Terrorism, continuing unabated in the contemporary world, is having a serious impact on the lives of people and nations. Once, only govern ments and ruling classes possessed the power to coerce large segments of the world''s peoples. Today, a handful of thugs, covered and concealed by a collection of terrorist organizations, are disturbing people every where by perpetrating dramatic criminal acts-bombings, kidnappings, assassinations, etc.-on an almost daily basis, in places specifically cho sen for their vulnerability: a railroad train, a pub, a beachfront apartment, a bus, a restaurant. Furthermore, a few of the world''s most notorious terrorist groups are associated in a loose coalition, which has left around the earth a trail of violent crimes against humanity of the most heinous type. Among these outrages are random murder, including the killing of innocents, and barricade and hostage situations involving the elderly and young children. Many of the victims of these terrorists are randomly selected for the sole purpose of obtaining maximum shock action calculated to attract widespread exposure via the communications media. A dramatic example is the assassination of Lord Louis Mountbatten, one of the most distinguished soldier-statesmen of the century, by terrorists of the Pro visional Wing of the Irish Republican Army (LR.A.).
