The Answers

What is the answer to global terrorism? The fundamental point about terrorism is present in its very name: it is violence designed to achieve political gain by spreading terror. Terrorism is essentially asymmetric and works by cowing people into submission. Which is precisely why it can be answered; after all, who wants to be bullied in to submission? In fact, the fight against terror does not only take place in the dusty hills of Afghanistan, Africa or Asia: it takes place in our own minds.In this book, world expert Paul Wilkinson answers several frequently asked questions about terrorism. What do terroists really want? What can be done to defeat them? What is the future of terrorism? There is no “one size fits all” solution, instead it is a multi-headed beast constantly mutating and adapting to changes in the political and strategic environment. 


Paul Wilkinson was Professor Emeritus at St Andrews University’s Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence and one of the world’s leading experts on terrorism.