Countering terrorism and armed insurgency forces in the international context

Abstract

In the world literature there is no common definition of terrorism, but the view of its essential elements is widely accepted. Terrorism as a method should be distinguished from other forms of violence, primarily from guerrilla and terror. With a view that terrorism is a form of political violence, it should also be distinguished from the concepts of rebellion and armed insurgency, because insurgents may use terrorism too as one of their methods. A particular problem is the possibility that insurgency and armed insurgency can be interpreted in various ways, in terms of security, politics, or criminal law. Recent events called “Arab Spring” even better highlight the complexity of the case where a large group of citizens rebel against the current government, and at one point the rebellion itself turns into armed insurgency aimed at overthrowing the government or at the secession of territory. Circumstances in which the members of the Serbian Armed Forces may find themselves, such as a nation-wide rebellion against the regime in power, and possible involvement of the Serbian Armed Forces, opens not only legal, but also professional and ethical issues that need to be defined beforehand.

Keywords

• international criminal law
• terrorism
• armed insurgency
• guerrilla
• security forces