According to the report Patterns of International Terrorism 2003, issued by the US Department of State on April 2004, thirty-five (35) American citizens died from international terrorism world-wide in 2003. They were killed in the following countries:

Kuwait: 1

Colombia: 1

Philippines: 1

Israel: 10

Palestinian occupied territories: 6

Saudi Arabia: 9

Iraq: 5

Afghanistan: 2

for further details see http://www.state.gov/s/ct/rls/pgtrpt/2003/33771.htm

The above distribution demonstrates that terrorism against US citizens is directly related to US intervention and occupation and has little to do with an alleged hatred for Americans, as such. Some of the above victims were involved in illegal or military activities. No U.S. citizen died in 2003 as a result of international terrorism in Europe, Africa, Australia and North America. In South America, only one U.S. citizen died from international terrorism (in Colombia). That person was a pilot of a plane owned by Southern Command.

Not only is international terrorism against U.S. citizens limited to locations were the United States is engaging in occupation or in supporting repressive practices.

The extent of the harm to U.S. citizens does not either warrant a “war on terrorism”: In the same year as 35 U.S. citizens were killed for political reasons world-wide, 16,503 persons were murdered and 93,433 persons were raped in the U.S. alone (FBI statistics). This alone demonstrates that the motive for the “war on terrorism” is not the number of victims nor their identities.

International terrorism is contrived threat, a monumental deception carried out by governments and facilitated by mass media to justify aggression, occupation, intervention and the curtailment of human rights. This deception must be exposed as an attack by colluding governments on democracy, human rights. By permitting states to engage in gross human rights violations and aggression, the contrived threat of international terrorism may itself be considered as threat to international peace and security.

Global Research Contributing Editor Elias Davidsson lives in Reykjavik, Iceland.  He is a composer, author, human rights activist and a member of the Icelandic chapter of the 911-Truth Movement.