Is it terrorism to attack terrorists? Terrorism is politically motivated violence intended to intimidate and terrorize. When US embassies were bombed in Kenya and Tanzania, Washington decided to respond. On August 20, 1998, the United States launched military strikes against what it believed were terror-related bases in Afghanistan and Sudan. They believed that these groups had played a key role in the embassy bombings. Some believe that retaliation and shows of force are acts of self-defense that will ultimately lead to the destruction of terrorism. Others believe that this attack was simply a display of power and brute force against the Afghan people. The United States has made many points to justify retaliatory attacks in Afghanistan and Sudan. They say terrorist acts, such as the bombing of American embassies, should not go unpunished. The growing threat of terrorist attacks against American targets must be controlled. These murderous factions have untenable targets and unlimited bombs and must be stopped before terrorism gets out of hand. U.S. allies supported the attacks and described them as part of a global effort to fight terrorism. This act demonstrates to terrorists that democratic governments will act decisively to prevent their evil crimes. The attacks were necessary to send the message that terrorist attacks would not be tolerated and to try to prevent further violence. To the contrary, some argue that the United States itself is committing international terrorism. The United States regularly uses violence for political reasons, to intimidate and terrorize, which is the exact definition of terrorism. The attacks in Afghanistan and Sudan were called anti-terrorist raids, but in reality they were acts of terrorism by the United States itself. These attacks are not self-defense as the United States claims because the attacks on the embassies did not pose an immediate danger to the country itself. Some even argue that these hostile US policies are an act of war against a sovereign country. If American principles of retaliation were to be applied to other situations, then all over the world there are countries that have every right to bomb Washington. For example, there were reports that a Miami-based organization was involved in attacks in Cuba that resulted in the deaths of civilians. According to the US justification, Cuba would have the right to drop bombs on Washington. But these principles of retaliation apply only to the strong and state that the strong can attack the weak and defenseless whenever they wish. In response to terrorism, further terrorism is not authorized. According to the United Nations Charter, it is clear that this use of violence is patently illegal.