Congratulations, Greece (Updated)
Terrorism risk assessment: Russia at "Extreme Risk", Greece at "High Risk", U. S. at "Medium Risk", Canada and Germany at "Low Risk".
Maplecroft, the risk assessment company, has produced its Terrorism Risk Index for 2010. The results are on the map above. The countries listed as at “Extreme Risk” of terrorism are:
- Somalia
- Pakistan
- Iraq
- Afghanistan
- Palestinian Occupied Territory
- Colombia
- Thailand
- Philippines
- Yemen
- Russia
Greece has achieved the distinction of being the country whose ranking has declined the most over the last year:
The largest fall in rankings belongs to Greece, which dropped from 57 to 24 to overtake Spain (27) and become the European country most at risk from terrorist attacks. Between June 2009 and June 2010, the country experienced 180 attacks – more than took place in Yemen. Recently, small left-wing groups have re-emerged, attacking a range of targets. Attacks tend to be non-fatal, but they can be highly disruptive as was seen in early November 2010, when a series of parcel bombs were addressed to embassies in Athens as well as European leaders and institutions.
Maplecroft characterizes Greece’s terrorism risk as being due to multiple attacks by “small left-wing groups” over the last year.
The U. S. is #33 on the list and is deemed to be at “Medium Risk”.
Something to do with their economic turmoil?
I wouldn’t wonder although I think it’s more likely to be due to the response to the economic problems rather than the problems themselves.
Afghanistan isn’t in the terrorism “extreme risk” category?
Does that mean we can stop nation-building there now?
You seem to have deleted Afghanistan? That omission stuck out.
ponce: Afghanistan should actually be #4 on the list. Behind Iraq, interestingly enough….
Thanks, yes. It’s in the #4 slot. I’ve corrected my list.
It’s hard to take the list too seriously when it ranks Mexico as low risk. Rampant drug violence has made many of the cities near the U.S. border more dangerous than Iraq. Apparently this doesn’t count as “terrorism,” so Mexico gets the low-risk treatment.
It’s a terrorism risk list, not a violence risk list, a crime risk list, or an environmental degradation list. Just a terrorism risk list.
I know of no political motivation behind the problems in Mexico and, consequently, classifying them as terrorist attacks would be a stretch.
That may be true for most of the Mexican drug-related violence, but:
“This attack on the employees [of a manufacturing plant] was a high-impact event that seeks to destabilize governments,” said Adrián Sánchez, spokesman for the Ciudad Juárez police.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/29/world/americas/29mexico.html
The gangs seem to be moving in a different direction. They’re not happy about being targeted, so it seems they’re now using violence to get the people to make the government back off. I’d call that terrorism. And given that this sort of thing is just beginning, it’s certainly plausible that Mexico could be under high risk of terrorism. Or at least more than low risk.
Our State Department seems to agree. From later in the above-linked article:
The recent loss of innocent lives has heightened the anxiety in the country and seemed to buttress statements by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton that the cartel violence was taking on shades of terrorism and teetering toward the strife of Colombia in the 1990s.