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Whatever groups carried out the terror attacks in Turkey and India had different objectives and ideologies. But what they had in common was a sick desire to spread terror and mayhem by inflicting death and injury on innocent people.
They also had another common goal; to set in motion a backlash against minority groups thereby causing more chaos that they hoped to benefit from.
According to their sick logic, the more terror blasts that go off, the greater the sense of anger among the population. This in turn, they hope, will result in mob violence against ethnic minorities enabling the terrorists to take advantage of the ensuing havoc.
A vicious cycle is what the terrorists want to unleash. They must not be allowed to. India and Turkey have dealt with terror atrocities for generations, and both countries have within their borders ethnic minorities that are fearful of mob reprisals. To their immense credit, both the Indian and Turkish governments have reacted with firmness of purpose and discipline. This is the best way to counter the threat.
It is also important to utilise the public, the eyes and ears of any successful bid to combat terror and one of the most successful.
Make sure they know how to look out for anything suspicious and if they have concerns to contact the police immediately. No amount of counter-measures can ever fully guarantee that terror will not strike, but the impact of any strike can be greatly curtailed by public awareness. Of equal importance is the response to any terror attack. It must be measured and under no circumstances should minority communities suffer at the hands of others who are bent on extracting revenge. Terror is a threat, but a greater threat is a vicious backlash that only serves the terrorists.
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