Reporting on line: the Internet and terrorism

The Hizballah homepage link to a number of associated sites each with a specific type of information. The web page of Hizbullah Secretary-General - Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah outlines the political and religious doctrine of the organisation, together with quick time movies of a number of key Khomeinistic Shi'ite clerics. The site is in both English and French.

‘Zionist terrorism’ archive www.qana.net/janta/main1.htm is a page dedicated to those who were killed by Israeli troops since 1948 including a number of allegedly murdered children - a visually powerful site of a well orchestrated propaganda operation.

The alleged torture at the Khiam prison by Israeli and Southern Lebanese soldiers is highlighted in www.khiamwatch.net. The site consists of a large number of testimonials and letters smuggled out by prisoners.

Kahane Chai – Kahane lives.

Aimed at restoring the biblical state Israel, the Kach group was founded by radical Israeli-American rabbi Meir Kahane, and Kahane Chai was founded by Meir Kahane’s son Binyamin following his father’s assassination in the US. Both groups were declared as terrorist organisation by the Israel cabinet in March 1994 following the al-ibrahimi Masque attack (US Department of State, 1999).

This site was the most technically sophisticated of those surveyed. Aiming to promote Jewish identity across geographically and linguistically diverse Zionist communities, it deployed the widest range of multi-media technology, encouraging interaction through polls, emails and even games. It included a version in Russian, serving conservative Zionist émigrés from that country, as well as a Hebrew version. Audio tapes were available in English, Hebrew, Arabic and Spanish.

The site actively merchandises with items such as "Special sale of the day"; in this case a Kahane.org video reduced from the regular price of $25.00 to $18.00. The eCommerce section includes a T shirt sale. Books, audio tapes, stickers and jewellery were also available.

While the epolls consist of polls similar in style to those operated by CNN. Eg: Should Israel allow International Investigators to enter Israel and investigate Jenin battle? 1172 votes were counted with 57 per cent voting no.

Games included "Welcome Arafat" which requires the player to shoot a pistol at a rapidly moving Arafat target. Hits are scored and players are invited to email Kahane.org. In Whack a Barak, "It is your difficult task of whacking some sense into [former Israeli Prime Minister] Barak's tiny Brains. Just Whack him with the plastic hammer and maybe he'll just come to his senses!" The game notes that it is not advocating violence against fellow Jews.

The site also provides a platform for fund raising and guest books for recording the visitors comments. People were urged to email the US Senate (contacts linked) to demand that the Kahane group no longer be listed as a terrorist group.

Euzkadi Ta Askatasuna - Basque Fatherland and Liberty was founded in 1959, seeking to establish a Basque homeland in northern Spain southern France. It finances its activities through robberies, kidnapping and extortion. Primarily opposed to the Spanish authorities, ETA is believed to have killed more than 800 people in bombings and executions.

The diverse construction of the sites reflects the political concerns of the radical communist, but anarchist influenced, independence movement. The style and structure of the site reflect ETA’s need to establish a unique political and cultural identity.

Consequently the sites make excellent use of the web’s capacity to deliver a combination of art/photography, text, animation and music. Some animations seem more concerned with aesthetics than overt political message, relying on a sometimes obscure cultural subtext.