ABSTRACT
The data base relies mainly on information from the mass communications media, professional publications, and government releases. Media information concerning terrorism is problematic for two reasons: first, coverage of events, especially those taking place in remote parts of the world, is sometimes deficient--although international terrorist incidents are generally covered better than domestic ones, and terrorist activity involving western interests receives particularly good coverage. A terrorist incident is any violent activity conducted by a non-state organization in order to attain political objectives. An international terrorist incident is defined as a terrorist incident which in some way involves more than one state. In addition to these categories, the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies data base monitors international terrorist activity conducted by direct emissaries of states on foreign territory--like the Libyan hit teams.
