Boko Haram: This particular group’s fighters currently outgun the government forces in the region. Additionally, as mentioned previously, the governments in these areas are very proud and want to retain their sovereignty so they refuse most of the aid offered from other countries. Things contributing to their success include: never leaving behind weapons, stealing from government armories, providing payments for fighters and their widows and children, their strong belief in Islam and justice for the poor.

Al-Qaeda: This group finds strength in a common belief in “us versus them”, they unite with previously dispersed groups in the region to increase their numbers and span greater areas, and they are very good at hiding their leaders and creating a virtual safe haven with few barriers to entry. Additionally, perhaps their greatest strength is their use of the Internet to communicate with people all over the world. They are very good at selling their ideologies and propaganda.

Kronin discusses how success of a terrorist group can bring about the end of terrorism. When they achieve their political aims it is possible that they will either disband or stop harassing the regions with violence. This can be seen in the example of South Africa, Nelson Mandela, and apartheid. Nelson Mandela was part of the African National Congress (ANC) and was imprisoned for terrorist acts but after his release was elected the first president of post apartheid South Africa. Although they used violence as a means of protest and fighting against their nations government, other instability that was already underlying in that region helped the ANC succeed in the end. Kronin states that only less than 5% have succeeded by their own standards. Additionally, both of the organizations mentioned above have a major force working against them: killing civilians in their terrorist attacks is almost always the major flaw that leads to failure when trying to achieve political ends. This only weakens their argument in the eyes of the people in the region.