Ain바카라�t No Terrorist

President Donald Trump바카라�s 바카라�warm condolences바카라� for the victims notwithstanding, investigators are yet to label the mass killing in Las Vegas as an 바카라�act of terror바카라�.

This, interestingly, is the third time in four months that the American public is talking about the issue. In June, when a man attacked members of the Republican Baseball team practising just outside Washington and again in August, when a man drove his car on protestors at a white supremacist meet in Charlottesville, people had similar questions. In both cases, the attackers were white Christians. Given this, many have wondered about the reasons behind President Donald Trump바카라�s reluctance to term the incidents as such, even though he is always ready to highlight the threat posed by 바카라�radical Islamic terrorism바카라�.

Indeed, discussions on terrorism and the Las Vegas killings exist in a polarised atmosphere. There is a growing sense that different standards are used while dealing with incidents where non-white, Muslim men are involved and those where the perpetrator happens to be a white, Christian male like Paddock.

Can events like the Las Vegas killings be described as acts of terrorism?

바카라�Based on the current information available, I would not say that it is an act of terrorism,바카라� says professor of Int­ernational Relations at the University of North Carolina, Navin Bapat. 바카라�The definition of terrorism is that it is an act of political violence committed by a non-state actor against civilians for the purpose of influencing a larger audience than the immediate victims,바카라� says Bapat, an expert on 바카라�terrorism and foreign policy바카라�.

So while Paddock was a non-state actor attacking civilians, there is no evi­dence that the attack was politically motiva­ted, nor any that the intention was to influence someone beyond the immediate victims. 바카라�This evidence may surface later, but right now, there isn바카라�t enough inf­ormation to suggest that it is terrorism,바카라� Bapat adds.

바카라�Terrorism is an act of political violence used to coerce a population through fear,바카라� says Andrew Mumford of Nottingham University. Echoing Bapat, he points out, 바카라�Right now, we don바카라�t know what Paddock바카라�s motives were. Until then, I would be reluctant to label it terrorism.바카라�

It comes down to the motive, says Mum­ford. 바카라�Take the actions of Anders Breivik in Norway, who killed dozens of young left-wing political activists out of a perverted fascist ideology.바카라� That was politically motivated바카라�undeniably terrorism. 바카라�But we need to know if Paddock was more than just an angry unstable individual wanting to murder people for the sake of it,바카라� Mumford adds.

However, he does acknowledge a bias existing among governments while dealing with acts of mass killing involving non-­whites. 바카라�Undeniably, there has been a tendency for authorities to use the label 바카라�terrorism바카라� faster in instances where the perpetrator is not white,바카라� he says.

바카라�This would imply that the skin colour of the perpetrator indicates to them a particular political motive,바카라� Mumford points out. 바카라�I think Islamic State바카라�s biz­arre attempt to claim ownershsip of Paddock is a sign of desperation by a group struggling to survive.바카라�

The IS might be written off by most after their reverses in Iraq and Syria  and most governments today recognise 바카라�terrorism바카라� to be the worst scourge that afflicts civilised society, but continue to exercise discretion on where and how they want to use the term.

Indian officials who for years were involved in garnering support at the United Nations and other multilateral forums against cross-border-terrorism from Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere in the country recall how reluctant most international players were to come out in the open and support New Delhi on the issue.

According to Asoke Mukerji, former Indian Permanent Representative at the UN in New York, it was an uphill task to get a resolution passed on the need to put up a united fight against terrorism. Par­tly, this was due to the wide support and sympathy that the Palestinians enjoyed in their struggle for a homeland. Though many of their desperate acts would now be described as 바카라�acts of terror바카라�, their supporters, who were also members of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), turned a blind eye when the issue of terrorism was being watered down. 바카라�Throughout the 바카라�80s and 바카라�90s, Pakistan took advant­age of this prevailing mood to equate their activities in Jammu and Kashmir with the issue of Palestine,바카라� says Mukerji. Subsequently, they got further support when they got the Islamic countries to support its stand, adds Mukerjee.

The issue of terrorism and how to def­ine it had always been a problematic area at the international stage. It was only after the assassination of King Ale­xander of Yugoslavia and the French foreign minister Louis Barthou at Mars­eilles by militant secessionists of ­Vardar Macedonia in 1934 that international players began to take formal cognisance of this threat. Subsequently, this led the 24-member League of Nations in 1937 to have the first convention for the Prevention and Punishment of Terrorism.

Yet it took the brutal killing of Israeli athletes at Munich Olympics in 1972 for the issue to be taken up by the UN General Assembly. However, during the Cold War period, the issue never got off the table, as the US and the Soviet Union had support for opposing militant groups and the power to veto any attempts to isolate and punish their clients.

바카라�The turning point was 9/11 and the change in the mood in the US,바카라� says Mukerji. Interestingly, in 2004, as a non-permanent member of the UN security council, Pakistan agreed to a description of 바카라�terrorism바카라� and a resolve to combat it by the world body, but has hitherto found ways to circumvent it.

Subsequently, the audacious 2008 Mumbai terror attacks fundamentally turned the tide in India바카라�s favour바카라�the world was finally made aware of the grievous threat that terrorism poses to democracies. 바카라�For the first time, key world players started looking at the threat as a global phenomenon rather than limiting it only to India-Pakistan and the issue of Kashmir,바카라� says Mukerji.

Though the world is more aware of the threat posed by terrorism than ever, governments are still wary while deciding which mass killing should be seen as an 바카라�act of terror바카라� and which purely is a criminal act.

바카라�Terrorism has a strict definition and it is best if it is not overused,바카라� says Bapat. According to him, the implications rest on how governments respond. If the act is a homicide that results in multiple fat­alities, the matter remains one for law enforcement. Police agencies (federal, state, and local) will likely investigate and may charge one or more persons, whose guilt or innocence will be determined by the judicial system. However, says Bapat, if an act is labelled 바카라�terrorism바카라�, there is a possibility that governments may behave more aggressively, particularly if the attack is considered transnational바카라�meaning that it originates from foreign countries or entities.

바카라�The nature of the attack isn바카라�t different바카라�regardless of whether it is a homic­ide or terrorist event, people die and this is tragic,바카라� he adds, reminding us to look beyond the semantics and narrow political agenda to focus on the larger human tragedy and loss of innocent lives.