Edward Teach
Blackbeard
offline
Registered: Feb 2003
Local time: 09:43 AM
Location: The Seven Seas or the Outer Banks.
Posts: 6052
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h@ts said this in post #15 :
That brings up another problem: when is a conflict a war and who decides if it's a war, and therefore the rules of war should apply? The IRA classed themselves as soldiers and did indeed claim they were at war with the British, as no doubt do the inurgents in Iraq?
In the end terrorism is just a word for a violent action which the side being attacked can deem illigal. I'm sure there are many Iraqis who deem the US invasion of Iraq illigal, terrorist, imperialist etc. Does it make any difference? Is it just name calling, propaganda? |
War is usually when a state declare war and sends uniformed troops to battle against another state. There is a formal declaration of war. Japan declared war on the US then sent their military to attack. China declared war on the Empire of Japan in 1937
United Kingdom, France, Australia and New Zealand, Union of South Africa, and Canada declared war on Germany in 1939
Norway and the Netherlands declared war on Germany in 1940
Italy declared war on France and the UK then France declared war on Italy
Declaratio
n of war by the United States
Osama bin Laden declared war against the US. However he represents no state and does not command a uniformed army. Wars are fought by armys not civilians.
One exception is a Civil war - A civil war is a war in which parties within the same culture, society or nationality fight against each other for the control of political power. There is some controversy over whether a Revolution or Insurgency is classified as civil war.
An insurgency, or insurrection, is an armed uprising, or revolt against an established civil or political authority. Persons engaging in insurgency are called insurgents, and typically engage in regular or guerrilla combat against the armed forces of the established regime, or conduct sabotage and harassment in the land in order to undermine the government's position as leader; the government established by an invading force counts as "collaborators", not "established authority".
Terrorism is a term used to describe violence or other harmful acts. Terrorism expert Walter Laqueur in 1999 has counted over 100 definitions and concludes that the "only general characteristic generally agreed upon is that terrorism involves violence and the threat of violence". Most definitions of terrorism include only those acts which are intended to create fear or "terror", are perpetrated for an ideological goal (as opposed to a "madman" attack), and deliberately target "non-combatants".
Source: Wikipedia
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05-11-2007 11:05 PM
