The Nuclear Terrorism Threat and the Aum Shinrikyo Cult...

The Nuclear Terrorism Threat and the Aum Shinrikyo Cult Until the mid seventies, the term nuclear terror was used predominately to describe the threat of a nuclear attack by the Soviet Union. Since then, however, it has taken on a whole new meaning which many security experts feel poses a more serious threat to national security. In the past few decades, formal terrorist organizations have exploded planes out of the sky, bombed US military and diplomatic facilities abroad, and with the World Trade Center and Oklahoma City bombing incidents, they have even launched attacks on American soil. Yet until 20 March 1995 when five members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult released sarin nerve gas in the Tokyo subway system, the world had not seen†¦show more content†¦The guru, Asahara, is an essential guide throughout this spiritual evolution. Members of the group believe that salvation will only be achieved after Armageddon, even for those who are killed in the process. In spite of its religious nature, Aums leadership structure was organized in the form of a ministerial cabinet patterned after the Japanese government. Since its establishment in 1987, the Aum organization expanded physically, geographically, and financially. It is believed that at its height, the group had over 65,000 members, yet only 10,000 of these were located in Japan. Aum had a large representation in Russia, approximately three times the number of followers in Japan and half of its total membership worldwide. By the end of 1994, there were six Aum Shinrikyo branches in Moscow alone and another eleven offices outside the capital city. On a smaller scale, Aum established branches in Germany and the US and claimed small groups of followers in Australia, Belarus, and the Ukraine. The organizations financial assets were accumulated through fund raising, donations, and a variety of legitimate business efforts, from computer businesses in Taiwan toShow MoreRelatedThe Japanese Doomsday Cult2659 Words   |  11 Pages POLICY PAPER Aum Shinrikyo: The Japanese Doomsday Cult Lisa Bertsch – lmb5956@psu.edu HLS 805: Political Violence, Threats, and Insurgency Summer 2015 – Dr. Paul Gill Table of Contents Abstract Pg. 3 Chizuo Matsumoto, aka Asahara Shoko Pg. 4 Syncretism Pg. 4 The early years: 1984-1989 Pg. 4 Organizational Goals and the Means of Achieving Them Pg. 5 Recruitment Pg. 6 Examples of Violent Attacks Pg. 7 The Split Pg. 9 Conclusion Pg. 10 References Pg. 12 AbstractRead MoreOverview of Terrorist Organizations: Al-Qaeda and Aum Shinrikyo3113 Words   |  12 Pagesï » ¿Codex: Two Terrorist Organizations Al-Qaeda and Aum Shinrikyo Al Qaeda: Origins People too commonly forget that the story of Al-Qaeda is very much the story of Osama Bin Laden: so much of the development and evolution of Al-Qaeda truly is dependent on this one man. 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