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Home News Non-state Actors WMD Terrorism Remains Grave Threat, U.S. Says
WMD Terrorism Remains Grave Threat, U.S. Says
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NTI - Global Security Newswire, 25 Aug 2008. Non-state Actors

The possibility that a terrorist organization might launch a WMD attack remains one of the "gravest threats" to the security of the United States and its allies, the U.S. State Department said yesterday in its annual terrorism report.

The "Country Reports on Terrorism 2009" addressed the threat of terrorism involving chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear weapons and Washington's response to those dangers.

The State Department noted that al-Qaeda and other extremist groups have expressed interest in acquiring nuclear weapons.

"The diffusion of scientific and technical information regarding the assembly of nuclear weapons, some of which is now available on the Internet, has increased the risk that a terrorist organization in possession of sufficient fissile material could develop its own crude nuclear weapon," the report says. "The complete production of a nuclear weapon strongly depends on the terrorist group’s access to special nuclear materials as well as engineering and scientific expertise."

Due to the proliferation efforts of "irresponsible countries" like North Korea, "the number of potential sources of an unsecured nuclear weapon or materials is challenging worldwide efforts to control and account for nuclear material," according to the State Department. Extremists could also look to underground smuggling networks and international criminal organizations for aid in acquiring or developing nuclear devices, the report says.

While the terrorist detonation of a radiological "dirty bomb" would not be as calamitous as a terrorist nuclear attack, the prevalence of radioactive substances "in nearly every country" means it is much easier to acquire the materials to construct such a weapon, the report says.

"Most radioactive materials lack sufficient strength to present a significant public health risk once dispersed, while the materials posing the greatest hazard would require terrorists to have the expertise to handle them without exposure to incapacitating doses of radiation or detection during transit across international borders," the report says.

However, detonation of a radiological weapon -- which would use conventional explosives to disperse radioactive material -- could cause a significant amount of panic and financial "disruption," the State Department said.

The report notes the potential for a bioterrorism strike, as "the materials required to produce a biological weapon are available in laboratories worldwide, and may threat agents could be isolated from nature." Al-Qaeda is believed to have pressed harder than other terrorist groups to obtain or produce biological weapons, according to the report, which cites the U.S. discovery of an unfinished laboratory in Afghanistan.

"If properly produced and released, biological agents can kill on a massive scale and, if terrorists use a pathogen that can be transmitted from person to person, the disease could quickly spread through commercial air travel across oceans and continents before authorities realize their nations have been attacked," the report says.

The State Department noted efforts by extremists to acquire and deploy readily available toxic chemicals: "The growth and sophistication of the worldwide chemical industry, including the development of complex synthetic and dual-use materials, may make the task of preventing and protecting against this [chemical weapons] threat more difficult."

In its efforts to combat the threat of a WMD terror attack, the United States has implemented multiple initiatives which include the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism. The initiative is jointly led by Russia and the United States and encompasses 77 members who have given their approval to several central nuclear security principles. Since its inception, the program has carried out 34 multinational operations and held five high-level forums.

The United States has a number of priorities in the effort against WMD terrorism, the report says. These include identifying extremists' "intentions, capabilities and plans" to produce or obtain unconventional weapons and the likelihood of that occurring; preventing terrorists from acquiring the materials, know-how or other means of carrying out such an attack, "with a particular focus on weapons-usable fissile materials, dangerous pathogens and poisonous chemicals"; and deterring would-be attackers and their allies from considering or actually carrying out a strike.

Among the programs used to reduce the WMD terror threat, the report says, are the Proliferation Security Initiative, which is intended to interdict smuggling of WMD materials; the Global Threat Reduction Initiative to secure or eliminate vulnerable nuclear and radioactive materials; and the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism, "a cross-cutting strategic framework of 77 partners and four observers who are determined to strengthen individual and global capacity to prevent, detect, and respond to a nuclear terrorist event".

The report says that last year the al-Qaeda "core in Pakistan remained the foremost security threat to the U.S. homeland," according to a State Department release.

Intelligence agencies found that al-Qaeda entities, notably al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, continued to plan strikes against the United States.

The terrorist network "suffered several significant setbacks in 2009 due to Pakistani military operations aimed at eliminating militant strongholds, leadership losses, and increased difficulty in raising money, training recruits, and planning attacks outside of the region," the department said.

"Al-Qaeda continued its efforts to encourage key regional affiliates and terrorist networks to pursue a global agenda, using both the Internet as a means to distribute propaganda and telecommunications infrastructure to plan attacks and coordinate movements," the release says. "Going forward, this will be an area of continued focus for the United States".

There were 10,999 terrorist strikes around the world in 2009 that killed 14,971 people, the State Department found. That number, however wasthe lowest since in five years. The deadliest year for terrorist attacks in that period was 2006 which saw 14,443 strikes that killed 22,736 individuals, according to the report.

Cuba, Iran, Sudan and Syria were all cited as state sponsors of terrorism, with Tehran accused of being the leading backer of militant extremist groups, according to a Defense Department release. Extremist groups were also active in Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen and elsewhere, according to the report.

 

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