Mideast Still Main Source of Terrorism

WASHINGTON — A State Department report maintains that the Middle East remains a political caldron that produces most international terrorism.

The annual report, “Patterns of Global Terrorism,” which covers 1986, shows that 604 people died as the result of international terrorism and 1,717 were wounded. For 1987, a preliminary State Department report showed 991 people killed and 2,072 wounded.

If several attempted aircraft bombings in 1986 had not been foiled, the death toll could have risen by 800, the report said.

“The overall high level of activity combined with the continuing increase in attacks aimed at innocent bystanders and intended to cause mass casualties keep international terrorism as a priority item for concern,” the report released Thursday said.

For an American, Latin America was statistically the most dangerous place to be, with 55% of the 1986 incidents directed against Americans taking place there.

But the Middle East was the most hazardous area for people of all nationalities, with nearly 450 deaths occurring there. “Attacks by West European and other terrorists tend to be designed to avoid casualties, whereas most of those by Middle Eastern terrorists are intended to cause maximum casualties,” the report said.