State terrorism and the consolidation of power under Saddam Hussein

Iraq Under Saddam

The country of Iraq has become a strong source of state terrorism in today's society. As show of proof, Iraq has many of the characteristics associated with enforcement terror. First, the acts inflicted on the population are done through men in uniform, rather than small bands of rebel forces. Iraq has, in the past, used violence for political ends, such as land control. The Iraqi government has harmed people not involved in the countries struggles. Their purpose is to spread panic and terror to ensure surrender of the people. Their attacks are spontaneous, yet well planned, and are clearly performed by governmental forces. Further, Saddam and his military use dualism to create the illusion of an "us vs. them" mentality (Galtung, 2002).

However, terrorism in the region did not start without warning. Saddam's rise to power left a trail of blood and death as he quickly rose through the ranks of the military. His presidency became legitimate only after killing many of the most prominent men in Iraq. As Saddam took power, he began quickly ridding the country of entire populations, committing genocide and mass destruction. It was this step that essentially created terrorism as a policy tool in Iraq. As Saddam grew in power, his use of terror persuaded many individuals to follow his lead, and provided the base for terrorism in Iraq (Rasuli, 2002).

Further, the world opinion of Iraq's actions did not dissuade Saddam from his continued terrorism. Even following the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 1991, Saddam continued to use tactics considered terroristic to control the population. Additionally, Saddam allegedly continued to produce weapons of mass destruction to further control the population and to threaten the world (Rasuli, 2002).