The Terrorist Threat from Thailand: Jihad or Quest for Justice?

Rohan Gunaratna · Arabinda Acharya

nov 2012 · Potomac Books, Inc.

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Since January 2004 the violence in Thailand's southern provinces has claimed more than 4,600 lives. It has also adversely affected the local economy and overall quality of life there. An atmosphere of fear and intimidation is dividing the society along religious lines, and some experts are concerned about the possibility that this predominantly localized conflict might become absorbed into the global jihad.

Counterterrorism experts Rohan Gunaratna and Arabinda Acharya provide a short history of the conflict, which dates to at least the early 1900s, as well as an analysis of factors contributing to the most recent escalation of violence in 2004. The authors shed light on the causes of the southern Thai conflict and unravel the complex diversity and linkages among the key Thai insurgent groups and individuals involved. They examine its potential to spread to neighboring countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, and Indonesia. In addition to analyzing the insurgents' capabilities and opportunities, the authors provide a critique of government policies and make astute suggestions for resolving the conflict.

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ROHAN GUNARATNA is professor and head of the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. He was a senior fellow at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and at the Combating Terrorism Center at West Point. Gunaratna is the author or editor of fourteen books, including Inside Al Qaeda: Global Network of Terror (2002).

ARABINDA ACHARYA is research fellow and manager of strategic projects at the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research in the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. He is an author/coauthor of four books including, Targeting Terrorist Financing: International Cooperation and New Regimes (2009) and Ethnic Identity and National Conflict in China (2010).

GÉRARD CHALIAND is the former director of the European Center for the Studies of Conflict (Foundation for Strategic Research) in Paris.