ABSTRACT
Terrorism studies tend to concentrate on individual organizations and overlook the significance of the international dimension for the origin, tactics, and life of groups. The Red Army Faction's (RAF) struggle was always based on both the global balance and the conflict in the metropole. This chapter focuses on three themes that require more attention than they received in earlier discussion of the "New Left" wave. The first is its special international dimension shaped largely by the Cold War. Because the wave is a global phenomenon, the chapter discusses various features of the Third World in Asia and Africa to understand Latin America's uniqueness better. It examines the international impact of events in Cuba and Vietnam and key factors shaping the wave. The second theme focuses on the wave's two types of groups: Revolutionary and Separatist. The Revolutionary category has two forms, National and Transnational. The third concern is the wave's dissolution, and the focus will be on the "successes" achieved.
