The very real terror warning given by Germany’s Minister of the Interior Thomas de Maizière in mid-November 2010 resonated uncharacteristically loudly among the German public as well as among the published opinions of the mass media.

Due to the current security threat level, federal and state preventive security precautions have been upgraded and there has been a great deal of publicity alerting citizens to maintain civil vigilance. Political commentators initially posed the question of the acute relevance of this terror warning against the background of the constantly oscillating security threat level in Germany. Ultimately, in no small measure due to the international terror attacks in New York, Madrid and London as well as against the background of failed terror plans, terrorism has long since gained a prominent position in the discourse on security policy.

This is opportunity enough for us to present an updated version of last year’s Research Special on terrorism. This issue will also essentially take up various aspects of international terrorism and the corresponding security policy strategies this year as well.

Current literature and research references shed light on both the social science as well as the interdisciplinary aspects of globalized terrorism and the consequences for the security policies of the international community of states.

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