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Article: Crime and punishment; Overthrowing Alexander II's czarist regime.(OPED)(POLITICAL BOOKS)
- Article from:
- The Washington Times (Washington, DC)
- Article date:
- April 8, 2003
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 News World Communications, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Arnold Beichman, THE WASHINGTON TIMES
People's Will, an association of disaffected and well-educated young Russians, was organized in 1879 "for the specific purpose of assassinating the reigning Tsar, Alexander II," writes Richard Pipes. "It was the first organization in history dedicated to systematic political terrorism." These young men and women were an early version of "suicide bombers," since they were quite prepared to sacrifice themselves for their political ambitions.
The objective of this terrorist network was to demonstrate the vulnerability of the regime. They believed that in killing the Russian monarch, as they finally did, they ...