The contours of terrorism are changing, and the new terrorism has more diverse sources, motivations, and tactics than the old. It is more lethal, global in reach, and characterized by network forms of organization. Terrorist sponsorship is becoming hazier and "privatized." The August 1998 terrorist bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania fit in many ways the new mold. The chapters in this book trace the evolution of international terrorism against civilian and U.S. military targets, look ahead to where terrorism is going, and assess how it might be contained. Terrorism and counterterrorism are placed in strategic perspective, including how terrorism might be applied as an asymmetric strategy by less-capable adversaries. The report builds on a existing body of RAND research on terrorism and political violence, and makes extensive use of the RAND-St. Andrews Chronology of International Terrorism.
