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Terrorism
is a controversial term with no internationally agreed singledefinition.
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There are however severalInternational conventions onterrorismwith somewhat different definitions.
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In one modern sense,
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it isviolenceagainst civilians to achieve political or ideologicalobjectives by creating fear.
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Most commondefinitions of terrorisminclude only thoseacts which are intended to create fear (terror), are perpetrated for anideological goal (as opposed to a lone attack), and deliberately target or disregard the safety of non-combatants. Some definitions also include actsof unlawfulviolence and war.Terrorism is also a form of unconventional warfareandpsychological warfare. The word is politically and emotionally charged,
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and this greatlycompounds the difficulty of providing a precise definition. One1988studyby theUS Armyfound that over 100 definitions of the word "terrorism"have been used.
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. A person who practices terrorism is a
terrorist
.Terrorism has been used by a broad array of political organizations infurthering their objectives; both right-wing and left-wing political parties,nationalistic, and religious groups, revolutionaries and ruling governments.
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The presence of non-state actors in widespread armed conflict hascreated controversy regarding the application of thelaws of war .An International Round Table on Constructing Peace, DeconstructingTerror (2004) hosted byStrategic Foresight Grouprecommended that adistinction should be made between terrorism and acts of terror. While actsof terrorism are criminal acts as per theUnited Nations Security CouncilResolution 1373anddomestic jurisprudenceof almost all countries in the world, terrorism refers to a phenomenon including the actual acts, theperpetrators of acts of terrorism themselves and their motives. There isdisagreement on definitions of terrorism. However, there is an intellectualconsensusglobally, that acts of terrorism should not be accepted under any circumstances. This is reflected in all important conventions includingthe United Nationscounter terrorismstrategy, the decisions of the MadridConference on terrorism, the Strategic Foresight Group andALDERoundTables at theEuropean Parliament.Official definitions determine counter-terrorism policy and are oftendeveloped to serve it. Most government definitions outline the following key
 
criteria: target, objective, motive, perpetrator, and legitimacy or legality of the act. Terrorism is also often recognizable by a following statement fromthe perpetrators.
Violence
– According to Walter Laqueur of theCenter for Strategic andInternational Studies, "the only general characteristic of terrorism generallyagreed upon is that terrorism involves violence and the threat of violence."However, the criterion of violence alone does not produce a usefuldefinition, as it includes many acts not usually considered terrorism:war ,riot,organized crime, or even a simpleassault. Property destruction that does not endanger life is not usually considered aviolent crime, but somehave described property destruction by theEarth Liberation FrontandAnimal Liberation Frontas violence and terrorism; seeeco-terrorism.
Psychological impact and fear 
– The attack was carried out in such away as to maximize the severity and length of the psychological impact.Each act of terrorism is a “performance,” devised to have an impact onmany large audiences. Terrorists also attack national symbols to showtheir power and to shake the foundation of the country or society they areopposed to. This may negatively affect a government's legitimacy, whileincreasing the legitimacy of the giventerrorist organizationand/or ideology  behind a terrorist act.
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Perpetrated for a Political Goal
– Something all terrorist attacks have incommon is their perpetration for a political purpose. Terrorism is a politicaltactic, not unlike letter writing or protesting, that is used by activists whenthey believe no other means will effect the kind of change they desire. Thechange is desired so badly that failure is seen as a worse outcome thanthe deaths of civilians. This is often where the interrelationship betweenterrorism and religionoccurs. When a political struggle is integrated intothe framework of a religious or "cosmic"
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struggle, such as over thecontrol of an ancestral homeland or holy site such as Israel and Jerusalem,failing in the political goal (nationalism) becomes equated with spiritualfailure, which, for the highly committed, is worse than their own death or the deaths of innocent civilians.
Deliberate targeting of non-combatants
– It is commonly held that thedistinctive nature of terrorism lies in its intentional and specific selection of civiliansas direct targets. Specifically, the criminal intent is shown whenbabies, children, mothers, and the elderly are murdered, or injured, and putin harms way. Much of the time, the victims of terrorism are targeted not
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