urban guerrilla

American  

noun

1. a member of any underground political group engaged in terrorism or violence in urban areas, especially during the 1970s.

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urban guerrilla British  

noun

1. a guerrilla who operates in a town or city, engaging in terrorism, kidnapping, etc

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Etymology

Origin of urban guerrilla

First recorded in 1965–70

Example Sentences

Shamkhani was an urban guerrilla during the 1979 Islamic Revolution and commanded several successful military operations during Iran’s eight-year war with Iraq in the 1980s as well.

From Washington Times • May 22, 2023

President Gustavo Petro, a former member of the M-19 urban guerrilla group and who took office last year, has pledged to seek peace agreements or surrender deals with armed groups of all stripes.

From Reuters • Jan. 21, 2023

Daniel Ortega, then the Sandinistas’ revolutionary young leader, was imprisoned and jailed for four months as an urban guerrilla fighting for the opposition party.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 11, 2022

Mr. Petro, a former member of an urban guerrilla group and a passionate environmentalist, has said that “the war on drugs has failed” in his country, which is the world’s top cocaine producer.

From New York Times • Oct. 3, 2022

Back then when Bodega was a teenager, the Young Lords were an urban guerrilla group that had its origins in Chicago, but they made all their noise in El Barrio.

From "Bodega Dreams" by Ernesto Quinonez