When is a terrorist a rebel ?

Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for being a terrorist.....
all depends on who is branding them a terrorist and why really.

there is something related with this in bbc

If Abu Mohammed Al-Jawlani, the leader of HTS, the main victorious rebel group, is true to his word, then there is a chance for this country to transition to a more pluralistic, democratic future, supported by the UN and others.
But HTS, and some of its fellow travellers, have a violent past, rife with allegations of human rights abuses. It is a proscribed terrorist organisation by the UN and several governments.
Already al-Qaeda is urging the rebels to now turn on ‘Jews and Crusaders’ (their term for all Christians).

This.

Anyone who behaves like this are little better than animals.

Actually, that's an insult to animals.

I was a bit taken aback when I realised as an adult that Starwars, we’re the rebels/terrorists.
Though back then I was more trusting in the system. I’d be less shocked now!

It’s a good question, and often the rebels/freedom fighters are no better than the regime that’s keeping in line.

The definition of rebel is straightforward, its someone who disobeys someone in authority or control. That can be a positive thing if the authority is illegitimate or you just don't agree with it. So you can have rebel heroes. There is nothing in the definition of 'rebel' which contains any sort of moral judgement. So a rebel can murder, rape, torture etc. Or they might conduct peaceful protest. A rebel could also be a terrorist. A terrorist by definition uses fear & violence to further political/ideological ends.

Someone who deliberately targets and murders children, rapes women, tortures, mutilates and murders civilians, takes babies, children and elderly people hostage, takes the dead bodies of civilians hostage and gleefully films it all while shouting that their god is great is an evil demonic subhuman scum terrorist whichever way you want to look at it.

A rebel stands up to and fights against authority but not by doing the above.

HTHs.

It's posted today and it's under conflict in the Middle East and you don't know?

Normally it is decided by the winning side, the suffragettes were terrorists initially and now they are heroes

I don't know what country you are thinking about or what happened and don't condone violence.

But put yourself in the position of the people you are thinking about - on both sides - if the same thing that happened affected you, your family and your community. If you fought back would you be a terrorist or a freedom fighter? Maybe frame it in the terms of the WW2 - if we had been occupied by German forces and resisted is it terrorist? If we then hurt a load ordinary people in the Germany, were we terrorists?

It is complicated and utterly tragic - everything that is going on. But the truth of it is the ordinary people only want to go on with their everyday lives, just like us, whatever side they are. Mad men in power are the enemy and manipulate the lives of ordinary people for their own means.