When a bomb goes off or an attack unfolds, the aftermath matters just as much as the act itself. Terrorists are not simply trying to cause destruction. They are waiting to see how governments and societies respond, because that reaction is often the real prize.
Provoking a chaotic or heavy-handed government response is a central part of the strategy. When states overreact, crack down on civil liberties, or lash out at entire communities, they hand extremist groups exactly the ammunition they need to recruit more followers and justify their cause.
This is why the most effective counter-terrorism thinking focuses as much on measured, proportionate responses as it does on prevention. A panicked government that abandons its own principles in the name of security can, without realizing it, do the terrorist's work for them.
The question worth sitting with is not only what terrorists want in the moment of an attack. It is what kind of society we become in the hours, days, and years after. That answer shapes everything.
Originally published by BusinessDay.