ABSTRACT
THERE IS A GREAT DEAL OF DISAGREEMENT ABOUT THE CAUSES of terrorism and the most effective ways to respond to this sort of political violence. But there is agreement on one crucial point: Terrorism will not disappear as the weapon of choice in the hands of domestic and international groups and individuals who cannot fight their declared enemies in legitimate political arenas or in traditional wars. According to Walter Laqueur, “Even in the unlikely case that all global conflicts will be resolved-that all the political, social, and economic tensions of this world will vanish-this will not necessarily be the end of terrorism.”1 It is equally unlikely that terrorism that is rooted in the Arab and Muslim world would end if Israel were to disappear from the map of the Middle East, because a variety of other domestic and international conditions breed discontent and fuel terrorist ideas and deeds in the region. The same is true for other parts of the world and other countries. Moreover, there can be no doubt that the United States will remain the number-one target of international terrorism for the foreseeable future, because, as Paul Pillar concluded, “U.S. policies and the U.S. presence overseas can vary, but the United States’ place as sole superpower, leader of the West, and principal exporter of modern culture do not seem likely to change.”2
