Terrorism and counterterrorism

Texas man convicted of terrorism charges
On Wednesday a Texas man, who had been in contact with the radical cleric Anwar al Awlaki, was convicted of attempting to provide material support to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP); Barry Walter Bujol Jr. was arrested when he boarded a ship at the Port of Houston, which he was led to believe was bound for Algeria where he would stay at an al Qaeda safe haven before heading to Yemen
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DHS warns terrorists targeting buses
In a recent Transportation Security Administration (TSA) security bulletin, officials warned state and local authorities that terrorists are increasingly targeting bus networks; John Pistole, the head of the TSA, explained that bus networks are attractive targets for attacks because of their “accessibility” and their “open architecture”
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Good ratings for TV drama "Homeland"
The first six episodes of “Homeland,” the Showtime series focusing on the U.S. fight against terrorism ten years after the 9/11 attacks, have been pulling very good ratings. The series is based on an Israeli drama called “Kidnapped.”
Training mission showcases Israeli counterterrorism techniques
A group of U.S. law enforcement officials recently concluded a weeklong training seminar on the methods Israel uses to prevent and respond to terrorism
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Highly-trained Indian K-9s join counterterror forces
The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) has a highly-trained unit in its force unlike any other in the world; police handlers have taught six Labradors to carry explosives in their teeth, sneak into terrorist lairs, plant remote-controlled bombs, hide secret cameras, interpret body language, and understand English and Hindi
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Cyberterrorism - The weapon of choice a decade after 9/11
Scott Schober, the president and CEO of Berkeley Varitronics Systems, warns of the growing threat from cyberterrorists; he writes that in ten years, “the terrorists’ weapon of choice may not necessarily be a 187,000 pound 767 jet loaded with fuel targeting” New York’s skyline, instead it will be pajama-clad hackers taking down an electrical grid, causing mass confusion in the aviation system, or targeting a nuclear power plant’s SCADA control system to create mass panic and chaos for millions
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Push for military tribunals for terrorists
Republican lawmakers in Congress are pushing to include a provision in the 2012 military authorization bill which would require that terrorists who are not U.S. citizens who are caught plotting against the United States, would be in military custody and face military tribunals, even if they are caught in the United States. The Obama administration opposes such a requirement.
Anwar al-Awlaki and the 9/11 plotters
Representative Peter king (R-New York) wrote to Lt. Gen. Ronald Burgess, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), to inquire whether 9/11-related detainees being held by the United States are been interrogated about the possible role U.S.-born cleric Anwar al-Awalki, who was killed by a U.S. drone on 30 September, played in the 9/11 attacks.

U.S. expands drone war to Horn of Africa
Representative Peter king (R-New York) wrote to Lt. Gen. Ronald Burgess, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), to inquire whether 9/11-related detainees being held by the United States are been interrogated about the possible role U.S.-born cleric Anwar al-Awalki, who was killed by a U.S. drone on 30 September, played in the 9/11 attacks.
Lawmakers seek to protect NY’s growing nanotech industry from terrorists
Last week during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Senator Charles Schumer (D – New York) strongly urged DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano to secure New York’s growing nanotechnology industry against a Mexican terrorist group that has attacked nanotechnology firms around the world
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Terrorism in Africa: Kenyan troops invade Somalia
On Wednesday, Kenya sent its troops some 100 miles inside Somalia to take the battle to the Islamic Al Shabaab organization, killing some 75 militants; yesterday, AU troops stormed a stronghold of Al Shabaab militant group on the outskirts of Mogadishu, while a militia backed by Kenyan troops simultaneously attacked another Shabaab stronghold along the Kenya-Somalia border, taking it over and forcing Shabab fighters to flee; Somalia’s nominal government relies on Ethiopian and Kenyan troops to fight Islamic terrorists in Somalia
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FBI training elite deep-diving counterterrorism unit
To bolster its counterterrorism capabilities, the FBI has created an elite group of special agents trained to track terrorism underwater
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Israel-Hamas prisoner exchange goes through
Earlier today, the initial phase of prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas has taken place; Gilad Shalit, the Israeli soldier kidnapped by Hamas operatives more than five years ago and held incommunicado since — even the Red Cross was not allowed to visit him — returned to Israel in exchange for 450 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails; in total, 1,027 Palestinian (1,000 men and twenty-seven women) will be released in the exchange; the deal was reached after both Israel and Hamas agreed to major compromises; analysts say that one of the main reasons prompting Israel to show more flexibility was the desire to “clean the table” of troublesome and divisive issues in preparation for a possible Israeli military attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities
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The Israel-Hamas prisoner exchange
If everything goes according to plan, then this coming Tuesday will see Gilad Shalit, the Israeli soldier kidnapped by Hamas operatives more than five years ago and held incommunicado since – even the Red Cross was not allowed to visit him — return to Israel in exchange for 1,027 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails (1,000 men and twenty-seven women); the deal was reached after both Israel and Hamas agreed to major compromises; analysts say that one of the main reasons prompting Israel to show more flexibility was the desire to “clean the table” of troublesome and divisive issues in preparation for a possible Israeli military attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities
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Little progress despite $3.4 billion spent on food safety programs
In the past decade the U.S. government has gone to great lengths to secure the nation’s food supply against terrorists, but more than $3.4 billion later it has little to show for its efforts; despite all the government spending, key food safety programs and counter-terror policies have been bogged down by a murky, convoluted bureaucratic process
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The long view

Attack on California power station heightens concerns about grid security
Security experts are concerned that last year’s unsolved attack on an electrical-power substation in San Jose, California, is but a prologue to similar attacks which, if executed simultaneously and in a coordinated fashion against several such substations, could cripple the U.S. power grid. The transformers at the substation, vital for regional power distribution, were shot at by several gunmen and disabled for twenty-seven days. What is especially worrisome, security exert note, is that the attack appeared to have been carried out by people with some training, although the FBI said the agency does not think it was the act of terrorists.
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Former FERC chair calls for mandatory security standards for high-voltage substations
Jon Wellinghoff, the former chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission(FERC), is leading a crusade to improve physical security around the nation’s electrical grid. Following a 16 April 2013 sniper attack on a San Jose, California substation he is urging Congress to give federal agencies the authority to demand improved security around electrical substations. “This isn’t about this substation or this organized attack,” Wellinghoff said of the California incident. “This is more about the larger issue of physical security of these high-voltage substations nationwide and the need to ensure that some defensive measures start to be put in place.”
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Security of dirty bomb materials in U.S. inadequate: experts
There are more than 5,000 medical and research devices in the United States containing high-activity radiation sources, including 700 with category-1 sources. Category-1 radiation material could be used by terrorists in dirty bombs. The security measures developed by the industry were written with accident prevention in mind, not in order to thwart a deliberate, forcible effort by terrorists or criminals to gain control of the toxic material. In addition, radioactive materials were considered to be “self-protecting,” because it was assumed that the powerful radiation would deter anyone thinking of tampering with these devices. Terrorist bomb-makers, however, showed themselves to be more technologically-savvy than earlier thought, and, in any event, suicide bombers would not be deterred by the risk of radiation poisoning.
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A first: Constitutionality of NSA warrantless surveillance challenged by terrorism suspect
Jamshid Muhtorov, a refugee from Uzbekistan now facing terrorism charges in Colorado, is the first criminal defendant who, as part of his lawyers’ defense strategy, is challenging the constitutionality of the NSA’s warrantless surveillance program. Muhtorov filed a motion Wednesday in federal court in Denver to suppress any evidence obtained through the agency’s surveillance program on grounds that it was unlawful. In July 2013 the Justice Department reversed an earlier policy, and now informs defendants whether the case against them, in whole or in part, is based on information obtained through warrantless surveillance. To date, six months after the review process at Justice was launched, Muhtorov and Mohamed Mohamud, a Portland, Oregon teenager who had been convicted after an FBI sting operation of attempting to detonate a bomb at a Christmas tree lighting ceremony, are the only defendants to receive such a disclosure.
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Portland’s Christmas Bomber challenges NSA-gathered evidence used to convict him
Mohamed Mohamud, a Somali immigrant and former Oregon State University student, was convicted last year of attempting to detonate a bomb in 2010 near Portland’s Christmas holiday tree-lighting ceremony at Pioneer Courthouse Square. His lawyers are questioning the legality of evidence used against him. Attorneys for Mohamud are claiming that the evidence used was obtained without a warrant and should have been barred by the court.
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Nevada trial of Sikh terrorist postponed by two years to clarify FISA-related issues
Balwinder Singh, 39, who received asylum in the United States in 1997, was indicted as a member of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF). Both groups use bombings, kidnappings, and murders in a campaign to establish an independent Sikh state in the Punjab region of India, to be called Khalistan. U.S. District Judge Larry Hicks agreed with the prosecution and defense that the trial should be postponed from February 2014 to February 2016 so that issues related to FISA-authorized NSA surveillance of Singh could be clarified. Judge Hicks said that “the ends of justice served by this continuance outweighs the defendant’s and public’s best interests in a speedy trial.”
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Terrorism and counterterrorism

Terrorism and counterterrorism

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The long view