Victims Of Terrorism Research Articles

Prognostic Value of ISS and TRISS Scores in Tunisian Terrorism Victims.

Injuries caused by terrorism attacks are one of the urgent problems of the society and the health system. In this work, we aimed to assess the injury severity score (ISS) and trauma injury severity score (TRISS) in Tunisian military combatants injured during terrorism attacks. A total of 153 victims of terrorism admitted to the Military Hospital of Tunis between January 2012 and January 2017 were included. Among them, 107 survived and 46 died (43 victims died at the terrorist attack scene and 3 died in the hospital). All dead patients were autopsied. Injury severity scores and TRISSs were then calculated by 2 professors in the anesthesia-resuscitation department, and the agreement level was assessed using the Bland and Altman curve. We obtained a strong agreement between the 2 experts when assessing the TRISS and ISS. Using the Bland and Altman curve, an agreement between the 2 experts was obtained between 0 to 40 and 60 to 75 for the ISS and between 0 to 25 and 75 to 100 for the TRISS. Moreover, we detected a high level of ISS and TRISS, especially in deceased victims compared to survivors (P <.001). To predict mortality, we revealed by the receiver operating characteristic curve high sensitivity and specificity (more than 90%) before day 28 of hospital stay as well as for ISS and TRISS. Regarding the mechanism of injury, patients injured by gunshot have higher ISSs and TRISSs than those injured by explosion (P < .001). Injury severity scores and TRISSs showed a high reliability to predict the mortality rate in Tunisian victims of terrorism.

Stolen Identities, Suspended Lives. Embodied Active Imagination in Clinical Work with Victims of State Terrorism.

Each collective trauma holds its own particularities and forms of horror. When the violence is exerted by the government responsible for the care of the population it is termed state terrorism. The traumatic experience and its subsequent negation create a profound dissociation between two narratives: the explicit, which conceals the true facts, and the implicit, which remains unconscious and unbridgeable. In the gap between the two, life becomes suspended. From a Jungian perspective, this can be understood as the interruption of the process of translation and integration (terms that I will explore in some depth) from implicit sensory phenomena to an explicit representational narrative. This profoundly affects the development of the ego-self axis. In turn, it creates a special challenge for analytic technique that calls for new ways of listening to, and meeting the patient in, that non-verbal, unrepresented territory. Drawing upon clinical material, an embodied perspective of Jungian clinical work is offered to show how the inclusion of the body of patient and analyst enables access to the non-represented, though implicitly encoded, traumatic affective memories stored in the somatic unconscious.

Trauma, truth, and testimony: analysing terrorism survivors’ victim impact statements

ABSTRACT Terrorism inflicts profound and enduring impacts on survivors and communities, yet the complex realities and needs of victims are often obscured in legal and policy discourses. This study examines the lived experiences of Israeli terrorism survivors through a qualitative thematic analysis of 28 victim impact statements submitted to courts from 2010 to 2023. The research uncovers the profound and enduring impact of terrorism on psychological, physical, social, and economic well-being. Pervasive grief, trauma, and irrevocable life changes emerge as central themes alongside the ripple effects on families and communities. Victims also describe daunting practical challenges in rebuilding their lives and express frustration with perceived leniency in sentencing and gaps in institutional support. While conveying urgent needs for comprehensive, trauma-informed assistance, the statements also reveal remarkable resilience and meaning-making in the face of horror. The article discusses the implications of developing more responsive, victim-centred policies and practices guided by the expressed priorities of survivors themselves. Key recommendations are outlined to foster a more humane and holistic response to the suffering of terrorism victims.

Contested Victimhood: (Un)Courting Victims of Terrorism in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

Despite the growing number of victims of terrorism globally, research is scant about a class of victims who, in theory, epitomize Nils Christie’s concept of the “Ideal Victim,” deemed worthy of public sympathy and social support. The difficult experiences of terrorism victims in Israel, particularly in military court proceedings as documented through interviews, court transcripts, and observations, highlight how the politicization of terrorism exacerbates secondary victimization for terror victims and their families. We postulate that, in addition to the adversarial legal system constraints victims experience in legal proceedings, victim identity in Israel is culturally eschewed in favor of a national(ist) meta-narrative that valorizes strength and self-reliance. A militarized Israeli society asserting its superior might is a symbolic rejection of a helpless victim status, historically forced upon Jews facing persecution and terror. We conclude that terror victims’ treatment mirrors a given society’s image of itself.

Help and Support to Victims of Terrorism – International Standards

Help and Support to Victims of Terrorism – International Standards

Executed light. Actor Stepan Shahaida as a victim of Stalinist terror

Executed light. Actor Stepan Shahaida as a victim of Stalinist terror

Історіографічні рефлексії опонентів Р. Конквеста: суб’єктивна і об’єктивна критика

The purpose of the article is to reveal the contradictory historiographic reflections of the opponents of the famous American researcher of Stalinist political terror and the Holodomor Robert Conquest, subjective assessments and scientific criticism. The research methodology consists of the principle of historicism and an interdisciplinary approach, methods of comparative historiographical analysis of sources, as well as elements of the "theory of reflections". General scientific methods (deductions, inductions), concrete-historical (chronological, problem-thematic), textology and scientific biographical methods are used. The applied task of the article is to resolve the conflicting assessments of the role and place of the Ukrainian scientific community in America and Conquest personally in the study of the Holodomor, refuting the scientist's subjective criticism. The scientific novelty is due to the goal and task of the analytical article, the formulation of the problem in the context of historiographical reflection, that is, the identification of subjective criticism of the scientific work of the Conquest, especially its interpretation of the causes and consequences of the Holodomor. Western literature has many works, the authors of which expressed a critical attitude to the scientific-historical interpretation of the scientist's Soviet political system, Stalin's regime, and mass terror. Our task was to establish the signs of motivated criticism of key problems: the causes of Stalin's terror, the concept and phenomenon of famine-genocide, the historiographic origin of the term "terror by hunger." The subject focus, rather than a descriptive and bibliographic review of the Scientist's works, seemed more constructive to us. The Conclusions emphasize Conquest's significant contribution to the historiography of the Holodomor, the presence in its approaches of elements of self-reflection, a restrained and balanced assessment of the historical forms of genocide, the avoidance of any ideological dependence, and a tolerant attitude to other opinions. The opponents' arguments turned out to be unconvincing, sometimes subjective and biased. They related to specific historical facts and events that revealed the worldview and political preferences of the opponents themselves. Conquest recognized objective criticism, especially regarding the number of victims of Stalin's terror. His calculations were not "random", but academically weighted, based on official statistics, historical literature, memoirs, and Soviet periodicals. The publication of his works in Soviet scientific journalism magazines of the late 1980s meant "objective" recognition of his merits, refutation of "subjective" criticism and accusations of "falsification".

Discrimination against suspected Islamic terrorists: Nationality, right-wing authoritarianism, and perceived threat as predictors of support for torture.

This research investigates discrimination against suspected Islamic terrorists based on tolerance for the use of torture. This research is justified by the need to identify how intergroup and ideological factors combine to express discrimination. Two experimental studies were conducted with a between-subjects design. Study 1 (N = 282) analysed the terrorist threat against the ingroup and the nationality of torturers with respect to support for torture against suspected Islamic terrorists. Study 2 (N = 165) analysed the interaction among terrorist threat against the ingroup and perceived threat (realistic and symbolic) as moderators in the relationship between RWA and discrimination. Study 1 indicated that support for torture was greater when the victims of terrorist acts and the torturers belonged to the ingroup. Study 2 indicated that the perceived threat encourages support for the use of torture, regardless of the levels of RWA. Taken together, these results elucidate the psychosocial processes that are present in the hostility towards social minorities from predominantly Muslim countries and in the strengthening of xenophobic political positions.

The emergence of theoretical biology: Two fundamental works of Ervin Bauer (1890–1938) in English translation

Ervin Bauer (1890–1938) outlined the paradigm of theoretical biology from the perspective of biophysics and bioenergetics. His molecular-based biological theory is centered on the principle of sustainable non-equilibrium, which is continuously produced and maintained by all biological systems throughout their life. Ervin Bauer became the victim of Stalin's Great Terror. Here we present two of the fundamental works of Ervin Bauer in English translation: the paper “The definition of living beings on the basis of their thermodynamic properties, and the fundamental biological principles that follow from it” published in Naturwissenschaften (1920) and the excerpts from his magnum opus “Theoretical Biology” (1935). These works became a bibliographical rarity. A complete English translation of “Theoretical Biology” is an important task for the future.

Women's involvement in terrorism in Indonesia (A study of nirmilitary defence strategies to counter the threat of terrorism by involving women)

The phenomenon of women's involvement in acts of terrorism around the world is growing, including acts of terrorism in Indonesia that use women as suicide bombers. Terrorism crimes are included in non-military threats so that they must be faced with non- military strategies. In this case, BNPT is the leading sector in implementing non-military strategies to prevent women from being involved in terrorism and also deradicalisation efforts for prisoners, deportees and returnees. The purpose of this study is to analyse how the motives and factors of women can be involved in terrorism and how the non-military defence strategy to overcome women's involvement in terrorism. The research method used is qualitative which is conducted by using desk review technique. The results show that there are two opinions found to be the root cause of women's involvement in terrorism, the first is patriarchy culture and women as victims. But the tendency in Indonesia that occurs is women as victims, the powerlessness of women who are bound by patriarchal culture, the limited insight they have is also the reason so that women are victims of terrorism itself, the findings of the other root of the problem are social inequality or economic problems. Non-military strategy can be implemented by increasing awareness and education for women with a religious approach, economic empowerment, and also women's equality.

Legal Strategies and Transnational Cooperation in Countering Terrorism:A Case Study of Uganda's Framework

Terrorism remains a global threat, with terrorists operating across borders and targeting innocent civilians. While criminal law traditionally operates within national boundaries, the challenge of terrorism necessitates a reevaluation of legal frameworks to effectively combat this phenomenon. This article explores the legal framework for countering terrorism in Uganda, emphasizing the need for enhanced national and regional cooperation to strengthen criminal justice structures. It examines international and regional human rights instruments, victim rights, criminal justice responses to terrorism, and the role of international cooperation in combating this transnational threat. Additionally, it discusses the adoption of administrative measures within a rule of law framework to prevent individuals from engaging in terrorist activities. The study underscores the importance of addressing terrorism through both legal and operational means to ensure the safety and security of citizens. Keywords: Counterterrorism, Legal framework, Terrorism, Terrorist-attacks, Victims of terrorism.

Do natural resources invite terrorism: evidence from resource-rich region

PurposeThe MENA region is very rich in terms of natural resources. At the same time, the MENA region has also been a victim of terrorism during the last few years. This study is an attempt to investigate whether there is any relationship between natural resources and terrorism in the MENA region.Design/methodology/approachWe have focused on 15 resource-rich countries located in the MENA region for the period 2002–2019. We have applied appropriate econometric techniques and have also controlled for other dominant determinants of terrorism while studying the relationship between these two variables.FindingsThe results provide solid evidence in favor of the hypothesis that natural resources encourage terrorism. We find that natural resources have positively impacted terrorism. Besides, the natural resources, other factors such as per capita GDP, trade openness, political stability, domestic investment and government expenditures have negatively impacted terrorism. Moreover, the findings suggest that FDI and corruption are irrelevant in explaining terrorism while the findings regarding employment level and terrorism are unexpected. The obtained results are robust to alternative estimating methodologies.Practical implicationsThe results have serious policy implications for the MENA region. The MENA region in general is suggested to devise appropriate policies regarding their huge natural resources so as to tackle the terrorism problem effectively. Similarly, paying favorable attention to trade liberalization, political stability, government expenditures, investment, rising income of the population in the presence of macroeconomic stability in the form of lower inflation would also help the MENA region to eradicate the problem of terrorism.Originality/valueThe available literature has largely ignored the role of natural resources in explaining the problem of terrorism. Therefore, this study has provided relatively new evidence regarding the determinants of terrorism.

테러 피해자에 대한 국가적 지원체계

Despite its importance, academic interest in the national support system for victims of terrorism has been relatively overshadowed compared to the focus on terrorism prevention and response. The enactment of the “Anti-terrorism Act” in 2016 marked a pivotal moment by incorporating provisions related to the ‘support for terrorism victims’ and the provision of ‘special consolation funds’, thereby establishing the framework of the current system. However, preceding studies and subsequent research outcomes are not only scarce in quantity but also limited in content, primarily focusing on the analysis of specific individual support measures. Above all, there is virtually no attempt to evaluate whether South Korea’s support for victims of terrorism is appropriate. Therefore, this paper aims to contribute to laying the groundwork for the perspective and evaluation of the entire system for victims of terrorism in South Korea. By presenting the fundamental outline of the considerations for the design and evaluation, the paper seeks to facilitate a foundational understanding and assessment of the system.

Universal international legal framework to support of victims of terrorism

The article describes the provisions of international legal acts on support and protection of the rights of victims of terrorism (UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, UN GA resolutions, Good Practices in Supporting Victims of Terrorism within the Criminal Justice Framework, The Criminal Justice Response to Support Victims of Acts of Terrorism, the Handbook of Good Practices to Support Victims’ Associations in Africa and the Middle East, Model Legislative Provisions to Support the Needs and Protect the Rights of Victims of Terrorism etc.) It is indicated that the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy and its attached Action Plan provide for the establishment of national assistance systems on a voluntary basis that will take into account the needs of victims of terrorism and their families and contribute to the normalisation of their lives. It is emphasised that the UN General Assembly reviews the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy every two years, which makes it a living document linked to the priorities of member states in the fight against terrorism. In particular, in the Eighth Review of the Strategy (2023), the UN GA reaffirmed the role that victims of terrorism, including the role in disincentivising terrorism, stressing the need to promote international solidarity in support of victims of terrorism and to ensure their dignified and respectful treatment. It is pointed out that the resolutions adopted by the UN GA (72/165, 73/305) on victims of terrorism made it possible to lay a more solid foundation for intensifying the efforts of Member States to provide assistance to victims. It is emphasised the role of the UNODC in supporting victims of terrorism, under the auspices of which a number of acts have been developed containing strategies for building institutional capacity to involve victims of terrorism in investigations and prosecutions; national experience, programmes and legislation on supporting victims of terrorism are summarised. It is indicated that in 2022, the Model Legislative Provisions to Support the Needs and Protect the Rights of Victims of Terrorism were adopted, which are based on the international legal framework for victims of crimes and grave human rights violations and are intended to assist Member States in protecting the rights and addressing the needs of victims of terrorism in their national legislation.

ОСОБЛИВОСТІ УВІЧНЕННЯ ПАМ’ЯТІ ЖЕРТВ НАЦИСТСЬКОГО ТЕРОРУ НА ХАРКІВЩИНІ У ВОЄННИЙ ТА ПОВОЄННИЙ ЧАС

The aim of the work. The article is devoted to a comprehensive study of commemorative initiatives and building of monuments connected with the commemoration of victims of Nazi terror on the territory of the Kharkiv region. The article explains the specifics of honoring the memory of different groups of victims of Nazi terror on the territory of the Kharkiv region in wartime and in the post-war period. The methodological base consists of general scientific methods (analysis, synthesis, deduction, induction, systematic approach) along with special historical ones (historical-comparative, historical-systematic). The principles of scientificity, objectivity, and historicism are also applied. The scientific novelty of the research is defined by the fact that the author conducted for the first time a comprehensive study of commemorative initiatives of victims of Nazi terror on the territory of the Kharkiv region. Conclusions. During 1941–1945, the Kharkiv region was controlled by the German Military Administration. The German occupation regime established in the Kharkiv region led to numerous deaths among civilians and prisoners of war. The people's initiative served as the first step in commemorating the victims of war. Further, the state assumed control over the building of monuments. Works of monumental art became the instruments for the distribution of Soviet myths about «The Great Patriotic War». The official Soviet ceremonial model of commemoration was characterized by an intrusive cult of internationalism, heroism, Soviet patriotism, and self-sacrifice. The authorities stayed indifferent to people, keeping no record of victims and depersonalizing the dead. Due to the fatal defeats of the Red Army, the Kharkiv region lost about half a million citizens, but it wasn't highly ranked in the national narrative about the war. The state demonstrated discriminatory methods for commemoration of certain categories of the dead. Some of them were represented in the memorial space, and others were deprived of their rights. First of all, this concerned victims of mass terror – Jews, orphans, and prisoners of war. Only with the collapse of the communist regime and the independence of Ukraine these categories of victims of Nazi terror got the opportunity to convey their own vision of war to the general public.

Cognitive impairment in post-traumatic stress disorder

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a common mental health disorder, with an incidence of up to 12.5% among primary care patients. Most often, PTSD is detected in combat veterans, victims of terrorist attacks and terror, but it can also be a consequence of traumatic brain injury and medical interventions. Impaired cognitive functioning is a key feature of PTSD, including attention deficits and reduced processing speed, executive dysfunction, and impairments in verbal learning and memory. Cognitive impairments in PTSD are significantly persistent and are largely similar in nature to neuropsychological impairments in neurodegenerative pathology. Possible pathogenetic mechanisms underlying PTSD are the development of neuroinflammation, oxidative stress and decreased production of neurotrophic factors. One of the promising areas of treatment is the use of Cerebrolysin, which has powerful neurotrophic and anti-inflammatory activity.

Емпатія як протидія політичному насильству: на шляхах до суспільства турботи

Background. The article outlines the conceptual landscape of altruism research, which allows explaining the differences between biological, behavioral and psychological altruism, identifying its specific features and mapping out the prospects for interdisciplinary research on empathy. The article highlights the history of the concept of "empathy" and clarifies its difference from sympathy and compassion. Methods. The importance of empathy for the substantiation of normative moral judgments and the formation of motivation to alleviate the suffering of others is revealed on the basis of the findings of modern psychology. Emphasis is placed on the cognitive (the ability to understand the feelings of others) and affectional (the ability to experience the feelings of others as one's own) characteristics of empathy, which are effective motivational factors for individual assistance to others and which serve as a basis for the formation of political and managerial decisions on institutional assistance to vulnerable groups of people. Results. An attention is focused on the importance of empathy for moral consciousness and moral action. The article considers the possibilities of developing empathy through moral education techniques ("inductive discipline", modelling, discuss dilemma situations, improvement of caring skills through cooperation, "confirmation"), which are being developed by moral psychologists and representatives of care ethics as a new interdisciplinary research field on the formation of caring relationships between citizens. The article reveals the prospects of care ethics in solving problems, which are arising in the practices of health care, social assistance, national defence and security, political protests and active participation in civic life. The research potential of care ethics to analyse the experience of various forms of political violence, which were committed during wars, genocide, and terrorism is determined. Taking into account the contexts of specific acts of political violence will allow us to better understand the causes of political violence, develop algorithms for resolving such conflicts and mechanisms for their prevention. Conclusions. An important factor in countering violence is empathy, which is actualised when acts of violence are documenting and through the perception of works of art, reportages, and literary stories that document the experience of suffering. This practice is necessary for those are involved in the rehabilitation of victims of political terror and genocide, those who seek mechanisms for fair punishment of war criminals and compensation for moral damage to victims of violence, those who build conditions for survivors to live together after the war. Development of empathy creates conditions for mutual trust, respect and assistance, which are the foundations of a caring society.

Commemorative Project “Kovalevsky Forest”: Conflicts of Mnemonic Actors and Strategies for Resolving Them (2001–2022)

The article examines the conflicts between mnemonic actors regarding the commemorative project of the Kovalevsky Forest as a place to perpetuate the memory of the victims of the Red Terror of the 1920s. Based on the ideas of O. Dwyer and D. Alderman on the study of memorial objects, the author in the article analyzes the conflicts between actors regarding the level of their involvement in the formation of the project and the figures included in it. The author comes to the conclusion that mnemonic actors interested in overcoming the oblivion of the Red Terror sought to create a mythologized version of the past in the Kovalevsky Forest for visitors for whom the memory of repression, terror and its victims was carried outside the city borders. In the process of development of the project, the Kovalevsky Forest becomes a flexible space with many myths. To successfully implement the project, the actors were ready to build their relationships as mutually accepting and agreed to include many narratives in it.

Representation of Identity Crisis in Mohsin Hamid’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist

This paper underscores the existential status of the immigrants in the United States of America as portrayed in Mohsin Hamid’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist written as a response to the 9/11 attacks occurred on 11 September 2001. In the post-9/11 situation, the identity of Pakistani immigrants is more at risk than before because of the perpetrators’ religious identity as widely perceived to be extreme. Being Pakistani means being part of a society divided into different groups that are at odds with each other over religious, sectarian and political issues. In such a situation, where Pakistan does not only fight a war against terrorism but is a victim of terrorism as well, it is simply impossible to have a single national identity. Not only at home Pakistanis suffer the repercussions of terrorism but also in the United States of American as depicted in the text. The characters cast in the novel represent different ethnic groups of people who reside in the United States of America. They are divided into liberals. However, only Muslim characters seem excluded from society. They are treated as others in the land of democracy. They feel homeless and suffer existential crisis. The paper has aimed at exploring the causes of identity crisis in the novel. The event of September 11 changed the way the Islamic world views fundamentalists and terrorists. The obsession of Hamid is the loss of values, religious and political exploitation of the masses, suicide bombings and sectarianism, and the consequent evolution of individual identity perception in an alienating social framework.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Appears as a Traumatic Experience

Post-traumatic stress disorder appears as a delayed or prolonged response to a stressful event or situation, extremely threatening or catastrophic in nature, which can cause pervasive anxiety in almost any person. For example, natural disasters, fights, serious accidents, witnessing the violent death of other persons, victims of torture, terrorism, rape and other crimes. A traumatic experience is an experience out of the ordinary, that is, the experience of endangering one's own or someone else's life, accompanied by helplessness and horror. Posttraumatic stress disorder is only one of the syndromes that can be a consequence of psychological traumatization.