ABSTRACT
This chapter explains whether under which circumstances–the use of armed force can be justified in response to international terrorist acts. It analyzes the existing international legal framework governing terrorism, and addresses the use of force and the right to self-defense. The chapter formulates the desirable legal requirements for a potential right to force against terrorist acts. The general acceptance of US actions led to the establishment that the right to self-defense also applies against states that actively support or willingly harbor terrorist groups. However, this approach goes too far. The harboring as such cannot suffice to establish the required link between the state and terrorist action; rather, the harboring state must, at the very least, tacitly approve the terrorist action. The chapter concludes that, apart from regional instruments such as the Council Framework Decision of 2002, terrorist offences have not been defined in a comprehensive manner internationally, despite increasing international efforts to collaborate in this matter.
