Paramilitary Terrorism: A Neglected Threat

摘要

Fixation upon WMD terrorism, reinforced by the recurring need to manage the consequences of other manmade or natural disasters, has conditioned the homeland security community to focus upon prevention and consequence management, with scant attention paid to resolving an ongoing terrorist incident of a paramilitary nature. The seizure of national assets by an armed paramilitary group is a possibility that should not be ignored. Terrorist seizure of either a soft target, like Russia's Beslan No. 1 school in 2004, or a hard target such as nuclear materials or facilities, could have enormous strategic consequences. It would demand swift, decisive response probably beyond the capability of local agencies. Domestic counterterrorist capabilities are poorly postured for response to such an incident. Standing, regionally based, swiftly responding federal forces with a streamlined command and control structure are needed, along with a reorientation of homeland security guidance, training and exercises to include response to threats of this nature.