The 50 Worst Terrorist Attacks

The 50 Worst
Terrorist Attacks

EDWARD
F.
MICKOLUS
AND
SUSAN
L.
SIMMONS

Praeger Security International

Copyright 2014 by Edward F. Mickolus and Susan L. Simmons

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Mickolus, Edward F.
   The 50 worst terrorist attacks / Edward F. Mickolus and Susan L. Simmons.
     pages cm
   Includes indexes.
   ISBN 978-1-4408-2827-0 (hardback) — ISBN 978-1-4408-2828-7 (ebook)
1. Terrorism—History. I. Simmons, Susan L. II. Title. III. Title: Fifty worst terrorist attacks.
   HV6431.M487   2014
   363.32509—dc23      2014004392

ISBN: 978-1-4408-2827-0
EISBN: 978-1-4408-2828-7

18  17  16  15  14  1  2  3  4  5

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All statements of fact, opinion, or analysis expressed are those of the authors and do not reflect the official positions or views of the CIA or any other U.S. government agency. Nothing in the contents should be construed as asserting or implying U.S. government authentication of information or Agency endorsement of the authors' views. This material has been reviewed by the CIA to prevent the disclosure of classified information.

Unfortunately, when considering international terrorism, any list of the
worst
is a “living document,” requiring continuous adjustment as new incidents occur. When this book was in final editing in late September 2013, three significant attacks needed to be reflected upon and evaluated for the
50 Worst
list.

On Sunday, September 22, 2013, a bombing at a Protestant church in Peshawar, Pakistan, killed at least 85 people and wounded 141, numbers comparable to other attacks included in the list. The day before saw a wave of bombings in Iraq that led to 96 deaths and an al-Shabaab attack on the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya, that killed at least 62 people and injured 175 people, including many foreigners. Although the bombings entailed more deaths, the Kenya attack is a more important milestone in the maturation of international terrorism. Al-Shabaab demonstrated that although it was riven with factionalism, it was able to assemble a multinational strike team that could engage in a sophisticated operation outside its primary sanctuary, involving multiple attack points and a more nuanced style of attack. Not limiting itself to a straightforward multipledeath bombing, al-Shabaab used the Westgate attack to seize international headlines for several days, likely establishing its credentials as a group worthy of its new al Qaeda affiliation and attractive to wannabe jihadis as capable of daring exploits.

Sadly, the use of terrorism by an individual or group to attempt to achieve political ends continues to gain traction. Whether or not terrorism is an effective coercive tactic in the short term continues to be debated. As a long-term strategy, terrorism can only achieve a Pyrrhic victory so the
stated motives of anyone choosing to perpetrate an act of terrorism must be questioned. Destroying lives is the ultimate price and takes resolute malevolence—not virtue or justice.