There are racial differences among human beings. and if not put into order, they transform into brutal acts of violence. Humanity has encountered bloody events of genocides since forever. However, terrorist attacks throughout history are the most distressing examples of massacres. Not all criminals might be convicted of their crimes nor do the victims usually get justice for it. The best we can do is feel genuinely sympathetic towards the disadvantaged and have a better societal structure. Here’s a list of 10 deadly terrorist attacks in world history. 

1 The Camp Speicher Massacre is the second deadliest act of terrorism in history. The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, a militant group attacked Camp Speicher in Tikrit on 12 June 2014. Between 5,000 and 10,000 unarmed cadets were present in the camp of which nearly 1,700 died. The executor shot the Shias and non-Muslim young cadets in the head one by one such that their bodies would fall into the Tigris River.

On 12 June, the cadets were returning home in their civilian outfits after their commanders ordered them to.

The attackers captured the recruits on the roads and divided them into Shia and Sunni sects while forcing them into trucks. The abductors promised to transport them to Bagdad, but they took them to the places of execution. The region selected was near Saddam Hussein’s former palaces in ruins near the Tigris River.

The massacre didn’t happen in one single place, the murderers killed the cadets at random places in the ruins. Investigations identify some of these places as the river edge, in the palaces, small cliffs, etc.

The total number of deaths is unclear but ISIS claims it to be 1,700. As of August 2016, the investigator captured 36 perpetrators and executed them. (1, 2)

2 A Ugandan rebel group, the Lord’s Resistance Army, carried out the ugly Christmas massacres from 24 December 2008 to 13 January 2009. They brutally murdered 620 civilians and kidnapped at least 160 children in the northern districts of the Republic of Congo. The attackers waited until 24 December to let the people gather for Christmas. After this, they slaughtered victims by bashing in their skulls with axes, machetes, and wooden bats.

The rebel group attacked locals in and around the Daruma, Faradje, and Duru in the Haute-Uele Territory. The mob spread out into subgroups and simply murdered every civilian along its path.

The rebels killed and abducted most of the civilians in three simultaneous attacks on 24 and 25 December.

In Batande Village, they separated girls and boys before murdering them. They killed the boys immediately but took the girls into the forest and raped many of them before finishing them off.

Until 28 December, the combatants attacked 12 such villages, set fire to 940 houses, and also some schools and churches.

The Ugandan Army is still working towards capturing the LRA leader, Joseph Kony, and rescuing the civilians. They have been successful in rescuing just 25 people. (Source)

3 The Yazidi community bombings of 2007 are the Iraq War’s deadliest car bomb attack and the third deadliest act of terrorism in history. On 14 August, four suicide car bombs exploded in northern Iraq killing 796 people and injuring 1,500. The entire dispute is believed to have started with a typical teenage love story.

The blame of the attack on the Yazidi towns of Til Ezer and Siba Sheikh Khidir is on Al-Qaeda. Al-Qaeda is a militant Sunni Islamist multi-national terrorist group. The detonations were the consequences of growing conflict between the local Yazidis and Sunni Muslims. 

Some Muslim groups consider Yazidis heretics because they derived some of their beliefs and practices from non-Islamic sources.

Ironically, the dispute there is believed to have started with a teenage love story. Du’a Khalil Aswad, a 17-year-old Yazidi girl, fell for a Sunni Muslim man and was accused of seeking to abandon her faith in order to marry him.

An enraged Yazidi community stoned Du’a to death. A video of the stoning appeared on the internet, and Sunni groups carried out a series of increasingly bloody attacks against the minority apparently to avenge Du’a’s death.

Al-Qaeda saw this as a perfect opportunity to deepen the differences between the two groups. On 14 August, they placed two tons of explosives in four suicidal vehicles for the Yazidis.

The devastating detonation destroyed buildings and buried several families alive. Because of poor resources and ill medications, the survivors of the blast had to suffer and die.

The US military asserted that it killed the mastermind behind the attacks, but no group officially claimed the responsibility for the attack. (1, 2)

4 The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, the world’s most ruthless terrorists, mass murdered more than 700 police officers in Sri Lanka. On 11 June 1990, the LTTE terrorists abducted 899 unarmed policemen from the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka. A total of 125 of them were able to escape, but the rest of them were taken to the Vinayagapuram and Trincomalee jungles. Then the LTTE tied their hands, lined them up, and shot all 774 of them dead.

The incident is the biggest war crime committed by the LTTE terrorist organization. The mission started at six in the morning. The perpetrators infiltrated and robbed police stations while abducting the policemen. Most of the policemen were Sinhalese and Muslim.

The terrorist group ordered all Northern Province police stations to be vacated before 2:30 or they’ll have to face severe consequences.

They removed $45 million in cash, jewelry, at least 200 rifles, 28 machine guns, and more weapons from the police stations.

The event saw the official end to the ceasefire between LTTE and the government. The massacre started the Second Eelam War.

During the massacre, a special task force transported the LTTE’s peace delegator, Jude, and two others, to a military camp. Nonetheless, they were handed back to the LTTE without any harm. (1, 2)

5 The massacre of Trujillo refers to the systematic abductions, torture, and murders of approximately 340 people in southwestern Colombia between 1988 and 1994. The perpetrators threw most of the corpses in the Cauca River including those of members of the army, police, and local politicians.

All the murders, abductions, and disappearances happened in the municipalities of Trujillo, Bolivar, and Riofrio. The authorities identified most of the murder suspects as drug traffickers.

The criminals carried out the systematic murders as a warning to other pro-guerilla elements. They annihilated the civilian population to secure the strategic corridor to the pacific. This was the same place where people were repeatedly accused of assisting insurgent groups working in the area.

In March 2008, the Attorney General of Colombia accused two significant names linked to the massacre. They were retired Colombian Army Major Uruena Jaramillo and retired Lieutenant commander of Trujillo Police Jose Berrio.

The Colombian government declared itself guilty of negligence and recognized more members of the Cali Cartel as the murders later. (1, 2)