: A bomb murders 27 people and injures more than 220 at a Shia mosque in Kuwait City, Kuwait. ISIL claims responsibility.

As you’ve probably noticed, these examples are from all over the world. Why? Because a terrorist organization or terrorist activity can come from anywhere. Because Red Flags are alive and well and living all over the world and, sometimes, they do want to hurt us.

And sometimes, the people they want to hurt aren’t innocent either - like South Korean military dictators. Regardless, its still terrorism. We’ll come back to this.

Words Mean Things

I am about to launch into some enthusiastic copy and paste activity, something I rarely do. I think it’s called for here though because we are (a) talking about the legal definitions so we need those definitions and (b) the definitions are actually, like, really helpful.

I want to be clear on what we’re not talking about, too.

We’re also going to focus primarily on organizations and activities rather than individuals. Why? Because I’m not interested in glorifying, even unintentionally, a bunch of murders. Particularly because so many of them are just men who wouldn’t go to therapy and hate women who live their own lives1.

That being said, one might non-comprehensively summarize by saying:

Terrorism is the weaponization of fear for political or ideological gain. Terrorism means using violence and/or threats of violence to force or coerce people and governments for a political or ideological purpose. To be defined as a terrorist or terrorist organization by the United States, the entity, individual, or activity in question must also post a threat to the US’ national security2.

What is most important to remember here is that we’re talking about specific kinds of actions (violence), with the intention to harm or kill or target civilians (like babies), institutions (like charities, churches, synagogues), or recognized governments institutions (like embassies, military bases, government buildings), intentionally carried out by people or groups of people with a specific kind of motivation (political or ideological, including religious).

Equally as important is that the terrorist organizations can engage in other behaviors and still be terrorist organizations. Sometimes terrorist organizations run businesses since they *do* need money. Sometimes terrorist organizations execute propganda campaigns since they *do* need supporters. And sometimes terrorist organizations step in where governments have failed (or where they have made governments fail).

Just like Your Toxic Ex doesn’t get to be redeemed for remembering your birthday one time, the Taliban don’t suddenly become Not Terrorists simply because they pave a road.

Definitions

The US Code, which is All of the Laws of America (literally), provides a starting source and legal definition for terrorism, both foreign and domestic. For this conversation, we are focusing only on foreign terrorism because it is impossible to cover both in one sitting.

*If you’re not looking to read a bunch of legal mumbo jumbo, keep scrolling until you see the next meme*

Terrorism is:

(Read this to mean A + B + C = International Terrorism)

(1) the term "international terrorism" means activities that—
(A) involve violent acts or acts dangerous to human life that are a violation of the criminal laws of the United States or of any State, or that would be a criminal violation if committed within the jurisdiction of the United States or of any State;
(B) appear to be intended—
(i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population;
(ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or
(iii) to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping; and
(C) occur primarily outside the territorial jurisdiction of the United States, or transcend national boundaries in terms of the means by which they are accomplished, the persons they appear intended to intimidate or coerce, or the locale in which their perpetrators operate or seek asylum;3

Terrorist Activity Defined

Section 212(a)(3)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) 4 defines "terrorist activity" to mean: any activity which is unlawful under the laws of the place where it is committed (or which, if committed in the United States, would be unlawful under the laws of the United States or any State) and which involves any of the following:

(I) The highjacking or sabotage of any conveyance (including an aircraft, vessel, or vehicle).
(II) The seizing or detaining, and threatening to kill, injure, or continue to detain, another individual in order to compel a third person (including a governmental organization) to do or abstain from doing any act as an explicit or implicit condition for the release of the individual seized or detained.
(III) A violent attack upon an internationally protected person (as defined in section 1116(b)(4) of title 18, United States Code) or upon the liberty of such a person.
(IV) An assassination.
(V) The use of any--
(a) biological agent, chemical agent, or nuclear weapon or device, or
(b) explosive, firearm, or other weapon or dangerous device (other than for mere personal monetary gain), with intent to endanger, directly or indirectly, the safety of one or more individuals or to cause substantial damage to property.
(VI) A threat, attempt, or conspiracy to do any of the foregoing.

Terrorist Organization Definition

Simply put, according to US law, terrorists and terrorist organizations are people and groups of people that have knowingly engaged in or plan to engage in terrorist activity. You can read the legal statue here or in the Gimme More section *or* via the footnotes.

Something That’s Missing

These definitions cannot be erased. Meaning, it doesn’t matter what else an entity is doing - building hospitals, picking up garbage, growing food - the group is still engaged in terrorist activity. Both can coexist, and sometimes do. Because the world is a complicated place.

The Designation Process

Looking at the definition and examples, it might still feel like there’s some subjectivity to using the word ‘terrorist.’ Everything is a social construct (time, gender, the ‘right’ time to have brunch), but there is an official process here and it includes LOTS of opportunities for dissent because a terrorism designation is a big deal.

Legal Criteria for Designation under Section 219 of the INA as amended

It must be a foreign organization.
The organization must engage in terrorist activity, as defined in section 212 (a)(3)(B) of the INA (8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(3)(B)),or terrorism, as defined in section 140(d)(2) of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1988 and 1989 (22 U.S.C. § 2656f(d)(2)), or retain the capability and intent to engage in terrorist activity or terrorism.
The organization’s terrorist activity or terrorism must threaten the security of U.S. nationals or the national security (national defense, foreign relations, or the economic interests) of the United States.

I love process. Honestly, good process is so fun to explain and sometimes explains itself5.

When it comes to international terrorism the designation process and decision is under the authority and discretion of the Secretary of State in consultation with the Secretary of Treasury and Attorney General. This means from an institutional perspective the State Department, with help from Department of Treasury and Department of Justice.

If you’re someone who isn’t yet ready to Trust the Process, this is for you.

Basically, the Secretary of State is the one who saw A Guy on Bumble and did some preliminary research aka is considering sending this guy a message or meeting him for a coffee. The Secretary of Treasury is the one who figures out where this guy went to preschool, if he’s actually in a relationship, and what he ate for lunch last week based on his Venmo activity, and the Attorney General makes sure the process is clean as a whistle.

I’ve written a more detailed summary of this process in the footnotes, but:

After reviewing all the available information the Secretary of State decides whether or not to officially designate. If that’s the Secretary’s intention, Congress has 7 days to agree or disagree with the Secretary of State’s decision.

This is a really important point, friends. Giving Congress 7 days to block the designation is an important safe guard to ensure unelected leaders are not making unilateral decisions ‘on behalf of America’ without checking in with the American people’s representatives.

If after 7 days Congress has not taken action to block the recommendation, the designation is published in the Federal Registry (basically The Burn Book but genuinely serious) and goes into effect. Immediately.

Again, because we live in a democracy, a newly designated foreign terrorist organization (FTO) has some agency here too, which is a bit wild but I guess nice to hear. The FTO can appeal the designation decision within 30 days and file later petitions for revocation6. Organizations and individuals do in fact successfully file for revocation. Organizations like the Palestinian Liberation Organization - the official recognized representative government of the Palestinian people more commonly known as the Palestinian Authority.

Why am I telling you all this? Because I want to make it clear that there is objective criteria and requirements to designating a Foreign Terrorist Organization and it isn’t a figure of speech. It’s a serious action, and it is treated as such.

Summaries and Sharp Turns

This post has provided a brief (Really. there is so much written about this I promise this is barely a light summary!) overview of the definition of a terrorist organization, act, and individual and how the additional requirements of designation are met and applied in the United States.

We’ve looked at a few different examples of terrorist attacks carried out by different terrorist organizations with different ideological goals all over the world and I think we can all agree on one thing:

Terrorism is bad.

Except, I wasn’t wholly honest.

Throughout this post I’ve referred to a FTO called Islamic Resistance Movement, which is the English translation of the Arabic name. IRM, as we discussed, does exactly what Al Qaida, Black September, al-Shabbab, and many other terrorist organizations do. IRM intentionally kills civilians, weaponizes fear to force and coerce people who do not agree with them. The organization meets the same definition criteria and went through the same designation process, and has not submitted evidence to revoke the designation.

So, when I tell you Islamic Resistance Movement is the English translation of the Arabic name of حركة المقاومة الإسلامية or Ḥarakah al-Muqāwamah al-ʾIslāmiyyah, which is known more commonly to English speakers as HAMAS, nothing changes7.

Right?

Right.

Part of the Hard Part is Building Trust

At this moment, you might be angry with me - and that’s okay. If you are, I appreciate you continuing to read.

First, let’s all take a second, because I’m about to get into some stuff that is inappropriately controversial. Stuff that will absolutely get me death threats, and not just because I’m a woman and a Jew on the internet8.

And even though I know what the future has in store for me, I’m running towards it.

Why?

Because I genuinely believe this is an opportunity to build trust in government through understanding and transparency and because I am willing to take the risk if it enables one person to have more information before posting on Instagram.

HAMAS (or Hamas) is a terrorist organization. Officially. If HAMAS did not fit the definition of a FTO and did not go through the designation process, it would not be a terrorist organization.

I want to be very clear - I am not sharing my opinion. I am stating a fact. Hamas by any name is a legally defined, designated, and registered terrorist organization in the US (and elsewhere around the world) and has not submitted a successful petition to have this designation revoked. It’s been that way for a long time, despite the fact that HAMAS could submit an application for revocation. If HAMAS could prove it was not a terrorist organization, the designation and the limitations that come with it would be lifted. I’m serious- it happens. We all agreed with that when we were calling the Islamic Resistance Movement so we need to agree now.

If your response to this is to start questioning the validity of the information used, let’s set aside the fact that you didn’t question the Taliban being bad and go back to our opening salvo about Boys on Bumble.

When you’re Investigating the Men of Bumble, you and your friends have publicly available information - also called open source intelligence. You’re following instinct and skills built on years of casual practice confirming you’re not about to meet your murder for a drink.

Imagine how good you’d be at that if it was your full-time job.

Now tell me that all those Millennial women *just like you* who do this *for a living* but are actually trained and have access to even more information are not to be trusted.

I’ll wait.

Wrap Up

The old addage ‘If he wanted to, he would,’ applies to The Man on Bumble and it applies here, too. If HAMAS could prove it was not a terrorist organization, the designation and the limitations that come with it would be lifted. The same is true of ISIS, Al Qa’aida in *all* its iterations, and the Taliban. Revocations happen. I’m serious- it happens.

The Terrorist label isn’t a joke. It’s an established process based on facts, analysis, and legal statutes with ample opportunities for the dissent. And it can be temporary - but the Red Flags are not decoration, my dear. And perhaps more importantly, those who own them do so by choice.

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Gimme More

‘Al Qaeda CRS Report Record, Founding Principals and Declaration of Jihad’ - EveryCRSReport.com

‘al Shabbab Backgrounder,’ - Claire Klobucista, Jonathan Masters, and Mohammed Aly Sergie, Council on Foreign Relations

‘Legal Definition of Terrorism’ - The US Code (All of America’s laws)

‘Register of Designated and Revoked Foreign Terrorist Organizations’ - State Department

‘Foreign Terrorist Organizations, Identification and Designation’ - State Department

‘Counterterrorism Guide: Historic Timeline Guide’ - Office of Director of National Intelligence

‘Government Accountability Office (GAO) Report on Foreign Terrorist Organization Designation Processes’ - GAO

‘The Differences Between Al Qa’eda and ISIL’ - Brookings Institute

‘Chechen Terrorism Backgrounder’ - Preeti Bhattacharji, Council on Foreign Relations

‘Jemaah Islamiya’ - Director of National Intelligence

‘Jemaah Islamiya Backgrounder’ - Yanina Golburt, Columbia University

‘How Jemaah Islamiya Operates’ - Crisis Group International

‘ISIL’ - Director of National Intelligence

‘What is Hamas?’ Council on Foreign Relations - A genuinely useful collection of facts and timelines

‘The Case Against North Korea: Rangoon Bombing’ - Central Intelligence Agency

‘Mugwamalogy’ - Dr. Aaron Zelin’s personal blog, including primary source documents and translations from various jihadist groups

‘Hamas - Overview’ - National Counter Terrorism Center, Office of the Director of National Intelligence

‘Palestinian Islamic Jihad’ - Overview - National Counter Terrorism Center, Office of the Director of National Intelligence

‘Specially Designated Global Terrorists’ - State Department

‘Specially Designated Individuals and Blocked Individuals’ - Department of Treasury

‘Palestine Liberation Organization’ - Official website of the internationally recognized elected leadership of the Palestinian Territories

‘Palestine Liberation Organization Official Observer at the United Nations’ - Official UN Observer Website

I dedicate this tongue-in-cheek but also academically verified comment to the incels (including Taliban and Taliban-adjacent men) who read this post. On behalf of thriving women everywhere, we don’t think about you.

https://www.state.gov/foreign-terrorist-organizations/

The US Code, as it pertains to terrorism can be found here https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?path=/prelim@title18/part1/chapter113B&edition=prelim#:~:text=(i)%20to%20intimidate%20or%20coerce,%2C%20assassination%2C%20or%20kidnapping%3B%20and

https://2001-2009.state.gov/s/ct/rls/fs/08/103399.htm

US Code on Designation Process via Immigration and Nationality Act of 2011, https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=(title:8%20section:1189%20edition:prelim)

First, the State Department’s Bureau of Counterterrorism (CT) monitors terrorist organizations, individuals, and activities around the world as potential targets for designation. The Bureau uses classified information, and publicly available information like social media posts, the news, interviews, and public behavior to determine targets for designation. If this is surprising or suspicious to you, I strongly encourage you to speak to a woman who dates men and ask her how much info she could learn about a guy you connected with on Bumble using only public information.

Past behavior is considered, as is engagement or preparation and planning for future acts. Previous bad actors with no plans, intention, or ability to act in the future are not necessarily designated - and if the entities in question have the capability to realize those plans. https://www.state.gov/foreign-terrorist-organizations/

https://muqawamalogy.com/

Yes, this is a real problem. For a lot of people. All the time.