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The first major academic investigation of Irish national security policy as it has operated since 9/11. It draws on unprecedented access to Ireland's security and intelligence agencies; over twenty senior personnel were interviewed.

Terrorism has been one of the most important threats to peace, security and stability in many parts of the world. But what does this mean? What is the nature of this threat? What can be done about it and how can we at least limit the impact of terrorism? These are just a handful of questions that will be addressed in this book that consists of four parts. First it focuses on the essence of terrorism as an instrument to achieve certain goals and the difficulties in defining the term. The second part provides an overview of the state of the art of terrorism studies. The most interesting results of this academic field are examined and compared with empirical evidence with the aim to either stress their importance or to debunk them as myths. The final part looks into the impact of terrorism, recent developments and their implications for both academics and policymakers.

Since 9/11 we have been told that terrorists are pathological evildoers, beyond our comprehension. Before the 1970s, however, hijackings, assassinations, and other acts we now call 'terrorism' were considered the work of rational strategic actors. Disciplining Terror examines how political violence became 'terrorism', and how this transformation ultimately led to the current 'war on terror'. Drawing upon archival research and interviews with terrorism experts, Lisa Stampnitzky traces the political and academic struggles through which experts made terrorism, and terrorism made experts. She argues that the expert discourse on terrorism operates at the boundary - itself increasingly contested - between science and politics, and between academic expertise and the state. Despite terrorism now being central to contemporary political discourse, there have been few empirical studies of terrorism experts. This book investigates how the concept of terrorism has been developed and used over recent decades.

The Lord's Resistance Army is Africa's most extraordinarily persistent and notorious 'terrorist' group. From the issue of child soldiers to the response of the Ugandan government, this book looks at the various aspects of this most brutal of conflicts.

For most of its history, Nigeria has witnessed sporadic episodes of insecurity; a phenomenon traditionally manifested in political, electoral, religious and ethnic violence, and, more recently, terrorism. This book investigates the core issues that have led to, and shaped the development and sustenance of, organised political violence in Nigeria. Focusing on elite political culture and State governance, it examines important elements of the socio-political environment, including zero-sum politics, identity politics, and the politicisation of social cleavages. As such, it represents an invaluable resource on the issue of organised political violence too often glossed over in research on insecurity in Nigeria. Scholars in security studies and national security policy analysts will find this text enlightening.

Osama bin Laden's demise in May 2011 marked only the symbolic end of an era. By the time of his killing, he no longer represented the Robin Hood icon that once stirred global fascination. Ten years after the 11 September 2001 attacks, jihadi terrorism has largely lost its juggernaut luster. It now mostly resembles a patchwork of self-radicalising local groups with international contacts but without any central organisational design - akin to the radical left terrorism of the 1970s and the anarchist fin-de-siècle terrorism. This volume addresses two issues that remain largely unexplored in contemporary terrorism studies. It rehabilitates the historical and comparative analysis as a way to grasp the essence of terrorism, including its jihadi strand. Crucial similarities with earlier forms of radicalisation and terrorism abound and differences appear generally not fundamental. Likewise, the very concept of radicalisation is seldom questioned anymore. Nevertheless it often lacks conceptual clarity and empirical validation. Once considered a quintessential European phenomenon, the United States too experiences how some of its own citizens radicalise into terrorist violence. This collective work compares radicalisation in both continents and the strategies aimed at de-radicalisation. But it also assesses if the concept merits its reputation as the holy grail of terrorism studies. The volume is aimed at an audience of decision makers, law enforcement officials, academia and think tanks, by its combination of novel thinking, practical experience and a theoretical approach.

Algeria's democratic experiment is seminal in post-Cold War history. It is the first Muslim nation to attempt the transition from an authoritarian system to democratic pluralism. This title shows that Algeria is at the heart of contemporary debates about Islam and secular democracy.

This book examines the circulation and effects of radical discourse by analysing the role of mass media coverage in promoting or hindering radicalisation and acts of political violence. There is a new environment of conflict in the post-9/11 age, in which there appears to be emerging threats to security and stability in the shape of individuals and groups holding or espousing radical views about religion, ideology, often represented in the media as oppositional to Western values. This book asks what, if anything is new about these radicalising discourses, how and why they relate to political acts of violence and terror, and what the role of the mass media is in promoting or hindering them. This includes exploring how the acts themselves and explanations for them on the web are picked up and represented in mainstream television news media or Big Media, through the journalistic and editorial uses of words, phrases, graphics, images, and videos. It analyses how interpretations of the term 'radicalisation' are shaped by news representations through investigating audience responses, understandings and misunderstandings. Transnational in scope, this book seeks to contribute to an understanding of the connectivity and relationships that make up the new media ecology, especially those that appear to transcend the local and the global, accelerate the dissemination of radicalising discourses, and amplify media/public fears of political violence. This book will be of interest to students of security studies, media studies, terrorism studies, political science and sociology. 1. Media and Radicalization: Grappling Uncertainties in the New Media Ecology 2. Legitimising Jihadist ideology 3. Media Jihad 4. Media Events: Televisual Connections 2004-2006 5. The Mainstream Nexus of Radicalization: The 2008-09 Gaza Conflict 6. Audience Uncertainties: Imagining the Mainstream and Extremes 7. Conclusion: The New Media Ecology Model 'Given the extensive scope of the authors' research and their clear and insightful analysus of the content and discourses of radicalization across media platforms, Radicalisation and Media: connectivity and terrorism in the new media ecology is a must read for scholars, security policy makers and general readers who will each find something to learn from, something to think about and something to be a little more 'uncertain' about.' - Hiba Ghanem, Journal of International Relations Research, Violence and Terrorism, Issue 1, January 2012 '...this is a first-rate book that furthers in significant ways our understanding of the interconnectivity between old-timers and newcomers in the new media/communication ecology and how these linkages influence the information that influences how citizens think about radicalisation and the threat of terrorist violence. While recommended for those involved in the study of terrorism, counterterrorism, media and communication, the volume is equally informative for those working in the media and public officials who deal with the causes and consequences of radicalisation.' Critical Studies on Terrorism, 4 (3) Akil N. Awan is a Lecturer in Contemporary Islam and the current RCUK Fellow in the ‘Contemporary History of Faith, Power and Terror’ in the Departments of History at Royal Holloway, University of London. Andrew Hoskins is Interdisciplinary Research Professor of Global Security in the College of Social Sciences at the University of Glasgow. Ben O’Loughlin is Reader in International Relations at Royal Holloway University of London and Associate Director of the New Political Communication Unit.

This book provides a detailed picture of the life of these Greek mercenaries, analyzing who they were and from what section of society they came. It explores their motivations, their relationships and connections, both with each other and those with whom they served, and shows how mercenaries were recruited, paid and maintained. Matthew Trundle reviews a variety of evidence, including Xenophon's detailed account of how over ten thousand Greeks tried and failed to establish the Persian prince Cyrus on his brother's Imperial throne, the fragments of a fourth century play about the first ever soldier of fortune, and inscriptions prohibiting Athenians from taking service with their neighbours. The result is a fresh look at the significance of mercenaries in ancient Greek society, economy and politics, and their part in the process that shaped the great Empire of Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic world.