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Security experts are split over whether inside-the-body suicide bomb is a serious threat; the French say they may not take any chances, and warn that security measures at airports may become more intrusive
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More precise war
The hand-launched Desert Hawk III is designed to operate in extreme temperatures and high altitudes and has provided the British Army with critical intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities in Iraq and Afghanistan; it will now be equipped with an upgraded 360-degree color electro optic (E/O) sensor, providing 10 times continuous zoom capability and aiding in contact identification
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Bioterrorism
The 1984 Oregon outbreak of Salmonella enterica Typhimurium sickened 751 people and sent 45 to hospitals; the attack was launched by a mystical cult which tried to take over the remote Oregon county
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Experts on a panel at the International Maritime Museum of Hamburg call for more investment in anti-piracy technology, and for greater coordination among trading nations to address the threat of piracy
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A terrorist in Saudi Arabia tried to kill the Saudi antiterror chief by carrying explosives inside his body; experts say there are “tremendous implications for airport security with the potential of making it even more complicated to get on to your plane”
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Trend
The risk of al-Qaeda has not disappeared, but in a testimony on the Hill, Napolitano and Mueller say that the United States is facing an increased risk from home-grown terrorists and radicalized immigrants
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What will they think of next
An al-Qaeda’s follower stuffed his bum with explosives and blew himself up next t the Saudi antiterror chief (the chief was only slightly injured); how serious is this new bum-bombers threat? Experts are divided: some say the arse-blast method poses a new threat to air travel, while others argue that the kaki-kamikaze is nothing to get anyone’s bowels in an uproar about
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The company’s diver detection sonar system employs long-range underwater security; the system automatically classifies, tracks, and detects any alleged threat approaching a protected site
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Theater of the absurd
Fujitsu runs a patching site for Sun Microsystems’ Solaris Unix variant; the company asks end-users to fill out a survey before downloading the latest patch, and the first question asks whether the customer would be using the patch to build WMD; even if you admit to building a nuclear bomb, Fujitsu allows you to download the patch; either Fujitsu targets really honest terrorists, or the company wants to use the information in its advertising (as in: “5% of our customers are terrorists who use our software to build weapons of mass destruction”)
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An American company has developed an automated counterpiracy system that could be outfitted to a vessel and set loose on patrol
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The Israeli military offers the world’s first training courses aimed to train infantry teams specially dedicated to using small robots in combat; more and more Israeli military units now have robot specialists — the same that every platoon has specialized radio operators, machine-gunners, and missile handlers
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What will they think of next
A al-Qaeda-affiliated Saudi suicide bomber, carrying explosives in his anal cavity, managed to get close to the Saudi deputy interior minister and detonate himself (the minister was unharmed); analysts fear this may be a new method of carrying explosives on a plane
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Tim Downs: “Experts have estimated that for a terrorist group to develop a nuclear weapon could cost them a billion dollars….But to develop a very good biological arsenal you would need about ten million dollars and a very small lab and a master’s degree in chemical engineering”
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Nonlethal weapons
The Banshee II emits a piercing 144 dB sound that is designed to be more than just annoying; “It also has a frequency-switching system that pumps your ear drums, so it sounds like there’s a drum beating there,” the inventor says
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UAV update
Under a program launched this month, Pakistan’s domestic version of the drone or unmanned aerial vehicle to be called Falco will be made in collaboration with Selex Galileo of Italy at the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex in Kamra in Punjab province
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During the summer 2006 war with Hezbollah, the Israeli military had difficulties locating rocket launchers — and Hezbollah fighters — hiding in bunkers and tunnels in heavily forested areas and under civilian buildings; two new Israeli training centers, made entirely of rubber, will provide a mock Lebanese village connecting to a forest
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After the mysterious disappearing of a Maltese-flagged cargo ship with a Russian crew in Swedish waters, Sweden decides to deploy a maritime surveillance system which will become operational in October
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Q Branch
Compressed air is used on the shoulder-held device to propel a line from a pursuing boat which drags with it a high-tech, high tensile net to disable the target craft’s propulsion system
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Standish Maximum Correctional Facility in Michigan and Fort Leavenworth, Kansas are the two finalists to host the remaining Gitmo prisoners
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Scheduled to take place 6-9 December in Dubai, the International Quality and Productivity Center says the conference will host a forum and feature case studies to address complex issues surrounding piracy
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The long view
Improving the Security of Soft Targets and Crowded Places
Attacks on soft targets and crowded places (ST-CPs) represent a significant challenge. How can prevention, protection, and response and recovery investments reduce the risk of casualties from attacks on ST-CPs?
Video Games Might Matter for Terrorist Financing
Every day, billions of dollars flow across international borders among millions of people on a public online market, with functionally no government oversight or regulation. The market? Virtual currency and digital assets in video games. Moshe Klein writes that “as terrorists seek new methods of conducting financial activity, governments must remain one step ahead and consider how they can proactively investigate and close extant avenues for terrorist financing.”