Suicide bombing is one of the most psychologically devastating tactics in modern warfare and terrorism. Although its exact origins are debated, various actors have repeatedly employed the strategy for over a century in all parts of the world, with modern examples in North America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. Suicide bombers are cost-effective, mobile, and extremely difficult to counter, making them an ideal tool for non-state actors. From the assassination of Tsar Alexander II in 1881 to the attack against a paramilitary patrol in Pakistan’s Baluchistan Province earlier this month, suicide bombings have played a significant role in conflicts driven by geopolitical, religious, and ideological motivations.
This article provides a brief overview of the origins, methodology, and psychological justification behind suicide bombings to illustrate the dynamics of this ongoing threat and efforts to counter it. There is some debate on the exact definition of suicide bombing, but this article will focus on incidents that fall under the Britannica definition: “an act in which an individual personally delivers explosives and detonates them to inflict the greatest possible damage, killing himself or herself in the process.” This necessarily precludes discussion of some well-known suicide attacks, such as 9/11.
Images Sourced From: IDF, IDF, IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, joeskillet
1 Suicide Bombing in History (Notable Examples)
1.1 19th and 20th Century…
The exact history of the first suicide bombing is highly debated, but the first generally recognized incident dates to 13 March 1881 in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Ignaty Grinevitsky, a member of the left-wing terrorist organisation The People’s Will. Detonated an improvised explosive device at the feet of visiting Tsar Alexander II, killing both men and critically injuring 20 bystanders.
In the 1980s, suicide bombings were popularized in Lebanon by Hezbollah; the group launched over 20 such attacks against Lebanese, Israeli, and US forces and other targets. The first globally recognized incident was in Beirut in 1981 at the Iraqi Embassy. A suicide car bomb levelled the building and killed the Iraqi ambassador, with multiple groups taking credit for the attack. This was followed by a campaign of suicide bombings in the country when it was under Israeli occupation. The most famous event around this time was on 23 October 1983, when a Hezbollah operative drove a truck carrying 2,000 pounds of explosives into a US marine base, killing 241 US military personnel.
1.2 …and Up Through the 21st Century
1.2.1 The Tamil Tigers
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), aka “Tamil Tigers,” were a militant Sri Lankan separatist group operating mostly within their island nation and in India (1976–2009); they fought for an independent Tamil state. The Black Tiger unit of the group was a commando suicide unit, making the LTTE the first insurgent outfit to use suicide bombings systematically. Terrorist organizations in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan saw the effectiveness of the LTTE’s use of suicide bombers and emulated the technique. From 1980 to 2003, the LTTE was the world leader in suicide terrorism. They invented the suicide belt and were the first to use women in suicide attacks. Thus leading to the creation of bras containing improvised explosive devices (IED).
The Tamil tigers were highly successful in their operations. The organization has a long list of high profile assassinations. A few notable ones are:
- Rajiv Gandhi: Former Indian prime minister (killed in 1991 in Sriperumbudur, India)
- Ranjan Wijeratne: Former Sri Lankan Minister of State (1991, Colombo, Sri Lanka)
- Ranasinghe Premadasa: Former Sri Lankan President (1993, Colombo)
- Alfred Duraiyapah: Former Jaffna Mayor (Jaffna, Sri Lanka)
1.2.2 Al-Qaeda Suicide Bombing
Camp Chapman: This Forward Operating Base in Khowst, Afghanistan played a crucial role in U.S. intelligence operations during the U.S. war in Afghanistan. On 30 December 2009, it became the site of a deadly attack when a Jordanian intelligence officer brought to the compound his trusted informant, Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi, for CIA debriefings. Al-Balawi was, in fact, a double agent working for al-Qaeda, and he detonated a body-worn IED, killing seven CIA officers, including the chief of the base.
1.2.3 ISIL
Atatürk Airport: In June 2016, three ISIL operatives arrived at Atatürk International Airport in a taxi. As they neared the security checkpoint, they drew automatic weapons and opened fire. Airport security quickly responded, engaging the attackers in a firefight near the terminal entrance. Amid the chaos, the assailants detonated explosive vests. The coordinated suicide attack claimed the lives of 42 individuals and left over 230 wounded. In the aftermath, then-Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim attributed the attack to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
1.2.4 Jamaah Islamiyah
This attack occurred in Bali, Indonesia on 11 October 2022. Paddy’s Bar was a location that was frequented by tourists. At 11:05 pm, a suicide bomber exploded a belt in the bar. Within seconds, a car bomb exploded in front of the Sari Club (right across the street from Paddy). Shortly after that, a third bomb detonated in front of the US consulate. While no one was injured in the consulate attack, 202 people died from the first two explosions. After the event, Indonesian law enforcement arrested over 30 terrorist suspects. Law enforcement identified Jamaah Islamiyah as the terrorist group behind the attack. The organisation was loosely linked to al-Qaeda.
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2 Psychological Justifications for Suicide Bombing Attacks
There is no clear profile for suicide bombers. Most suicide bombers do not have personality disorders, remain psychologically stable, and integrate well into their communities.
Historically, most suicide bombings have been done for political rather than religious reasons. That said, religion often plays some motivational and recruitment role. While action is driven by a mix of humiliation, political views, retaliation, and altruism. Another really strong motivator for suicide bombers is attachment to community, oftentimes a religious community. The most important element in suicide bombings is social approval and honour, rather than the religious promise of paradise.
As an example of this dynamic, most suicide bombings carried out in Israel have been perpetrated by individuals who sought revenge for acts committed by the Israeli army. Also, when photos of US soldiers’ inappropriate activities at Abu Ghraib were released to the public. The rate of suicide bombings in Iraq increased, mainly out of a sense of humiliation by the Iraqi people.
3 Main Actors for Suicide Bombing Attacks
3.1 Religious actors
People perceive the majority of modern suicide bombings as acts of religion-related terrorism. Most suicide bombers who claim a religious motivation are Islamic extremists who hold to a glorified notion of martyrdom.
Organizations such as Al-Qaeda, the Taliban, Boko Haram, and Al-Shabab have frequently used suicide bombers throughout the years because it creates a strong symbol for their cause (“propaganda by the deed”). Such attacks are inexpensive and efficient, they are very difficult to defend against, and news of such attacks almost always reaches a larger audience than other forms of attack.
3.2 Political actors
Politically-motivated suicide bombings are uncommon in current times, but organizations such as LTTE, Hamas, and Hezbollah have used the tactic to achieve political objectives, even though the process of recruiting bombers focuses on religious justifications. Their use of suicide bombings stemmed from a political drive for independence and resistance against government-perpetrated injustices. With this being said, suicide bombing is very rarely driven by one motive or the other; oftentimes, religious actors and political actors are the same.
4 Advantage, Methodology, and Defence
4.1 Advantages of Suicide Bombing Attacks
Suicide bombing is a highly effective tool for terrorists. While assassination is the goal of some suicide bombings, the main goal of many such attacks is to instil fear and create a sense of uncertainty in the populace. A big part of this goal is to create psychological horror among the forces they are fighting and the civilians. Suicide bombers filter their tactics through this question: Will it strike fear and create instability in the community?
The advantages of suicide bombing include the fact that bombers are hard to identify up until the time that they enter their operational phase. Attackers are also usually mobile, which allows them to shift targets last minute, if needed. There is no need for an escape plan. These attacks are also cheap and easy to carry out, with each attack on a small scale roughly costing USD $150.
The biggest constraint to suicide bombing operations is recruitment. Identifying an individual willing to undergo such self sacrifice is challenging; finding someone who will not back out when the time comes is even more difficult. Additionally, the grooming and psychological conditioning of a potential bomber can be a difficult and a long process.
Two particularly sinister methods for recruiting bombers are grooming children to carry out attacks and using loyal individuals who are not aware that a task assigned to them–such as delivering to a target an IED concealed in a package–will end in their demise. In some cases, attackers combine both tactics, sending unaware children as suicide bombers to achieve their objectives.
4.2 Methodology of Suicide Bombs
Suicide bombers usually deliver their IED by foot or vehicle. Suicide bombers on foot will typically have an undergarment–a vest, belt, bra, or harness–that holds the IED. All IEDs have 4 main components, which can be remembered by the PIES acronym:
- (P)ower: A power source for the device, often a small battery.
- (I)nitiator: The detonator, such as an improvised blasting cap, that starts the chain reaction leading to the main explosive charge.
- (E)xplosive: The main explosive materials (TNT, RDX, PETN, etc.)
- (S)witch: Device that connects the power source and the detonator–mechanical switch, an electric timer, etc.
With suicide devices, there are usually two more aspects:
Shrapnel: Metal materials–such as ball bearings, screws, and nails–that act as projectiles following the explosion. Shrapnel is the main cause of death during a suicide bomb.
Camouflage: Material that disguises the bomb on the bomber or in the bomber’s vehicle.
Suicide bombing methodology varies depending on the operation. As one example, a typical suicide bomber operation by foot using a vest involves a bomber meeting his sponsor (handler) at a safehouse. The sponsor will try to lighten the mood and put the bomber at ease. The bomber usually dons the vest at the safe house, if there are no checkpoints. The sponsor will then drive the bomber within close range of the target location so that the bomber can exit the vehicle, walk to his designated target, then detonate.
Suicide bombing planners employ many types of people, including women and children, to deliver the explosive device. For example, in 2024 in Nigeria, three female suicide bombers killed 40 people. A suicide bomber can look like anyone and their approach to a target, if done correctly, will not draw attention or raise alarms.
4.3 Countermeasures
Defence against a suicide bomb is nearly impossible, if the bomber is in range of the target. The best defence for suicide bombings is prevention, such as putting resources toward countering the celebration of suicides and martyrdom, as well as aggressive intelligence collection against groups that are likely to employ the tactic. The Israeli Defence Force’s (IDF) success in preventing suicide attacks is attributed to its intelligence collection capabilities.
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has a four-step approach to managing the threat of suicide bombers, summarized here:
- Prevention. Launching an awareness campaign for audiences considered to be potential targets of suicide bombers. Prevention steps advocated can include strengthening security with alarms, credentialing, screening, CCTV monitoring, establishing clear evacuation plans, maintaining a visible security presence, conducting regular drills, and–if possible–partnering with intelligence centres and awareness programs to identify threats and enhance preparedness.
- Protection. Can include measures such as establishing an outer perimeter to create a buffer zone and intercept threats, implementing automatic lockdown protocols, ensuring backup resources, conducting random explosives detection canine searches, varying search patterns to disrupt surveillance, installing a mass notification system with multiple alerts, identify use-of-force policies, creating a physical stand-off area, and maintaining strong security measures to mitigate risks.
- Response. Could involve alerting security and response teams, coordinating evacuation at a safe distance, accounting for personnel, staying vigilant (for secondary devices, remote detonations, and blast effects), and establishing a casualty triage area and a secure medical evacuation site.
- Recover. Could involve maintaining heightened security to prevent follow-up attacks, staying alert for secondary threats among victims, surveying the area for planted IEDs and assessing damage, replenishing resources, supporting responders and victims with stress management, conducting an After-Action Report, implementing lessons learned and reassuring personnel of site security.
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5 Aftermath of Suicide Bombs
Psychological effects. Beyond just general terror, suicide bombings have a lasting effect on survivors and witnesses. Suicide bombings create much higher rates of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in military personnel and survivors. In a study published by PubMed in 2010, initially, about 42% of suicide bomber survivors had sub-clinical PSTD or greater. [source, source]
Secondary attack: A prevalent tactic is a secondary attack. During planning, terrorists will predict where a crowd will go after an attack and place a secondary bomber (or pre-planted, stationary IEDs) at that location to harm the fleeing crowd and first responders responding to the scene.
6 Conclusion
Suicide bombing has a long history and has developed into a tool for psychological and political damage. The relative ease and low cost of such operations guarantee their continued use, even in the face of countermeasures, including enhanced intelligence collection. Understanding the history, psychological justification, and strategic advantage behind suicide bombings is critical to developing counterterrorism strategies to mitigate the damage of such attacks.
