Performative terrorism and the "Islamic State" organization

By arguing that terrorism is a performative strategy of action, this thesis first develops a theoretical framework for analysing the constitutive relationality between "terrorism" and "performance". Then, on the basis of this theoretical framework, the "Islamic State" organization is analysed as the case study of the thesis. The phenomenon of the "Islamic State", which is both a terrorist organization and a self-proclaimed "caliphate state," is a complex case that cannot be evaluated solely in terms of terrorism. Therefore, in order to develop a holistic view of this complex two-dimensional structure, the conceptual, theoretical and methodological framework on which the discussion will be based needs to be reconsidered from an interdisciplinary perspective, in parallel with the cross-border characteristics of the organization. The combination of Critical Terrorism Studies and Performance Studies, which are two independent fields of research, allows for the development of a critical perspective on the multiple connections between the "Islamic State" organization's terrorism strategy and its attempts to institutionalise the claim to be a "caliphate state." Thus, issues such as the performance of sovereign power based on its claim to be a "caliphate on prophetic methodology"; the discourse of "virtuous society" shaping its understanding of community, citizenship and group identity; or the self-image that is produced through the performativity of violence against the "other" are opened to discussion together with its strategy of terrorism.