INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM: ATTRIBUTES OF TERRORIST EVENTS ITERATE 1968-2021 DATA CODEBOOK Compiled by Edward F. Mickolus Todd Sandler Jean M. Murdock Peter A. Flemming Last Update March 2021 The ITERATE project is an attempt to quantify data on the characteristics of transnational terrorist groups, their activities which have international impact, and the environment in which they operate. ITERATE 3 and 4 update the coverage of terrorist incidents first reported in ITERATE 1 and 2, which can be obtained from the Inter- University Consortium for Political and Social Research, Box 1248, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106. ITERATE 3 and 4 are compatible with the coding categories used in its predecessors, but includes new variables. The working definition of international/transnational terrorism used by the ITERATE project is the use, or threat of use, of anxiety-inducing, extra-normal violence for political purposes by any individual or group, whether acting for or in opposition to established governmental authority, when such action is intended to influence the attitudes and behavior of a target group wider than the immediate victims and when, through the nationality or foreign ties of its perpetrators, its location, the nature of its institutional or human victims, or the mechanics of its resolution, its ramifications transcend national boundaries. International terrorism is such action when carried out by individuals or groups controlled by a sovereign state, whereas transnational terrorism is carried out by basically autonomous non-state actors, whether or not they enjoy some degree of support from sympathetic states. "Victims" are those individuals who are directly harmed by the terrorist incident. While a given terrorist action may somehow harm world stability, citizens of nations must feel a more direct loss than the weakening of such a collective good. The dataset consists of four parts. Nearly all incidents appear in the COMMON file, which the FATE, HOSTAGE and SKYJACK files supplement. Some non-terrorist domestic skyjackings appear in the SKYJACK file and not in the COMMON file. In cases in which we know what happened to the terrorists, we record their destiny in the FATE file. Variables specific to hostage-taking incidents, including aerial, land, and sea hijackings, barricade-and-hostage situations, and kidnappings are provided in the HOSTAGE file. SUMMARY OF VARIABLES List of Variables in COMMON File Incident Characteristics 1. Date of start of incident--year 2. Date of start of incident--month 3. Date of start of incident--day/and incident code number 4. Location start 5. Location end 6. Scene of incident 7. Evidence of state sponsorship 8. Type of state sponsorship 9. Type of incident 10. Total number of nationalities involved in incident Terrorist Characteristics 11. First group initiating action 12. Second group initiating action 13. Number of terrorist groups directly involved 14. Number of terrorists in attack force 15. Number of female terrorists in attack force 16. Number of nationalities of terrorists in attack force 17. First nationality of terrorists in attack force 18. Second nationality of terrorists in attack force 19. Third nationality of terrorists in attack force 20. Recidivists in attack force Victim Characteristics 21. Number of victims 22. Number of nationalities of victims 23. First victim's nationality 24. Second victim's nationality 25. Third victim's nationality 26. Number of United States victims 27. Type of United States victim 28. Type of immediate victim 29. Nature of victim entities Life and Property Losses 30. Total individuals wounded 31. Terrorists wounded 32. Foreign wounded 33. United States wounded 34. Government officials wounded 35. Total number of individuals killed 36. Terrorists killed 37. Foreign killed 38. United States killed 39. Government officials killed 40. Amount of damage 41. Type of weapon used Success/Failure 42. Terrorist logistical success List of Variables in FATE File Fate of Terrorists 1. Incident code/date 2. First fate of terrorists 3. Number of terrorists receiving first fate 4. Second fate of terrorists 5. Number of terrorists receiving second fate 6. Third fate of terrorists 7. Number of terrorists receiving third fate 8. Fourth fate of terrorists 9. Number of terrorists receiving fourth fate 10. Total number of terrorists arrested Extradition 11. Was extradition requested 12. Nation requesting extradition 13. Identity of nation receiving extradition request 14. Was extradition request granted List of Variables in HOSTAGE File Target of Terrorist Demands 1. Incident code/date 2. Number of hostages 3. Number of hostages that escaped during the incident after being secured by terrorists 4. Target of demands 1 5. Target of demands 2 6. Target of demands 3 7. Number of governments/entities upon whom demands were made 8. Were demands made upon host nation Negotiation Behavior 9. Demand #1: Media announcement 10. Demand #2: Political change 11. Demand #3: Non-Robin Hood ransom 12. Demand #4: Robin Hood ransom 13. Demand #5: Release prisoners 14. Demand #6: Safe haven for a destination 15. Demand #7: Safe passage out of the location 16. Demand #8: Other demands 17. Terrorist behavior in negotiations 18. Allowed sequential release of hostages 19. Allowed deadline to pass without engaging in action threatened 20. Number of deadlines where the threat was carried out Results of Negotiations 21. Terrorist negotiation success 22. Type of target negotiator 23. Number of target negotiators 24. Response of target 25. Amount of ransom paid 26. Source of ransom payment 27. Number of prisoners released 28. Ultimate destination of released prisoners 29. First hostage's fate 30. Second hostage's fate 31. Duration of incident in hours 32. Duration of incident in days Other Nations Involved in Incident 33. Number of nations denying safe haven request 34. First nation denying safe haven request 35. Second nation denying safe haven request 36. Number of nations granting safe haven request 37. First nation granting safe haven request 38. Second nation granting safe haven request 39. Number of nations with ancillary involvement in incident 40. First ancillary nation 41. Second ancillary nation List of Variables in SKYJACK File 1. Date of Start of Incident--Year 2. Date of Start of Incident--Month 3. Date of Start of Incident--Day 4. Incident Code number 5. Duration in hours Airline Information 6. Type of plane 7. Airline company Location of Incident 8. Flight plan embarkation point 9. Hijacker embarkation point 10. Flight plan end point 11. Hijacker desired end point 12. Number of stopovers and refuelings Number of Individuals Involved 13. Crew members 14. Individuals on board plane 15. Hijackers 16. Number wounded 17. Hostages wounded 18. Hijackers wounded 19. Crew wounded 20. Number killed 21. Hostages killed 22. Hijackers killed 23. Crew killed 24. Damage to plane 25. Logistical success of hijacking incident 26. Negotiation success of hijacking incident 27. Type of weapon DESCRIPTION OF VARIABLES Description of Variables in COMMON File Incident Characteristics 1. Date of start of incident--year The beginning of the incident is considered to be the date at the scene of the incident in which it first became apparent to individuals other than the initiators that a terrorist event was taking place. ITERATE data sets issued prior to July 2003 are coded with two digits for years (i.e. 68=1968, 69=1969......00=2000, 01=2001). Values: 1968 1968 1969 1969 . 2002 2002 2. Date of start of incident--month See description for variable 1. Values: 01 January 02 February . 12 December 99 Unknown month 3. Date of start of incident--day/and incident code number See description for variable 1. The first two digits are the day of the month, followed by a unique two-digit code number. This number is assigned to each discrete incident that occurs on a given day. Specific incidents may thus be accessed by calling up the first eight digits of an entry for an incident. First two values: 01 . 31 99 Unknown day Second two values: 00 01 . 99 4. Location start This variable is coded according to the place-name in which the incident first began. In the case of hijackings, the point of takeoff of the plane's hijackers is used. Letter bombs are coded at the place of mailing, if known. Facilities of international organizations, such as NATO or the United Nations, are considered to be on the soil of the host government as are foreign embassies. Codes for nations and place names conform with the standard international relations archive country code developed by Bruce M. Russett, J. David Singer and Melvin Small in "National Political Units in the Twentieth Century: A Standardized List" 62, 3 American Political Science Review (September 1968), pp. 935-950. A few entries not relevant to the Russett, et al., study have been added. Incidents have occurred in locations other than nation-states, including colonies, dependencies, in the air, and on the high seas. The legal existence of certain of these "countries" is in dispute--in some cases armed conflict--and their use here is not meant to prejudge the merits of individual cases, nor to convey or withhold citizenship to members of separatist-oriented organizations. Some attacks are engaged in by residents of nations in which they are fighting to alter their citizenship (e.g. separatists or irredentists). While many of these attacks are considered to be domestic terrorism, such attacks are included if the terrorists traverse a natural geographical boundary to conduct attacks on the metropole, e.g. Northern Irish attacks on the main British island, Puerto Rican attacks outside of the island, and attacks within Israel by Palestinian refugees. Attacks by exiles resident in but not citizens of a nation are also included, e.g. South Moluccans in the Netherlands, Cuban exiles in the US. Domestic attacks engaged in during the conduct of a civil war are not included.