ABSTRACT
The link between human rights violations and national security issues is perhaps nowhere more evident than in the emergence of women terrorists in recent years. Because many terrorist organizations challenge the genderrestrictive status quo and promise radical change, some women perceive these movements as their most viable option for empowerment. Women have ascended into leadership positions in certain terrorist hierarchies, but they often become targets for government forces’ human rights violations. Women’s power within the group may also be short-lived, as their priorities are often abandoned when the terrorist organization is defeated or negotiates a powersharing agreement with the government. Terrorist groups also contribute to an overall lack of respect for human rights by using coercive practices that are often as brutal, if not more so, than those of government forces. Thus, the process of government repression, terrorist attacks, and government reprisals creates a cycle of continually escalating violence that only breeds more disregard for human rights.
