How to close down a terrorist group

Military force may not be the best way to squash terrorist groups said the RAND Corporation at a congressional briefing from the RAND Corporation on factors that cause the end of terrorist groups. The briefing focused particularly on ways in which al-Qaida could be brought down.

Seth Jones, a political scientist at RAND, conducted a study examining 648 terrorist organizations from around the world. Of these, 41 percent have disappeared. The study focused primarily on what led to their demise. Jones said that 48 percent ended by cutting a political deal through negotiations with government, 40 percent through increased police surveillance, 10 percent of the groups succeeded in their aims and 7 percent ended through military force .

Jones said these results show that for the United States to effectively dismantle al-Qaida, negotiation would be far more effective that military action abroad. He also said that because the U.S. spends over 90 percent of its counterterrorism budget on the Department of Defense, it is misallocating its resources and pursuing a strategy that is not effective with the war on terror.