Terrorism in international law

Abstract

Terrorism is a very vast subject in international law and cannot be tackled in its entirety. Defining terrorism has been something that has befuddled authors and States for a very long time. In fact as yet, there are no universally accepted definitions of terrorism in international law, creating several problems of classification. Thus terrorism, has become intrinsically linked to politics and not only to law in determining whether a particular action is to be considered an act of terrorism or not. The methodologies of terrorism have also kept up to date with technology. Globalisation, the internet and other technological advances have made it easier for terrorists to establish global networks and operate independently while maintaining a measure of contact with other terrorist cells in order to carry out complex plans. Weapons of mass destruction have also become a threat as it has now been recognized that State terrorism or State-sponsored terrorism is an equally threatening phenomenon which allows terrorists access to greater resources and more complicated weapons. The conclusion of the ILC's work on State Responsibility has possibly added a whole new dimension to the discussion of terrorism, holding states liable under the articles for any acts which they may have been a party to, whether directly or indirectly, thus giving a further scope for bringing to bear the accountability of States for terrorist acts. International reactions to terrorism should remain within the limits of legality and international law, however it must be kept in mind that, further efforts must be made in order to fill in the gaps within the present legal order relating to terrorism, rather than starting from scratch with a whole new system.