Far left

Far-left terrorism

Historically, violence has been widely accepted on the far left as a means to enact societal change. The anti-authoritarian far left may consider violence justified in combatting repressive forces. Revolutionary far-left groups might organise themselves into underground movements or carry out violent insurgencies. Insurgencies are only viable in developing nations where the state is not capable of defeating the group. According to political scientist Ignacio Sánchez-Cuenca, as support for the far left decreases, violent groups shift their focus from attacks against the state to attacks for survival, such as freeing its members from prison. However, many on the far left criticise the use of violence. For example, according to Sánchez-Cuenca, Leon Trotsky rejected the use of violence, saying it does not benefit the working class like other measures such as striking. Far-left actors are rarely a major focus of terrorism studies in comparison to other motives like jihadism.