HERBERT KITSCHELT*
Origins of International Terrorism in the Middle East

Islamist terrorism is a response to predatory regimes which no longer have the means to co-opt their opponents and resort to repression rather than negotiated concessions. This type of regime is widespread in the Middle East, not least due to the region's oil wealth. Islam is incidental to both the predatory regimes and the terrorist response. Elsewhere in the world, structural conditions exist for future non-Islamist terrorism.