Female Terrorism Research Articles

THE ROLE OF AFFECTS IN THE CONSTRUCTS OF GENDER IDENTITIES IN CROATIAN POSTMODERN DRAMA (ON THE EXAMPLE OF IVANA SAJKO’S „WOMAN-BOMB“

ccording to S. Tomkins’ classification of affects, the paper explores the role of disgust, anger, sadness and fear in the gender identity constructs in the Croatian postmodern drama Woman- Bomb (2004), written by the playwright Ivana Sajko. The methodological framework relies on the affect theories by S. Tomkins and A. Lucas, which are used to investigate the emotional communication between characters in the drama. Based on the research of N. Govedić, the affective reaction is hypothesized to result in communication, i.e., in revealing one’s own emotional states to others. Reception and the reshaping of the charge of the other are inherent to the affects themselves. They may also subject to political scrutiny and function as moral guides. Thus, this research focuses on the socio-affective (non) communication between the characters of the drama, constructed by the socially and symbolically marked feminist body of the ‘bomb-woman’ (‘terrorist-woman’). The body of a terrorist resonates with that of a ‘queer body’ (“the unfortunate one”, “the source of affliction”). By examining the construction of the gender identity of the ‘bomb-woman’ in postmodern drama, we conclude that Sajko’s literary strategies move away from stereotypical representations of gender identities, i.e., the role of women was regularly represented through motherhood in the literary practice of the 19th and most of the 20th century, while their potential for the social or “street-activist” engagement was overlooked. In accordance with postmodernist practice, through irony, paradox, intermediality, fragmentation, culture of performance and self-referential actions, in the character of the female terrorist – ‘bomb-woman’, the author expresses resistance to the traditional gender identity ‘conventions’, and this is especially evident in the analysis of disgust as the negative affect. Therefore, along with anger, sadness and fear, disgust becomes apostrophized in the feminist manner as the main affect in this monologic tragicomedy. The disgust with the stereotypical representation of women symbolically results in the identity of a “woman as a time bomb”.

Women and their rights: From totalitarianism to feminist empowerment in the context of the 20th anniversary of UN1325 on women, peace, and security between victims, leaders, and perpetrators

While analysing the heritage, input, and various implementation contexts of UNSCR 1325 on women, peace, and security, the authors investigate not only various approaches to women’s position and female empowerment in international engagement settings and cooperation models (UN, OSCE NATO, UNCDF), but also look at female empowerment in a global scope from women’s perspectives as victims, leaders, and perpetrators. By considering the need for complex engagement of international actors in stability, development, and crisis initiatives, the authors analyse NATO policy against sexual abuse and exploitation, on women’s financial inclusion, and the MenEngage initiative. While analysing the societal impact of radicalisation, they seek answers for effective reintegration and anti-radicalisation of female terrorists and foreign fighters. Authors examine the evolving gender equity and female empowerment policies of the EU in their foreign and domestic affairs, with particular interest in internal and external security standards for women’s safety.

#ShamimaBegum: An analysis of social media narratives relating to female terrorist actors

This study explores the constructions of gender in social media narratives regarding Shamima Begum, a British born woman who travelled to Syria to join Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Using the Twitter hashtag #ShamimaBegum – developed in response to Begum’s expressed interest in returning to the United Kingdom to give birth to her third child – we employ critical discourse analysis to examine social media users’ responses to Begum’s case across a 3-week period. We portray how the vernacular narratives constructing femininity, gender, and their relation to terrorist activity are built on the expectation that the female actor should express remorse for her actions and is judged according to certain perceptions of maternalism, religion, and victimhood. We also explore the absence of considered agency in the narratives about women engaging in and disengaging from violent activities, demonstrating the weight of race, religion, and gender in shaping narratives surrounding perceived violent women.

PKK’da Kadın Teröristlerin Rolü ve Örgüt İçi Cinsel İstismar

Terör örgütleri mevcudiyetlerini devam ettirebilmek için sürekli yeni elemanlar devşirmeye muhtaçtırlar. 20. yüzyılda kadının toplumsal hayattaki ve iş hayatındaki rolünün artmasının da etkisiyle terör örgütleri kadınları örgüt içerisinde çeşitli rollerde kullanmıştır. Savaşmalarının yanı sıra çoğu zaman ikincil rollerde - kuryelik, aşçılık, temizlikçi vb. - kullanılan kadınlar, intihar saldırılarını gerçekleştirmede çeşitli avantajlara sahip olmalarından dolayı bu eylemlerde de sıklıkla tercih edilmektedir. Ayrıca bazı terör örgütlerinde kadınlar, cinsel kimlikleri ön plana çıkarılarak “yem” veya “cinsel köle” olarak da kullanılmaktadır. Çalışmada PKK’da kadın teröristlerin intihar saldırılarındaki kullanımı ve örgüt içerisinde maruz kaldıkları cinsel istismar ele alınmaktadır. Çalışmanın ana argümanı örgüt lideri Abdullah Öcalan tarafından yapılan kadın tanımlamasının gerçeği yansıtmadığı, PKK’da kadın-erkek eşitliğinin bulunmadığı ve kadınların sıklıkla cinsel istismara maruz kaldığı yönündedir. Terör çalışmaları ve kadın konusunda literatürde PKK üzerine sınırlı sayıda çalışma olması ve çoğunlukla örgütün cinsel istismar suçlarının göz ardı edilmesi nedeniyle bu çalışmanın literatürde önemli bir boşluğu dolduracağı düşünülmektedir.

Феномен женского терроризма в России

The article examines the reasons for the emergence of female terrorism, the role of women in terrorist organizations of the Russian Empire and modern Russia, provides statistical data on the dynamics of terrorist acts committed by women suicide bombers, analyzes the motivational attitudes of the criminal activities of women in the world terrorist movement, reveals the criminological portrait of female terrorists

ПРОБЛЕМЫ ИСПОЛНЕНИЯ НАКАЗАНИЙ В ОТНОШЕНИИ ЖЕНЩИН, СОВЕРШИВШИХ ПРЕСТУПЛЕНИЯ ТЕРРОРИСТИЧЕСКОЙ НАПРАВЛЕННОСТИ

The article is devoted to the problem of execution of assignments against women who committed terrorist crimes. The relevance of the study is due to the trend of increasing terrorist crimes among women, despite the decrease in crime in this category according to official statistics. The article points out the danger of the presence of "sleeper cells" on the territory of the republics of the North Caucasus from the number of supporters of international terrorist organizations, previously not recorded by law enforcement agencies, the number of which is growing due to information extremism. «Sleeper cells» have a negative impact on young people who directly or indirectly sympathize with the so-called «forest brothers», contribute to the development of terrorist activities among women. The article shows the preventive role of criminal legislation in the suppression of terrorist crime, including the terrorist activities of women. This hypothesis determined the purpose of the study – to establish ways to improve the system of execution of sentences for women who have committed terrorist crimes. Based on the study of the characteristics of terrorist crime among women, some directions for improving the system of execution of punishment for female terrorists are proposed. The results of the study can be used in the activities of the Federal penitentiary service and correctional institutions for women.

THE DEPICTION OF WOMEN AND THEIR ROLE IN RELIGIOUS ISLAMIC TERRORISM WITHIN THE TERRITORY OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION (2000 - PRESENT)

The gender issue and gender inequality in particular is considered one of the major problems in the changing modern world especially in the discourse of security. Women and children are often the main target of many forms of violence and abuse in national and local conflicts. Military confrontation with non-state actors has clearly showed that the issue of women in terrorist organizations has come to the foreground for the Russian Federation as early as in the early 2000s. Islamic religious groups of the North Caucasus, which have been known for their idea of patriarchal society, shape a stereotypical image of women which gives an opportunity for radical Islamic terrorist organizations to take advantage of women manipulating them and forcing certain behavioral patterns on them (the phenomenon of female suicide bombers). Another critical issue is consciously motivated radicalization political views by those women in order to spread separatism not only among religious society but among secular society as well. The main aim of this article is the analysis of the depictions of women and their role in the context of the key security threat of the modern society that is international terrorism. The idea that international politics is a male-dominated discipline has been altered making the world search for new ways of addressing global security challenges. This can only be made by re-evaluating women's traditional roles in traditional societies; addressing the issue of religious laws dominating over secular laws; reducing the influence of armed conflicts on women and children being recruited to join extremist groups and terrorist organizations. The work is based on the open sources from the news, anti-extremism services, Federal Service of National Safety, which include female terrorists' personal data, interviews with their relatives and court reports. The analysis includes the data about 91 women, who were in some way engaged in terroristic acts on the territory of the Russian Federation since 2000. Such complex analysis, along with the methods of content analysis allowed for more substantial conclusions to Russian researchers who studied the age of female terrorists, the reasons for their radicalism, geography of female terrorism in the Russian Federation, as well as to observe how the depiction of female terrorist evolved.

The “Migration” of Terrorist Actors in Indonesia: From Male-Dominated Terrorist to the Emergence of Female Terrorist Migrant Domestic Workers

The ISIS group’s declaration in 2014, has inspired female extremists from various countries to join the terrorist group. At the end of 2016, two women were arrested by the Indonesian police for planning terror attacks in two different places. Both are former migrant domestic workers who returned from Hong Kong. This article investigates why women join terrorist groups, why male-dominated terrorist groups recruit women and what makes female migrant domestic workers who return to Indonesia as extremists willing to make a significant contribution to the terrorism movement in Indonesia. This research’s data collection technique is qualitative data collection, and document-based research through literature studies. This article utilizes Quintan Wiktorowicz’s three radicalisation concept phases: cognitive opening, religious seeking and socialisation. This study found that at least four reasons women become extremists, namely personal complaints, influence from family, relatives or lovers, ideological perceptions, and media use, facilitate the radicalisation process. Furthermore, strategic interests seem to be the answer to why terror groups involve women to achieve their goals. The acceptance of terrorist groups to involve women can be the reason why women migrant domestic workers are willing to make an immense contribution to terrorist groups. Their enthusiasm, financial capacity and international experience are expected to strengthen the terror movement in Indonesia. Both create a “mutually reinforcing” relationship that benefits both parties. Further research is needed with a sample of ordinary female extremists outside migrant domestic workers as a comparison to examine women’s motivations and group decisions to include these women in terrorist activities.

Unspeakable: Literature and Terrorism from the Gunpowder Plot to 9/11. Peter C. Herman. New York: Routledge, 2020. Pp. viii+211.

<i>Unspeakable: Literature and Terrorism from the Gunpowder Plot to 9/11</i>. Peter C. Herman. New York: Routledge, 2020. Pp. viii+211.

ИНТЕЛЛЕКТУАЛЬНОЕ НАСИЛИЕ КАК ОДНА ИЗ ПРИЧИН ЖЕНСКОГО САМОУБИЙСТВЕННОГО ТЕРРОРИЗМА

ИНТЕЛЛЕКТУАЛЬНОЕ НАСИЛИЕ КАК ОДНА ИЗ ПРИЧИН ЖЕНСКОГО САМОУБИЙСТВЕННОГО ТЕРРОРИЗМА

Исторический анализ женского терроризма в России 1860–1900-х гг.

Исторический анализ женского терроризма в России 1860–1900-х гг.

Misperceptions and Motivations of the Female Terrorist: A Psychological Perspective

ABSTRACT Terrorism perpetrated by females is often overlooked. Women take on numerous roles in terrorist organizations- acting as intelligence gatherers, informants, sexual bait, recruiters, and even suicide bombers. In this article, we critically examine misperceptions of female terrorism through the lens of gender stereotyping research. Because these misperceptions can lead to a misunderstanding of motivations, we also explore the motivations for why females commit terrorist acts utilizing the components of expectancy theory. Finally, we offer some suggestions related to reducing women’s participation in terrorism. Women pose many advantages for terrorist organizations, as their violent acts are stealthy and often unexpected due to media representation of women, especially Muslim women. Furthermore, including women increases the group’s numbers willing to commit themselves to the cause, contributes an added shock value, shames enemy targets, and changes the profile of attackers. Understanding the motivations and misperceptions of female-perpetrated terrorism through a psychological lens can aid with future research and help lead to the development of intervention strategies.

Ciała podatne na zranienie. Judith Butler, samozniszczenie i radykalne akty oporu

Artykuł analizuje kategorię cielesnej podatności (vulnerability) i kruchości życia w ujęciu Judith Butler. Autorka stawia pytania o projektowany przez Butler nieopozycyjny związek między podatnością podmiotu a oporem. Refleksji poddany zostaje również Butlerowski postulat niestosowania przemocy, dla którego wyzwaniem są analizowane w tekście przykłady działań, wykorzystujących co prawda podatność, ale przybierających postać destrukcji lub autodestrukcji. Zestawiając dwa przypadki samospalenia (Omida Masumali i Ryszarda Siwca) oraz dwie figury terrorystek (Ulrike Meinhof z RAF i Marthy Doherty fikcyjnej członkini IRA z powieści Anny Bojarskiej Agitka), autorka zwraca uwagę na trudną czasem do wytyczenia granicę między „siłą bezsilnych” a „przemocą zranionych”.

The ballot or the bomb belt: the roots of female suicide terrorism before and after 9/11

ABSTRACTIn recent years, an upward trend in terrorist attacks has mirrored an increase in suicide attacks. According to our preliminary analysis, the events of September 11th marked a sea change in the number of terrorist attacks. While a rich literature has evaluated why terrorists participate in suicide attacks, none have considered the uptick in volume after 9/11, and fewer yet have considered how female fighters may be contributing to this. We evaluate how both structural and female-specific factors affect the likelihood of female fighter suicide attacks. Recent literature discovered a trend in terrorist groups using females as suicide bombers due to cultural norms that permit them to get closer to targets. We test our theory using data from the Chicago Project on Security and Threats Suicide Attack Database (CPOST-SAD) and various datasets from the Quality of Government (QOG) compendium for the 1986–2016 time period. We construct a series of models that consider both female-specific and structural factors that could explain variation in the number of female suicide attacks. Our results indicate that our models encompass relatively stable patterns. Female political empowerment, female educational attainment, and female employment rates are significant and positive in our post-9/11 models, indicating that they may increase female suicide attacks. Democracy is a relevant structural factor and generally yields a positive effect on female suicide attacks across both time periods and multiple models. Ethnic fractionalization is significant in both time periods but yields a negative effect before 9/11 and a positive effect in the later period.

Gender differences in combined homicide-suicide with consideration of female terrorist bombers.

Combined homicide-suicide (H-S) is a phenomenon described as an offender committing a homicidal act followed by their suicide. Current literature on H-S is dominated by a focus on men and their particular set of motivations and actions, primarily because females constitute only a small fraction of the cases of completed H-S. This review begins by analyzing this data and integrating females within two subclassifications of H-S: the psychopathology of the actor (or perpetrator), and the actor's relationship to her homicide victims. Within the relational subcategory of H-S, females are: (1) underrepresented when victims are their spouses or intimate partners (consortial H-S); (2) more prevalent when victims are their own children (filial H-S); and (3) with rare exceptions, not represented in extrafamilial, adversarial and pseudo-commando H-S perpetrators. This review includes female bombers in this gender comparison.

Symbolism in Female Terrorism: Five Overarching Themes

This paper examines symbolism in female terrorism through five overarching themes. These themes symbolize (1) continuity of the fight, (2) strategic desirability, (3) revenge, (4) restoration of honor, and (5) change. For example, during the First Intifada, Palestinian women were symbolic warriors in the resistance movement. Today, terror propagandists increasingly exploit this type of female zeal to further justify terrorism against their enemies. Taken as a whole, these five overarching themes shed light on a phenomenon that tends to be underrepresented in the mainstream media. An important conclusion of this analysis is that female terrorism is a grand strategy to strike the enemy in unremitting ways (i.e., “continuity of the fight”), in unprecedented ways (i.e., “strategic desirability” and “change”), and sometimes as the only viable way (i.e., “revenge” and “restoration of honor”).

Female Palestinian Terrorists: The Role of the Intifada Period and the Terrorism Context

Palestinian women have played an increasingly active role in terrorist activities in the past two decades as part of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. The present study aims to examine differences in the characteristics of female Palestinian terrorists and in the patterns of their terrorist activity between the Second Intifada and the Third Intifada. Furthermore, a comparative analysis of male Palestinian terrorist activity between the two Intifada periods was conducted in order to explore whether trends in female terrorist activity were unique to women or reflected global trends. Data are based on 171 female and male Palestinians that carried out terrorist activities. The findings show that age, terrorist method and organizational affiliation correlate significantly with the Intifada period. Significant differences were not found in the main motive for female terrorist activity. The analysis shows that overall trends of Palestinian female terrorist characteristics and their involvement in terrorism were similar to those of male terrorists. Moreover, during the Third Intifada female terrorists mainly acted alone, reflecting the current growing global trend of lone-actor terrorists.

Female terrorism phenomenon in the "Narodnaya Volya" (People's Will) movement (1870s to 80s)

The article deals with the problems of the institution of autocratic monarchy in the mid 19th century, which entailed an unprecedented rise of the revolutionary territorial movement. Public life liberalisation that followed the era of the "oppression of censorship and reaction" under Nicholas I gave the ideological and philosophical foundations to the terrorist methods of the revolutionary struggle. The spread of nihilistic ideas in society based on the denial of existing state foundations, law and morality, contributed to the radicalisation of forms and methods of political struggle against the government, which, in the opinion of revolutionaries, was uneager to continue socio-economic transformations in the interests of the broad masses of people. The authors are of the opinion that transition to terror was associated with disillusionment with peaceful methods of political struggle (especially after the failure of "going to the people"). The article analyses the gender aspect of terrorism in the Russian empire – female terrorism from the point of view of new historiographic approaches.

The Socio‐Psychological Aspects of Women's Involvement in Terrorist Activities in Bangladesh

This paper aims to explore the potential reasons behind female participation in terrorism in context of Bangladesh. Interestingly, there has been a gradual oversight of the threat of female terrorists with the view that involvement in Jihadi activities by women are symbolized as less criminally motivated and thus they may have a little role to play in the terrorist activities. It has been manifested as well in many research that women have been employed as spies, collaborators and in the frontline of war but had insignificant contribution in aspects of leadership and decision making capacity as long as female terrorists conformed to the rules of terrorism which are mostly made by men. Though traditionally women in Bangladesh have been seen and considered as peace-loving and less dangerous to security, Bangladesh hence experienced recent female involvement in Islamic terrorism in December 2016 during a police raid in Ashkona, Dhaka. This incident has brought about the aspect of women’s moti¬vations and roles signifying a challenge to traditional gender stereotypes. The issue of female involvement in terrorism has not been widely researched and hence there is no universally applicable explanation for female engagement in terrorism. There are sociological arguments and other relevant individual psychological reasons that require to be studied in order to conceptualize mainstream female involvement in terrorism. Against this backdrop, this study on one hand, analyses available secondary materials drawn from a variety of sources of Internet in order to investigate the reasons of female terrorism. In context of Bangladesh, by approaching to case studies methods, the paper moves forward in analysing the grounds of women involvement in terrorism and lastly suggests some gender-oriented policies to counter terrorism on the other hand.

Perspektywa feministyczna w badaniach nad terroryzmem

Celem artykułu jest analiza problemu terroryzmu poprzez pryzmat założeń zróżnicowanej teorii feminizmu, zaliczanej do podejść postpozytywistycznych. Hipotezą artykułu jest przypuszczenie, że badanie terroryzmu z wykorzystaniem teorii feminizmu pozwala poszerzyć zakres jego analizy oraz skonstatować, że to zjawisko ma szerokie uwarunkowania kulturowe i społeczne, a nawet biologiczne, które kształtują jego genezę, strukturę, funkcjonowanie i konsekwencje. Ujęcie feministyczne umożliwia pełniejszą analizę motywów podejmowania i sposobów prowadzenia działalności terrorystycznej przez kobiety, a tym samym pozwala wykazać specyfikę terroryzmu kobiecego. Przyjęte podejście jest charakterystyczne dla gender studies. Koncentruje się na dostrzeganiu różnic i podobieństw między mężczyznami a kobietami, które są wytworem życia społecznego. Zakłada się przy tym, że status społeczny oraz role i możliwości kobiet są zjawiskami relacyjnymi, które wyznaczane są w odniesieniu do statusu, pozycji i ról społecznych mężczyzn. Teoria feminizmu może być wykorzystana do analizy terroryzmu, ze względu na to, że skupia się na badaniach na poziomie jednostki, kobiety i mężczyzny. Różnica płci jako zmiennej konstytuującej rzeczywistość społeczną ma więc kluczowe znaczenie w badaniu terroryzmu. W konkluzji artykułu autorka stwierdza, że kobiety są obecne w organizacjach terrorystycznych i dlatego ich udział winien być badany, a użyteczną do tego metodologią jest podejście wypracowane przez teorie feministyczne.