Terrorism in Russia has a long history starting from the time of the Russian Empire . Terrorism , in the modern sense , means violence against civilians to achieve political or ideological objectives by creating extreme fear . Terrorism was an important tool used by Marxist revolutionaries in the early 20th century to disrupt the social , political , and economic system and enable rebels to bring down the Tzarist government . Terrorist tactics , such as hostage-taking , were widely used by the Soviet secret agencies , most notably during the Red Terror and Great Terror campaigns , against the population of their own country , according to Karl Kautsky and other historians of Bolshevism
Great Terror
Great Purge
Terrorism in Russia