Proponents of New Terrorism aim to maximize casualties to attract attention to their cause and fulfill what additional goal?

Proponents of New Terrorism often operate with motivations that extend beyond the immediate political landscape. A key feature of their strategy is to maximize casualties, which helps draw significant media attention to their causes. This attention is not merely for demonstrating their power but is often intertwined with a religious narrative that seeks to fulfill what they perceive as mandates from their beliefs.

In this context, many terrorist groups leverage religious ideologies to legitimize their violent actions, aiming to instill fear and galvanize followers by invoking a divine purpose behind their campaigns. Such groups often articulate their actions as being part of a larger spiritual struggle or jihad, serving to attract support and justify their violent means within a religious framework. This religious motivator encompasses their goal of not only inflicting casualties but also advancing their theological narratives, enhancing recruitment, and validating their actions to potential supporters.

This contrasts with motivations such as gaining political power, where the focus is more on achieving specific governance outcomes, or promoting humanitarian principles, which typically do not align with the violent methods employed by these groups. Securing funding from abroad might also be a strategic consideration, but it generally stems from a need to bolster their operational capability rather than a primary goal tied to their ideological framework.