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Abstract: Purpose: The subject of this paper is to determine the threat of drones (unmanned aerial vehicles – UAVs), which are evolving rapidly and becoming more efficient, powerful, and easily weaponised, with regard to their use by terrorist organisations. Because of the precision, efficiency, and economy of drones, in the last decade terrorist organisations have used these to carry out attacks all over the world. The paper discusses the prevention and the countermeasures undertaken by national authorities, as well as the development of defensive tactics against drone strikes. The paper notes that the threat posed drones is even greater than many imagine, as they can be used to attack critical infrastructure. Design/Methods/Approach: The tactical ways in which terrorist organisations have made malicious use of drones are considered and described in the paper. In order to better understand the core of this problem, the methods and techniques of attack, the characteristics of the drones and the measures taken by the security and intelligence services in the fight against this threat are reviewed and assessed. All these questions were also addressed by theorists researching this field in semi-structured interviews conducted online. Findings: Because of the rapid development of the technology and progress in the area of drone production, as well as their low price and the availability, drones can be easily transformed into improvised explosive devices that are attractive to many terrorist organisations and individuals, producing a new type of asymmetrical threat. The threat coming from air that is posed by drones is very sophisticated and complex, and deserves more attention from national security authorities. Moreover, the development and introduction of protective and preventive approaches and mechanisms on an international level, and full implementation on a national level, is essential to prevent planned attacks with drones. Originality/Value: This topic is rarely discussed in security research and studies. The paper offers a solid overview of the problems and threats that drones are already causing to law enforcement agencies, and the challenges for national authorities with regard to preventing them.
Keywords: drone, unmanned aerial vehicle, terrorism, terrorist attack, threat
Published in DKUM: 26.01.2022; Views: 173; Downloads: 5
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Abstract: Purpose: The aim of this paper is to analyze the origin of different interpretations of the events connected with terrorism, with special emphasis put on different interpretations of causes and consequences of terrorism. The objective is to show that the same logic has perpetrated the causes of the problem and is being used to solve it. Design/Methods/Approach: This research into the social causes of terrorism leans against a critical theoretical perspective and uses a historical comparative method aimed at deconstructing some taken-for-granted perspectives regarding terrorism and its actors. It brings the understanding of the causes of terrorism into connection with the history of mutual relationships between today's main actors of global terrorism and anti-terrorism in the wish to explain the consequences of terrorism as resulting from the stable and continued relationship between the main actors. Findings: The analysis has shown that current approaches to dealing with the problem of terrorism are so strikingly unsuccessful because, among other reasons, they rely on the same logic that led to the problem in the first place and thus cannot be used to solve the problem. Current power relations between the actors of “terrorism” and “anti-terrorism” point to the need for a possible alternative approach to preventing the mutually complementing “terrorist” and “anti-terrorism” violence. Originality/Value: The greatest value of this analysis is that it offers a view of the problem of terrorism based in the tradition of sociological theory, particularly that of deviance, serving thus as an important complement to more customary criminalist, criminological, psychological and legal perspectives. Without such historically grounded and sociologically informed approach, critical perspective would not be possible.
Keywords: terrorism, colonialism, center, periphery, the logic of power, power relations
Published in DKUM: 16.04.2020; Views: 384; Downloads: 21
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