Terrorism Research Center

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The Terrorism Research Center (TRC) is non-profit think tank focused on investigating and researching global terrorism issues through multi-disciplinary collaboration amongst a group of international experts.

Contents

History 1996 to 2012

The TRC was founded in 1996 by Matthew Devost, Brian Houghton, and Neal Pollard to establish an organization with a specific focus on terrorism and emerging international security issues like information warfare. It was purchased by Blackwater's Erik Prince in 2007. Over the course of 14 years, the TRC conducted research, analysis, and training on variety of counterterrorism and homeland security issues.

Website (1996 to 2012)

The TRC web site (which operated at www.terrorism.com since 1996 and then also mirrored at www.homelandsecurity.com starting in 2000) was the top search engine result for “terrorism” and other security keywords for over a decade. [1] The site regularly received as many as 5,000,000 hits per month and had tens of thousands of active registered users. The site has also been cited in thousands of books, news articles, academic papers, and other works.

Major projects (1996 to 2012)

The TRC was involved in several major projects, from 1996: [2] [3]

Responder Knowledge Base

The TRC conceived, prototyped, designed, built and operated the RKB over a period of six years. [2] The RKB provided emergency responders, purchasers, and planners with a trusted, integrated, online source of information on products, standards, certifications, grants, and other equipment-related information. The RKB was operated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) from 2008 until it was decommissioned in September 2013.

Terrorism Early Warning Group Expansion Project

The TRC has worked with the Los Angeles Terrorism Early Warning (TEW) Group since 1997. [2] [4] The TRC and Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) submitted a grant application to the Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism to expand the Terrorism Early Warning Group concept to six high threat cities in the U.S. [2] The Terrorism Early Warning Group concept fulfills the intelligence requirements outlined in Homeland Security Directive 8: Interim National Preparedness Goal. [5] [6] After the September 11 attacks in 2001 and the formation of the Department of Homeland Security, the Terrorism Early Warning Group program was migrated to DHS and expanded to cover 56 high threat urban areas. The TRC worked with these 56 cities to develop early warning and intelligence centers that became the precursor the national Fusion Center network.

Mirror Image training

The TRC developed the renowned Mirror Image training program in 2001 to allow military, intelligence, security and first responder personnel to better understand the international terrorist threat. [7] Participants were subjected to an intense immersion program where they were trained to think and act like the adversary and adopt their tactics, techniques, and procedures. [8] TRC Mirror Image training became a U.S. Army Foundry course, was featured in major news media, and became the most popular training course the TRC ever developed. [9]

RealNews List

The TRC provided a free daily news clipping service on a variety of global security issues. [2] An archive of several hundred thousand clippings was available via the TRC web site. The mailing of the TRC free daily news clipping service, became known as the 'early bird of global risk issues'. [2]

Project Pediatric Preparedness

The TRC 'Project Pediatric Preparedness' report responded to emergency preparedness and response planning, technology investments, and training frequently, in respect to the unique requirements of responding to pediatric victims of a larger scale terrorist attack. [10] The project explained these unique needs and gaps, and provided a foundation for homeland security planning for pediatric victims of terrorism. The final report described the minimum capabilities essential for emergency response to pediatric victims. [11] The report laid out fifteen Functional Areas for pediatric response – general areas describing functions, tasks, and missions of emergency response. This report is available on the TRC website. [11]

Lecture series

The TRC developed a lecture series, that brought together a wide array of experts to discuss emerging threats. [2] These lectures were then released as audio downloads on the site. Popular speakers from the lecture series included Brian Michael Jenkins, Rohan Gunaratna, and Hekmat Karzai.

2005 U.S. Capitol flag honor

In 2005, to honor of TRC's contributions to the first responder community through the development of the RKB system, it received a U.S. flag that had been flown over the U.S. Capitol building (one of more than 100,000 such flags flown annually). [2] [12]

Today

Early in 2009, none of the TRC founders were still involved with the center. The Terrorism Research Center ceased operations in 2010 at the discretion of new owners and managers.
In April 2012, the founders of the TRC announced it was being reconstituted as a non-profit at www.terrorism.org. [13] The new focus was on sponsoring research publications, and facilitating research. In December 2014, the TRC was included as a collaborating partner with the Microsimulation & Risk Modelling Group at the University of Wollongong. The project with them is assessing the tactics and counter tactics involved in lone wolf knife attacks on the public. [14]

2012-2013 publications

The Terrorism Research Center has initiated sponsorship of new publications in terrorism, and related research areas. The main focus has been research into Terrorist Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures by its research associates, such as Dr. Robert J. Bunker, [15] and Dr. Chris Flaherty. [16] The 2012-2014 Terrorism Research Center sponsored publications:

The TRC research in 2013 made a significant contribution to the understanding of surgically implanted explosive devices, better known as the 'Body Cavity Bomb' (BCB) concept:

2014 publications

The TRC research in 2014 has continued to develop new publications in terrorism, and related research areas, with the latest research, on interposing tactics, [21] as a branch of Terrorist Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures, by its research associate Dr. Chris Flaherty.

The TRC research in 2014, has also developed a new reader on Fifth Dimensional Operations:

2015 publications

The 2015 published TRC research has included a new reader on current terrorism analysis, and has continued work on Terrorist Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs):

2016 publications

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bioterrorism</span> Terrorism involving biological agents

Bioterrorism is terrorism involving the intentional release or dissemination of biological agents. These agents include bacteria, viruses, insects, fungi, and/or toxins, and may be in a naturally occurring or a human-modified form, in much the same way as in biological warfare. Further, modern agribusiness is vulnerable to anti-agricultural attacks by terrorists, and such attacks can seriously damage economy as well as consumer confidence. The latter destructive activity is called agrobioterrorism and is a subtype of agro-terrorism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Counterterrorism</span> Activity to defend against or prevent terrorist actions

Counterterrorism, also known as anti-terrorism, relates to the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, businesses, and intelligence agencies use to combat or eliminate terrorism.

Terrorism and mass attacks in Canada includes acts of terrorism, as well as mass shootings, vehicle-ramming attacks, mass stabbings, and other such acts committed in Canada that people may associate with terroristic tactics but have not been classified as terrorism by the Canadian legal system.

The Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism (MIPT) was a non-profit organization founded in response to the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. Supported by Department of Homeland Security and other government grant funds, it conducted research into the causes of terrorism and maintained the MIPT Terrorism Knowledge Base — which was an online database of terrorist incidents, groups, and other information. MIPT also worked in conjunction with RAND, for some of its research and analysis. The institute provided training and professional development dedicated to improving the skills of law enforcement officers.

The tactics of terrorism are diverse. As important as the actual attacks is the cultivation in the target population of the fear of such attacks, so that the threat of violence becomes as effective as actual violence. The different tactics that terrorist groups utilize can be very simple to extremely complex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard A. Falkenrath</span>

Richard A. Falkenrath Jr. served as deputy commissioner of counter-terrorism of the New York City Police Department from 2006 to 2010. He was the third person to hold this position. His predecessors were Frank Libutti and Michael A. Sheehan.

The counter-terrorism page primarily deals with special police or military organizations that carry out arrest or direct combat with terrorists. This page deals with the other aspects of counter-terrorism:

Total Intelligence Solutions, LLC, (TIS) is a risk management and consulting company headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. The company delivers threat and vulnerability assessments, data acquisition capabilities, physical and information security services, training, and high-level consulting to Fortune 500 companies, and to U.S. and foreign governments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Center for Domestic Preparedness</span>

The Center for Domestic Preparedness (CDP) is the only U.S. federal facility chartered to provide comprehensive preparedness training programs to the nation's emergency response providers. The facility, located in Calhoun County, Alabama, provides all-hazards training to approximately 50,000 emergency responders annually, or a total of 1.1 million responders since its inception in 1998. Trainees hail from state, local, tribal, territorial, and federal governments, as well as private entities. Training for state, local, tribal, and territorial governments are entirely funded by the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), whereas responders for foreign federal governments and private entities may be trained on a fee-for-service basis.

Presidential Decision Directive 62 (PDD-62), titled Combating Terrorism, was a Presidential Decision Directive (PDD), signed on May 22, 1998 by President Bill Clinton. It identified the fight against terrorism a top national security priority.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deployable Operations Group</span> Military unit

The Deployable Operations Group (DOG) was a United States Coast Guard command that provided properly equipped, trained and organized Deployable Specialized Forces (DSF), which still exist today, to the Coast Guard, United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), United States Department of Defense (DoD) and inter-agency operational and tactical commanders. Formerly headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, it was established on 20 July 2007, and was commanded by a captain and was decommissioned by the Commandant of the Coast Guard, Admiral Robert Papp on 1 October 2013, although many of the units existed long before the 2007 commissioning. Upon decommissioning, the units previously assigned to the DOG were split between Coast Guard Pacific and Atlantic Area commands.

Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) is an essential concept in terrorism and cyber security studies. The role of TTPs in terrorism analysis is to identify individual patterns of behavior of a particular terrorist activity, or a particular terrorist organisation, and to examine and categorize more general tactics and weapons used by a particular terrorist activity, or a particular terrorist organisation.

Interposing Tactics is tactical concept, developed under Terrorist Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures, to explain a tactical action where a small-scale action takes place between two combatants, where one manoeuvres into interposition or interjection within a tactical situation, and disrupts the action or activity, of the opponent.

Three-Dimensional (3D) Tactics Analysis, is a tactical analysis methodology under the concept of Terrorist Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures, and is related to Rhizome Manoeuvre. The approach is applicable to urban combat, and takes into account mass gatherings of people located in highly complex urban structures, incorporating features such as multi-level buildings, open spaces between buildings, crowd congregation points, and transport hubs.

Mimicking operations is a tactical concept, developed under Terrorist Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures, to explain a form of deception, commonly used by terrorists in their attacks. The concept is commonly used in military tactical modelling and scientific simulation; and is connected to the idea of shielding friendly forces from detection and deception.

Dynamic defence, is a key concept in Rhizome Manoeuvre, and Three-Dimensional (3D) Tactics Analysis, and is a key concept in contemporary Terrorist Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures.

Dr. Robert J. Bunker is an American academic and an applied theorist on national security and other advanced concepts.

The National Special Operations Force (NSOF) was Malaysia's main security force which serves as the first responder to any terror threats on the country's sovereignty. The force covers elements from the Malaysian Armed Forces, Royal Malaysia Police and the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency.

<i>Terrorist Recognition Handbook</i> Book by Malcolm Nance

Terrorist Recognition Handbook: A Practitioner's Manual for Predicting and Identifying Terrorist Activities is a non-fiction book about counterterrorism strategies, written by U.S. Navy retired cryptology analyst Malcolm Nance. The book is intended to help law enforcement and intelligence officials with the professional practice of behavior analysis and criminal psychology of anticipating potential terrorists before they commit criminal acts. Nance draws from the field of traditional criminal analysis to posit that detecting domestic criminals is similar to determining which individuals are likely to commit acts of terrorism. The book provides resources for the law enforcement official including descriptions of devices used for possible bombs, a database of terrorist networks, and a list of references used. Nance gives the reader background on Al-Qaeda tactics, clandestine cell systems and sleeper agents, and terrorist communication methods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New York City Police Department Counterterrorism Bureau</span> Division of the New York City Police Department

The New York City Police Department Counterterrorism Bureau (CT) is a division of the New York City Police Department (NYPD) responsible for preventing terrorist attacks within New York City. Former New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly described the CT as "a Council on Foreign Relations with guns".

References

  1. "About". 14 April 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Historic Projects". 19 April 2012.
  3. "Blackwater's Owner Has Spies for Hire - washingtonpost.com". The Washington Post . Archived from the original on 2008-08-20.
  4. LA County [ dead link ]
  5. "Utilizing Terrorism Early Warning Groups to Meet the National Preparedness Goal". 13 June 2005.
  6. TEW and NationalPreparedness Goal [ dead link ]
  7. "Mirror Image Training". 17 June 2011.
  8. "Inside a U.S. Counterterrorism Research Center - Nymag". 26 November 2004.
  9. "Mirror Image on CNN". 21 May 2005.
  10. "Reference Library | RiskIntel". Archived from the original on 2012-04-02.
  11. 1 2 Final report terrorism.com [ dead link ]
  12. Capitol Flags| "Architect of the Capitol - Capitol Flags". Archived from the original on 2010-05-27. Retrieved 2010-05-09.
  13. "Counter-terror think tank goes non-profit - UPI.com". UPI. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
  14. Microsimulation & Risk Modelling Group (University of Wollongong), Collaborating Partners, International Partners https://uow-mrmg.github.io/collaboration.html
  15. "Robert J. Bunker". Amazon UK.
  16. "Christopher James Flaherty". Amazon UK.
  17. Flaherty, C. (2012) Dangerous Minds: A Monograph on the Relationship Between Beliefs –Behaviours – Tactics. Published by OODA LOOP (7 September 2012). URL: http://www.oodaloop.com/security/2012/09/07/dangerous-minds-the-relationship-between-beliefs-behaviors-and-tactics/
  18. "Adam Lanza and Dangerous Minds". 19 December 2012.
  19. "Skid Row Terrorist". 26 July 2013.
  20. "Body Cavity Bombers: The New Martyrs (A Terrorism Research Center book)". 2 September 2013.
  21. "Interposing Tactics | Red Team Journal". Archived from the original on 2010-01-03.
  22. "3D Vulnerability Analysis Solution to the Problem of Military Energy Security and Interposing Tactics | Journal of Information Warfare". Archived from the original on 2014-03-04. Retrieved 2014-04-23.
  23. "Fifth Dimensional Operations" . Retrieved 19 July 2023.
  24. Bunker, Robert J. (2015-02-10). Counterterrorism: Bridging Operations and Theory: A Terrorism Research Center Book. ISBN   9781491759783.
  25. "Wild Predator Erratic Attacks versus Dynamic Defence - Journal of Information Warfare". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2015-04-29.