Alex Ambrose

Period 1

Meyer

February 2, 2017

Terrorism

In the world we live in right now, there are many large and controversial issues

that affect people's lives. One very large and scary problem that our world faces today is

the threat of terrorists and religious extremists. This issue is worldwide and threatens

almost every person living in the world today. There have been many large incidents

involving terrorists, some examples are, the attack on the World Trade Center on

September 11th 2001, the Oklahoma City Bombing on April 19th, 1995, and the U.S.

Embassy bombings in East African cities of Nairobi on August 8th, 1998. All of these

acts are very well known and that is only 3 out of the hundreds of attacks committed by

terrorists.

One of the most significant terrorist attacks is also large part of American history

was the hijacking and crashing of the planes into both of the world trade towers and the

pentagon killed around 2,996 people and wounded around another 10,000. These

attacks were committed by the terrorist group Al-Qaeda who is also responsible for

around 50 more significant terrorist attacks. During the attacks, a total of 4 planes were

hijacked and taken control of by the group Al-Qaeda, 2 of the planes, American Airlines

Boeing 767 loaded with 20,000 gallons of jet fuel and a United Airlines Boeing 767 were

aimed at the World Trade Center. The first plane hit the north tower of the World Trade

Center around 8:45 am, the plane hit the 80th floor and killed hundreds of people on
impact. The second plane hit the south tower around 18 minutes later, this plane hit

about 20 floors lower killing hundreds also. During this attack, around 9:45 the third

plane to get hijacked, a Boeing 757, was flown into the U.S. Government building

known as the Pentagon in Washington D.C killing 125 military personnel and 64 on the

plane that was hijacked by the same terrorist group. During this time the U.S. was

shaking in fear of what was going to happen next and what this can mean for our

country. At around 10 am the north tower of the World Trade Center collapsed killing

thousands of people and covering many surrounding blocks of New York in dust, 30

minutes later the other tower collapsed killing thousands as well. All in all, around 2,996

people died which included 343 firefighters and paramedics, 23 New York Police

Department officers and 37 Port Authority officers, all risking their lives to save the lives

of the people affected by this attack. The 4th plane, United flight 93 was Hijacked and

was traveling towards the White House. The passengers on that plane were able to

break into the cockpit and take out the terrorists and stop the plane from reaching its

intended target and crashed it in a field in Pennsylvania. This incident killed all of the 45

passengers on the plane. The attacks that took place on September 11th, 2001 is the

most fatal and most influential terrorist attack in american history.

Many new security protocol was put into place following the attacks on

September 11th, 2001. Before the attacks, airport security was very slim, the TSA

(Transportation Security Administration) had little to no influence on what can and

cannot be brought on the airliners, instead they were run by the private companies such

as, Delta, South West, etc You were allowed pretty much take anything on the plane

but firearms, and a blade over 4 inches long. In the November following 9/11/01
congress passed the Aviation and Transportation Security Act which impacted travel via

airports and planes. The act put heavy regulations on the items you are allowed to take

on the aircraft such as any liquid over 3.4 fluid ounces, no knife of any kind and no

alcohol beverages over 70% alcohol. This was put in place to prevent people from

hurting or threatening the passengers on the plane.

The Aviation and Transportation Security Act also puts in place that during a flight

the pilot has to lock the cockpit from the inside and can only open it at the end of the

flight or a severe emergency involving the people operating the plane. This was put in

place to make sure that no one that is unqualified or dangerous is able to get into the

cockpit and take control of the plane.

After the attacks on September 11th, 2001 the United States Government

changed its immigration policy and made it much harder for people to get visas for all

immigrants but especially those that are from the middle east and areas associated with

Al- Qaeda. This was put in place to stop any of those working for Bin Laden from

infiltrating our country and causing harm to our citizens.

One of the most influential and traumatizing part of terrorist attacks is the mental

and psychological effect it has on people. For example, after the attacks on the World

Trade Center some people were and still are very afraid of flying because they do not

feel safe. This can be an effect of any terrorist attack no matter how small. The

dictionary defines a terrorist as, a person who uses unlawful violence and intimidation,

especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims Terrorists will use any way

necessary to achieve their goal and terrorize the people they wish to harm, this is one of

the reasons they are so dangerous and threatening to our world today.
 There have been very many large and dangerous terrorist groups that have

made a very large impact on the world today. Some of the most terrible groups include,

Al-Qaeda lead by Osama Bin Laden, The Taliban led by Mullah Mohammed Omar and

prominent group in the middle east currently, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant also

known as ISIS. Those groups are only some famous and significant ones that have

been part of history and part of life today there are hundreds of groups that try and

terrorize the people around them for political gains.

There is a phrase which says One man's terrorist is another man's freedom

fighter" this shows that there are always 2 different stories and sides to each act of

violence against someone, that is why the topic is very controversial. The group that is

committing the crime has different beliefs on why they should carry out their plans. The

very dangerous and prominent power in the middle east at this time known as ISIS are

a group of religious extremists that follow an extreme version of islam which encourages

and promotes religious violence to prove loyalty to the supreme being. ISIS believes

that what they are doing what they need to for their religion and it is showing devotion to

their very strong beliefs and they will do anything to achieve their goals, even if it

includes gassing and bombing their own citizens. ISISs main goal as stated is to create

a state run by themselves and all based on their religion where everyone can live in

peace. They claim they will do this by taking over territory in syria iran and iraq using the

stockpiles of weapons and military equipment left by Saddam Hussein and his corrupt

government. They also are sending spies into other countries to get government secrets

and figure out every little thing about every town before they go and infiltrate their walls

and kill everyone in the town. One very terrible and extreme thing ISIS is known for is
sending and posting videos of executions of prisoners of war, these videos are very

graphic and are used to intimidate anyone that thinks they have a chance of defeating

them. ISIS claims to have all power over all muslim and islamic groups in the middle

east even though many different organizations have said they have no ties and

affiliation to them. ISIS is a very dangerous threat to the world at this point in time.

There are many different programs that are being put in place to help stop the

spread of terrorists in the world. Many countries have started head to head combat with

ISIS and other countries have been working on cutting off their revenue to stop them

from spreading to other parts of the world. The FBI has made investigating terrorist

attacks their top priority, they have opened up over 100 different joint task forces to help

find out how to stop all of the attacks. There are many other programs and things being

done to stop ISIS and other terrorist groups.

Terrorism is a very large problem in the world today. Terrorist groups are

threatening to everyone and will do anything to achieve their goals. Terrorists have been

a large problem for hundreds of years and the world needs to learn how to control and

eliminate the threats that are caused by terrorist groups.

Sources.
http://www.history.com/topics/9-11-attacks

https://www.tsa.gov/travel/security-screening/prohibited-items

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/terrorism

https://www.fbi.gov/investigate/terrorism
http://www.cfr.org/iraq/islamic-state/p14811

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-35695648