ABSTRACT
TERRORISM HAS BEEN USED AS A WEAPON OF THE WEAK AGAINST militarily, politically, and economically stronger rulers and governments for a long time and in many parts of the world. The earliest cases of terrorism had religious and political overtones and date back to biblical times. The Sicariis, a distinct group, were involved in the Zealots’ struggle against the Roman occupiers of Palestine and fellow Jews who collaborated with the Romans. The Sicariis attacked their targets typically on holidays and in the midst of large crowds with a “sica,” a small sword that was hidden beneath their coats until they were close enough to stab their victims. Although fighting in the name of God, whom they considered their only legitimate ruler, they had immediate political motives-most of all the burning desire to remove the secular foreign rulers from power. However, the terror campaign ended in 73 A.D., when hundreds of Zealots committed mass suicide rather than surrender to the victorious Romans.
