The Global Terrorism Database contains over 200,000 cases of terrorism from 163 countries, with records dating back to 1970. With such a vast sample size, there's bound to be some winners and losers among them. Here's a few I think represent the range well.
Brimstone - The Irish Republican Army
Beneath the hero worship and carefully curated folklore around the Irish struggle for independence from the only nation even less qualified than themselves to rule them, the IRA suffered from living beyond its usefulness. It splintered into political groups and people's committees that had to disavow eachother over the latest accidental slaying of Irish children. It's ranked this low, in spite of being βsuccessfulβ (really the Brits had gotten over their illusions of administrating the world and cut their losses), because of just how cringe they were while dying out.
Coal - Jan 6th (lol)
I couldn't believe it but yes, this was in there, and no, @Impassionata, it shouldn't be. Nothing happened, no goals were established.
Milk - Al Shabaab
Somalia is a failed country and a living heck for everyone involved, so relatively speaking Al Shabaab's goals of administrating the region is equal parts r-slurred and achievable. The Muslim plurality give them enough cover to operate in the capital, and the fact that the terrorist group feeds and pays on time and in USD respectively makes it more lucrative to the layman than enlisting in the military or sustenance fishing. Honestly, just give the shithole to them.
Gem - Hamas
Possibly upranked due to recency bias, the world's largest martyrdom continues its near-century long tradition of pitting antisemites against antisemites in the First World. As a military power, Hamas is unequivocally BTFO'd by billions in defense spending and is by far the least successful group on this list. But in international positioning and politics, it continues to be a thorn that prompts left leaning first worlders into fifth columnists.
Cute and Valid - Taliban
An organization that has chapters spanning three nations, including Afghanistan which they outright administrate and Pakistan which they are the primary merchants of violence. They have a code of law and schools, banditry and opium production has been ceased in their territory. They are everything that the likes of Al Shabaab wish they were.
!poll_voters !nonchuds What's YOUR favorite terrorist groups? Shill for them if you want in the comments.
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Hard to argue against ISIS, but I need to mention the Chechen people who managed to push out the Russians for a few years. And later to get the Russians to kill lots of their own in the 2002 Moscow theater incident. Now they're living under Kadyrov rule and Wiki says many went to fight on the Ukraine side.
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