B: Terrorism Protection
Protect the United States from terrorist attack. Other Information:
Situation: Terrorism is the most significant national security threat our country faces. The FBI counterterrorism goal is
specific and compelling — it must prevent, disrupt, and defeat terrorist operations before attacks occur. Effectively combating
this threat presents unique and unprecedented challenges. The terrorists’ target is clear: the United States and its interests
both here and abroad. However, terrorist planning, methods, sponsorship, and operational timing are typically obscured by
meticulous and compartmentalized planning, the effective use of permeable international borders and often friendly state-sponsors,
and the ability to adapt and evolve as efforts against them become effective. Terrorists’ ability to obtain and use WMD materiel
and technology for mass casualty attacks must be curtailed. In the international terrorism arena, FBI investigations have
revealed an extensive militant Islamic presence in the United States. The activities of these militants are focused principally
on fund-raising, recruitment, and training, but they have a sufficiently well structured and well-developed support system
that could be activated to carry out operations within the United States and abroad. The FBI’s greatest concern currently
is the threat from al-Qaeda attack cells, which retain the ability to inflict serious harm with little or no warning. These
cells maintain strict operational and communications security and minimize contact with militant Islamic groups and mosques
in the United States to avoid drawing attention to themselves. Al-Qaeda will continue efforts to acquire and develop various
WMD (biological, chemical, radiological, and nuclear) and will continue to favor sensational attacks. Although al-Qaeda is
the most lethal of the groups associated with the Sunni jihadist cause, there are numerous other terrorist groups, any one
of which could attack U.S. interests. Groups that are committed to jihad and offer al-Qaeda varying degrees of support include:
Algerian extremists; Al-Gama’at al-Islamiyya; ‘Asbat al-Ansar; Al-Ittihad al-Islami; Ummah Tameer-E-Nau; The Libyan Islamic
Fighting Group; Hizb-e-Islami Gulbideen; and An Nahda. HAMAS and Hizballah also have an extensive presence in the United States,
and have the ability to carry out attacks domestically. Up until 9/11, Hizballah had killed more Americans than any other
terrorist organization. The events of 9/11 shifted the FBI’s focus to international terrorist groups operating inside the
United States, but not to the exclusion of domestic groups that threaten the safety of our citizens. The threat of domestic
terrorists launching large-scale attacks to inflict mass casualties is low compared to that of international terrorist groups,
due, in part, to longstanding efforts to disrupt and dismantle these groups. The most significant domestic terrorism threat
over the next five years will continue to be the “lone wolf” terrorist. Inspired by the ideologies of formal terrorism groups,
their relative anonymity limits law enforcement detection capability and makes prevention extremely difficult, while their
ability to mount successful and high profile terrorist events remains — as evidenced by the 1995 bombing of the Murrah Federal
Building in Oklahoma City by Timothy McVeigh and bombings by Eric Robert Rudolph at the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics, health
clinics in Georgia and Alabama, and an alternative lifestyle bar in Atlanta, Georgia. Right wing domestic terrorism groups
will continue to target law enforcement officials and minority groups. Militias will primarily disrupt the personal and financial
lives of their targets (government workers and elected officials) by misuse of property claims or liens against personal assets.
White supremacists, traditionally the most violent right wing group, have strengthened their recruiting and rhetoric since
9/11. As left wing terrorism groups regenerate over the next five years, they will again pose a threat to economic and law
enforcement targets. Violent protests against the perceived effects of trade globalization on human rights, labor rights,
and the environment will continue and likely escalate. Recent examples of left wing “ anarchist movement” activity include
large-scale, destructive protests at World Trade Organization and International Monetary Fund meetings. Special-interest extremism
incidents have increased over the last several years and will continue to be problematic, primarily in the violent fringes
of animal rights and other social movements. Research laboratories, pharmaceutical and cosmetic companies, and organizations
that monitor or lobby against animal rights/“eco-terrorist” groups will be potential victims. The FBI’s counterterrorism successes
to date have been largely determined by its flexibility, leadership, and collaboration with the U.S. Intelligence Community
and its foreign and domestic law enforcement partners. Since 9/11, the FBI has: (1) shifted its counterterrorism culture and
organization from reactive to proactive and “threat-based”; (2) developed a nationally-driven, fully integrated Intelligence
and Investigative Program; (3) improved information sharing with other federal agencies, state and local governments, and
international counterterrorism partners; (4) enhanced operational capabilities within FBI Headquarters and the field; and
(5) evaluated lessons learned to better equip the nation in preventing terrorism. The FBI will continue to work closely with
its intelligence and law enforcement partners focusing on full disruption of terrorist operations. The danger of the convergence
of terrorism and traditional crime presents obvious and acute dangers. Fortunately, the USA PATRIOT Act enables the FBI and
its Intelligence Community partners to address all aspects of the threats posed by terrorist organizations by using both information
and the tools of intelligence and criminal investigators to maximize the impact on terrorist organizations and their supporters.
The FBI has the unique ability to bring national security and law enforcement efforts under the same roof and to integrate
the intricacies of intelligence work with the authority to investigate and arrest terrorist suspects. The FBI is strategically
positioned, through its multi-agency Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTFs) located at Headquarters and in every FBI field office,
to protect against terrorists by merging international intelligence efforts with the work of local law enforcement first responders.
Similarly, FBI efforts to internationalize its counterterrorism efforts — from Special Agents integrated with the U.S. Military
in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Guantanamo Bay, to pursuing investigations initiated in the United States to their logical conclusion
overseas — have yielded dramatic results. The FBI will continue to expand its Legal Attaché Program, in which experienced
agents are assigned to critically located U.S. Embassies abroad. We will also continue ongoing efforts to shift our international
operations from simple liaison to dynamic operational partnerships with host country law enforcement and intelligence counterparts.
Domestically, the FBI will continue to work closely with Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and community stakeholders
in the counterterrorism preparedness arena — to protect the nation’s critical infrastructure from attack; to protect major
special events that present an operational opportunity for terrorists; to prepare against the use of WMD materiel and technology
within the United States; and to focus on traditional domestic terrorism groups planning criminal acts in attempts to effect
political change.
Objective(s):
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