Left-wing terrorism seeks to destroy capitalism and replace it with communism or anarchism. Extreme cases of radical environmentalism verge on ecoterrorism, which is pushed primarily by left-wing radicals.

The majority of left-wing groups/movements reject terrorism either on moral grounds or for being counter-productive in advancing the progressive cause. Groups on the far-left tend to differentiate the violent actions of minority groups with guerrilla struggles and extreme civil disobedience (e.g. rioting), which they see as justified under certain circumstances.

Examples of left-wing terrorist groups

• Brigade Rosse (Red Brigades).
• Japanese Red Army
• Red Army Faction, also known as Baader-Meinhof Gang
• Weather Underground

Further reading

• Marxism and terrorism by John Molyneux