I watched epsiode two of this “Dining with Terrorists” documentary today on Aljazeera…. do they show any of this on tv in the states right now?
Link to watch online | The filmakers blog
Summary:
Since the events of September 11 the word “terrorism” has acquired a new political dynamic.
Wars are waged and many lives have been lost in the name of combatting “terror”, strict legislation has been passed to prevent acts of “terrorism”.
It is a definition that is highly subjective and what constitutes a “terrorist” depends on where you live and what you believe in.
In a new six part series the author and journalist Phil Rees travelled to South Asia, the Middle East and the Americas to explore the debate and meaning of the word “terorrism”.
Phil Rees met groups labeled as terrorist organisations |
He met who are called terrorists by the west such as Taliban fighters in the tribal areas of Pakistan and al-Qassam Brigades commanders in Gaza.
On one level it is easy to determine who is a terrorist. It is the person who plants a bomb in a crowded street or commits other atrocities against innocent civilians.
But for a word used so often it has been difficult at times for international agencies or academics to define who is accurately a “terrorist”.
In the first episode of the series Phil Rees asks if the old adage that one man’s terrorist is another’s freedom fighter still applies.