Law Enforcement Tactics In Response To Terrorism www.drgonzo.

org By Randy Gonzalez

Contents Chapter 1 - Introduction and Overview Chapter 2 Threat Analysis & Intelligence G athering Factors Chapter 3 Efforts to Combat Terrorism Chapter 4 Identifying Ter rorist Groups Chapter 5 Terrorist Weapons, Targets and Tactics Chapter 6 - Tacti cal Capabilities of Terrorist Intentions Chapter 7 WMD Bio Weapons Chapter 8 WMD Bio Weapons Continued Chapter 9 WMD Nuclear Weapons______ Chapter 10 WMD Incend iary Devices & Chemicals Chapter 11: Other Types - Chemical Weapons & Explosives Chapter 12: Preventive Countermeasures Page 1 Page 9 _Page 17 _Page 25 _Page 33 Page 41 Page 49 Page 57 Page 65 Page 73 Page 81 Page 100 Chapter 13: Tactical Implications - Field Operations Strategy Page 117 Chapter 1 4: Further Considerations Threats and Response Measures Page 135 Copyright--2003 Randolph A. Gonzalez All Rights Reserved

1 Chapter1: Introduction and Overview: Throughout the country and around the glo be, both the media and the government have various notions and definitions as to what defines the term terrorism. Some have said that terrorism is a form of warfar e used by those who cannot afford an army or traditional military action of a nat ionalistic nature. Or, that it is the poor mans method of fighting an oppressive go vernment. Others have said that terrorism is more economical for those opposing an existing government, and trying to bring about some kind of political change. T hese are fanciful notions fostered by nave and sympathetic representatives of the media. Terrorism is criminal political violence that intends to destabilize a g overnment, in order to promote a cause. It uses violence through various crimina l acts to raise the level of fear among those who may affect governmental decisi on-making. Definitions FBI The unlawful use of force against persons or property to intimid ate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in the furtherance of political or social objectives. Domestic Terrorism - involvin g groups or individuals whose terroristic activities are directed at elements of our government or population without foreign direction. International Terrorism - involves groups or individuals whose terrorist activities are foreign-based a nd/or directed by countries or groups outside the United States or whose activit ies transcend national boundaries. Department of Justice The use of force or vio lence, or threatened use of force, against persons or places for the purpose of intimidating, or coercing a government, its citizens, or any segment thereof, fo r political or social goals. Department of State Premeditated, politically motiv ated violence perpetrated against non-combatant targets by sub-national or cland estine agents usually intended to influence an audience. (1)

2 By whatever definition is chosen, it should be remembered premeditated act of criminal violence against other people. r to make the citizens more fearful about their environment reedom. From grenades to rockets, and poisons to chemicals, ill and scare people with their power.

that terrorism is a Such actions endeavo and their personal f terrorists seek to k

Terrorist strategy is based upon the capacity to strike future blows, no matter what. The terrorist goal is not negotiation but capitulation by the government. One often used tactic to obtain this goal is the taking of hostages. In countert errorism parlance, the government or authority structure is the primary victim. The secondary victim is the hostage. Terrorists take hostages to draw attention to their cause and to confound the authorities. (2) Proper planning prevents poor performance. The very nature of terrorism is what makes it a potential potent powerful politica l weapon. Public conceptions of the mere threat of terrorism raise fear levels b eyond the normal range of reason. Today, terrorists are well trained and capable of carrying extreme measures against populations groups through out the world. They are capable of achieving the element of surprise, using innovative tactics, techniques and technology. Terrorism is a form of violence that capitalizes on fear, as well as the magnification of such acts through intense media portrayal. In recent times, significant acts of terrorism have led public officials to see k various ways to confront such threats. Yet, public defense, or homeland securit y countermeasures, is difficult to construct, given the nature and capabilities o f terrorist groups. Snipings, bombings, kidnappings, hijackings, assassinations, hostage taking, extortion, drugs and weapon smuggling present challenges to law enforcement on a global scale. Terrorists are well armed, trained and capable o f carrying out destructive acts against a range of targets.

3 From operational planning, to tactical implementation, terrorists possess the command, control, communications and intelligence capabilities to attack with ru thless effectiveness. They can carry out and execute a sustained climate of fear through an ongoing campaign of violence and destruction. Their mission is not c omplicated and they will associate with drug dealers, organized crime groups, an d other sinister organizations to achieve their goals. Terrorism is premeditated, politically motivated violence oriented effort to adv ance a philosophical-social-political agenda for profit and power. It is related to organized crime, in that it seeks power, control and profit continuity outsi de the normal channels of political interaction. Terrorism is organized criminal behavior that employs guerilla warfare tactics, either in it state or nation of r esidence, or outside such territory with state or nation sponsorship. They are c apable of employing a range of weaponry, often more sophisticated than those pos sessed by local police forces. Acts of terrorism include the use of biological, chemical, radiological, explosive and other weapons to achieve their goals and o bjectives. In addition, they utilize technology to their advantage, which involv es the Internet, computer systems, banking structures and so forth. The criminals of terrorist organizations train, educate and focus themselves on the desire to advance the power and influence over others. They are a collective threat to human freedom and democracy. They are not, contrary to popular notion , freedom fighters. They are simply criminals with a political agenda. Their tacti cs involve the unlawful use, as well as the threatened use, of violence and dest ruction against men, women and children. To the terrorist, everyone is a combata nt, as they operate on both foreign and domestic fronts. They may operate within the United States and territories, with or without foreign direction. Many defi nitions have evolved as to how we should define terrorism. And, since the use of w eaponry encompasses a wide range of possibilities, the present day use of terms such as weapons of mass destruction has become more commonplace.

4 To say, one mans terrorist is another mans freedom fighter distorts the real and s inister picture of terrorism. In the real world, perfect distinctions and defini tions often blur in the realty of human cruelty and degradation. The many experts in the field of terrorism have contrived many definitions of terrorism. In many cases, these efforts have led to the difficulty not only in understanding it, bu t also in combating it as well. Terrorism is criminal behavior and should not be associated with some fanciful notion connected to liberating a country from opp ression. It is a brutal form of expression that includes non-combatants as easy target of prey. In the harsh reality of human actions, terrorism remains a delib erate act of aggression and hostility toward others which includes harming the ci vilian population in general. It is murder and aggravated battery, along with oth er criminal acts, designed to intimidate and otherwise frighten various populati on groups for mainly political purposes. Acts of terrorism must be separated fro m other types of politically motivated activities, such as guerrilla warfare and insurrection. Guerrilla warfare is generally concerned with attacking military targets and political officials in order to bring about a governmental change wi thin a particular country. In their book, Political Terrorism, Schmidt and Youngman cited 109 definitions o f terrorism, which they obtained in a survey of leading academics in the field. From these definitions, the authors isolated the following recurring elements, i n order of their statistical appearance in the definitions: violence, force (app eared in 83.5% of the definitions); political (65%); fear, emphasis on terror (5 1%); threats (47%); psychological effects and anticipated reactions (41.5%); dis crepancy between the targets and the victims (37.5%); intentional, planned syste matic, organized action (32%); methods of combat, strategy, tactics (30.5%). (3) The arsenal of terrorists has adapted to ent era of weapons of mass destruction struments of widespread death and injury vity, the lethal nature of terrorism has ly smaller global community. the innovations in technology. The curr (aka WMD) include an array of weaponized in potential. From poison gas to radioacti dramatically escalated in an increasing

5 From a purely generic and narrow definition, weapons of mass destruction tend en compass any explosive device or other materials that potentially cause widesprea d death, injury and damage. But, the inclusion of such implements also refers to incendiary and poison gas devices, as well as variety of bio-hazardous agents. Things such as bombs, grenades, missiles, land mines, and so forth fall within t his broad category of destructive devices. To this mix of weapons, we can also i nclude various configurations of nuclear weapons, biological and chemical device s that have the potential for significant levels of damage to people and propert y. For most people in the United States, it is difficult to imagine the possibil ities and the potential danger that stems from the use of some type of weapon of mass destruction. The use of destructive devices by terrorists is perplexing and hard to comprehend for many people. Terrorism Includes 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) Unlawf ul and violent tactics Selected targets of opportunity Maximum use of the media Political motivation Civilian targets Planning and organization First responders to acts of terrorism are generally local law enforcement office rs. The seemingly unpredictable nature of terrorism requires constant vigilance on the part of all law enforcement personnel. The collection and analysis of fro ntline intelligence is important to the mission of providing public safety and s ecurity. Surveillance, intelligence gathering, patrol strategies and associated tactics and techniques must be effectively employed in order to confront terrori st activities. None of this, of course, is easy. But, ongoing training, educatio n and proactive efforts are necessary to the public safety mission.

6 The terrorist threat around the world represents a serious challenge to law enfo rcement officials one that many are unprepared to handle. The use of criminal ac tivity to create fear and thus further political goals is a strategy that has be en employed for centuries. As early as 400 B.C., Sun Tzu observed, that before l aunching an all out attack, the master conqueror frustrated his enemys plans and b roke up his alliances. He created cleavages between sovereign and minister, supe riors and inferiors, commanders and subordinates. His spies and agents were acti ve everywhere, gathering information, sowing dissention and nurturing subversion . The enemy was isolated and demoralized; his will to resist broken. Thus, witho ut battle his army was conquered, his cities taken and his state overthrown. (4) Terrorism are violent efforts to further the political aims of a particular grou p. Activities involve unlawful acts that target civilian population areas in the furtherance of such aims. Terrorist tactics, techniques and technology should f oster a response by law enforcement that is both proactive and innovative. Since terrorism is criminal activity, countermeasures should include the use of enhan ced training methodologies, advanced education, covert operations, tactical and strategic planning, aggressive surveillance, electronic countermeasures, innovat ive problem solving tactics, multiagency initiatives in planning, training and p ractical application, as well as other related aspects. Terrorism tends to be ad aptive, and the law enforcement response must be well prepared to deal with thei r tactics.

7 Emanating from a distorted worldview, terrorism employs whatever criminal activi ty suits its needs. From blackmail, to intimidation and suicidal bombings, terro rists promote a political agenda of death and destruction. Violence is used as a mechanism of persuasion in the sociopathic world of the terrorist. Targets of o pportunity are selected on the basis of propaganda value by use of unprovoked at tacks. In most cases, criminal acts or perpetrated with minimum risk to the key terrorist players, and maximum exposure and publicity in the media. The media ar e often more than willingly to sensationalize to every extend possible the scope and nature of the terrorist incident. Publicity is an important ingredient to the terrorist. And, terrorist incidents will be portrayed in graphic detail with gr eat obsession by various media outlets. Terrorist generally prefer to strike wit h surprise that is preceded by careful planning and training. The primary weapon is the fear factor. If people are scarred and intimidated, then the terrorist act has been a success. Fear is an essential component of terrorist actions. There is a desire to make the public feel vulnerable and unsafe. Such anxiety on the p art of the public puts pressure on law enforcement services to act. Terrorism is an attack on noncombatants in that civilians are targeted. The political and ec onomic goals of terrorism are accomplished through the degree of propaganda that is obtained. Terrorist groups tend to be cohesive, loyal, trained, educated, fi nanced and armed.

8 Terrorism encompasses a range of cowardly acts that involve violations of establ ished law. But, controversial or bizarre beliefs and opinions do not necessarily represent a terrorist orientation or inclination. Belief systems vary among peo ple and span the philosophical spectrum in many directions. In the U.S., the Con stitution protects freedom of speech. Opinions are one thing actions are another thing. However, we should keep in mind that vigilance is virtue. Attitudes and forms expression do not normally reflect the potential for terrori st incidents. People can have opinions no matter how strange they are. They can deviate from mainstream belief systems and carry on with a variety of viewpoints. Yet, extreme belief systems should not be ignored and should be part of the info rmation gathering process of effective law enforcement action. When the attitude s and opinions transcend the bridge between thought and action, then attention s hould be given to that which violates the law. Terrorist Incident characterizes a situation in which an incident is dangerous, violent and threatens human life in violation of criminal statutes. It suggests that law enforcement has an idea as to who did the act and what the motive was. Suspected Terrorist Incident less certain than the Terrorist Incident, and the ide ntity and motive is not determined at the time of the incident. Terrorism Preven tion represents positive law enforcement interdiction when terrorist are identif ied, known to have committed a violation and arrested before carrying out a Terr orist Incident. This is the result of a comprehensive criminal investigation. (5 )