Human Intelligence Activities
ISIS Terrorist Organization
Red Cells have recently collected and disseminated information concerning a terrorist group named Al-Sham. This is a specialized military body with unique customs, beliefs and language and also contracted DOD specialists (Byman, 2016). The analysis done by the Red Cells digs deep into the origin of Al-Sham , how it is funded, the current state they are in, the kind of weapons they use and their future. This detailed analysis will help in exposing the enemy for the strategies of stopping terrorists’ acts to be done beforehand. Red cell analysis has coordinated the human intelligence program and the specialists to gather and has analyzed the information about the Al-Sham terror group from various perspectives that shall be detailed (Byman, 2016).
Al-Sham which is referred as ISIS by the U.S government was formed in 2004 as a division of Al-Qaeda which is located in Iraq. It is part of the overall ISI organization. Al-Sham is known to be quite and this gives a suspicion that they might be collaborating with other groups in committing the terrorist’s attacks. From the research done by the Red Cells, Al-Sham is grounded in the Muslim faith in the denomination of TQJBR which follow the Muslim traditions to the latter. The other strong hold of this group is their funding. Their funding really sustaining which is comes from various illegal activities which include oil smuggling, counterfeiting and getting donations from the most corrupt charity bodies of the Islamic and also kidnapping for ransom. The study also has shown that France and Italy have paid approximately $30 million as a ransom kidnap demands from the Al-Qaeda. This was just an annual payment in 2005. They also earned over 200 million dollars through other corrupt means still in 2005 and their sustenance is hence assured (Byman, 2016).
ISI generally has been gaining momentum since 2013 with very significant expansion of its power into Syria. With the already existing ISI groups in Somalia, Pakistan, Arabian Peninsula and Syria, the terrorists have gained full control over the Islamic community. Still under the systematic leadership of Abu Bakr Baghdadi, the groups have made an expansion of their goals with the main target being the attack of United States of America.
It was wise also for the Red Cells to have an assessment of the current state of the ISI groups which Al-Sham. The recent studies have shown that the year 2014 has be a year of terrorism revolution by being the most unstable year politically over the last decade. Various countries such as Egypt, Syria and Arab Springs have had a drastic fall in their political stability. Cases of rape, kidnap, murder and other forms of harassment have been reported (Byman, 2016). There have been more than 6000 women and children who have been kidnapped and sold in several sex slavery bodies. Muslims also who do not follow the exact beliefs that are followed traditionally are also killed. These terrorist groups have proven ruthless from the step they have recently taken of making a “cultural cleansing”. This is an attempt to erode the cultural heritage of Iraq. This is a movement driven by the Muslim extremists who want to erase the identity of the true Muslim religion (Byman, 2016).
The main weapon used by the ISI terrorist groups is the psychology of terror. They have ensured their omnipresence by setting small cell terror groups majorly in the United States. The members of the cells are actually citizens of U.S. who may not be easily noticed because they are born and brought out here. ISI has become unpredictable in the recent years than in the past because they are thinking and planning globally but act and implement locally. From a recent analysis done, 44% of the terrorists are more than 30 miles away from their target (Byman, 2016). There have been small but organized groups that have spread across the globe with an aim of spreading the psychology of fear. This is majorly done with suicide bombs, random shooting and taking captives.
The Red Cells also evaluated about the future of the ISI and the Islamic state. It has been found that they don’t have a particular reason why they carry out the terror attacks. The extremists have used a very powerful weapon of fuel sympathizers just as the Al-Qaeda has been doing (Pollack, 2016). The 2013 bombing at Boston Marathon it is evidence that the target of the ISI groups is to cause deaths and suffering of important people. The ISIS has recently walked in the street of Brisbane with an aim of beheading the civilians on camera. Though the plan was foiled, it has worried the government and gatherings have been regarded as dangerous zones for the ISIS attacks (Pollack, 2016).
Red Cells have identified that the human intelligence programs are the best in monitoring the Al-Sham group by having a clear view on surprise attacks beforehand. It would work in identifying the lone-wolf sympathizers and other small cell groups that have been the great weapon for the terrorists. This intelligence body is able to collect a quality his profile information which can best help the arms forces in fighting against the ISIS terrorists (Harman, 2015). The human intelligence program has an important role to play in fighting the Al-Sham terrorists in the following ways. First, they are able to make a connection with the small cells and the sympathetic groups. They are also able obtain primary information that is reliable. It is also able to used specialized methodologies which are developed through sociology, anthropology and psychology (Pollack, 2016). This can best assist the government in understanding the conditions of the terrorists, their plans and any other agenda they might be discussing.
The red cell also has recommended the best IC members in using the human intelligence program. Military occupational specialists, private intelligence specialists and other special a agents. There is also an important docket for Arabic and cryptologist and linguistics (Pollack, 2016). These can work best in reaching the terrorists and through the human program intelligence. There are also other special group o communication signals intelligence specialists who can work in collaboration with the other specialists in operating an undercover in the territory of the enemies (Pollack, 2016).
The human intelligence program operators should be the frontline of the intelligence operations. This is because they are able to collect sensitive information about the Al-Sham. The information is gotten from the Islam refugees, the active members of the Al-Sham and various detainees (Pollack, 2016).
The coordination of the human intelligence programs, the right members to conduct the move and all the other aspects of the undercover needs to be run under the right strategy (Harman, 2015). The proposed strategy involves cross translation of the information by various linguistics, processing of the translated information, after which the analysis can follow. Red cell analysis has provides a strategy that coordinated all these operations so as to ensure that the bodies involved work in harmony. Red cell analysis is an approach that ensures the understanding of the Al-Sham in various ways (Harman, 2015).
First, it makes an attempt to think the way adversaries would think (Harman, 2015). The approach is based on assimilation whereby the members of the IC specialists are required to evaluate the social surroundings, their upbringing, their financial and other economic status religion and their beliefs. This approach also demands that the analysts should study the state of the Islam in an intent way and actually apparently becoming part of them. The Red Cell approach requires the members also to be open minded such that they are able to let go any pre-convinced notions about the Al-Sham (Pollack, 2016). With the procedures that the Red Cells analysis has put in place, misunderstanding, misleading of the information and inaccuracy are no longer a threat to the operations.
The intelligence activities against Al-Sham have to embrace the various recommendations that have been proposed. First, the proposed Homeland Security budget for 2015 should be revised by the concerned agencies to ensure that all the resources that are needed are in place. Secondly, they issue of recruiting more military should be done which should be accompanied by a military training in various occupational specialties. The graduates of the MOS school should also be awarded as a motivation for the new recruits (Harman, 2015). The last recommendation was for the Department of Defense policy to make a consideration on the use of country nationals and the recommendation of its abolishment should be considered. This should seize until the Al-Sham militant groups are totally eradicated to prevent the issue of counter spies of the terrorists from extracting information that would cause the exposure of the state against its enemy (Harman, 2015).
Following the various lethal ISIS terrorist’s attacks in the United States, the collaboration of the red cells, the human intelligence and the other partakers in this war against the ISIS need the collaboration of the government, research bodies and specialists. Systematic strategies that shall guide during data collection processes, analysis and implementation need a deeper and detailed analysis so that all the plans stand successfully at the end.
Figuring first the extent of the ISIS attacks in the United States, terrorism concerns have surged with a large proportion of the government’s rating becoming more and more plummeted. A recent survey by the Pew Research Center shown that people who have positively commented on the performance of the government against terrorism has dropped from 72% to 46% (Byman, 2016). The ISIS terrorist organization has therefore changed the public’s agenda after having been ranked as the leading international danger for the United States. The presidency of Barrack Obama has been outweighed by the fact that he has not handled ISIS organization with the seriousness or urgency it disserves. From a speech delivered by Lister, it is evident that ISIS is a determined enemy. As much as the government plans to destroy them, they get more armed to capture and cause damage to materials of its adversaries. This calls for the government’s full support of anti-terrorist programs, strategies and all it takes to combat this organization (Byman, 2016).
Among the many data collection programs that exists in the united states, NSA and PRISM (surveillance program) could perform the research more efficiently. NSA’s made a bulk and enormous data collection which conducted a successful and more efficient survey. NSA did a survey on phone numbers that are suspected to be held by terrorists which has been a 14 years course. It provided a detailed report of the owners of the Verizon phone company though this was done secretly. From a recent speech of January 2014 by president Barrack Obama, the NSA data collection program has had no evidence of abuse which meant that the program should improve its intelligence. The program can have a fruitful data collection research if more support and intelligence can be improved.
The PRISM surveillance program can also be utilized in collecting important information about the ISIS terrorist group. This program could work very well with the NSA program by providing it with any relevant internet information and communications that are done online. The program was launched in 2007 and soon has shown its capacity to gather internet information concerning the terrorist groups. From the security and investigative documents, PRISM has been regarded as the top most and reliable source of raw intelligence that are used in the analysis done by the NSA. With the help of the Verizon communication company, the PRISM program is able to cooperate as many as 100 United States companies for a long time. The program is also specialized in bulk internet communications in such a targeted way (Byman, 2016). The advantage of working with this program is that it is able to cordinated most of the other data collection bodies such the Data Intercept Technology Unit and the NSA among others. The united state’s government executive branch has given the PRISm data collection program the authority that it may need to ensure that data is available to all the concerned programs that aim at combating the ISIS terrorist organization (Byman, 2016).
From the recommendation of the red cell unit, the right members who should run the IC are the specialists in various fields of security program. The Military occupational specialists, who are the national defense for the United States, should be incorporated in the investigative programs. Militant officers would best work in their respective areas of specialization to uphold efficiency in the operations. The other important group would be crytopologists and linguistics who are adequately equipped with the these would work perfectly well with the human intelligence program to collect important information through expertise methodology. This includes assimilation, conducting interviews and spying over the ISIS territories. The IC members should have the top most specialized skills to allow quality and promising outcome on the human intelligence proceedings. Computer analysts, operational managers and communication analysts should be in the front line in making sure that the plans put in place are well run. Other personnel required would the planning, organizing and technical teams that handle each aspect with the intelligence it deserves.
The data collection group and the members of the IC should seek to adapt very effective strategies of intelligence. This strategies should all aim at ensuring that the finest information got about the terrorists is submitted to the right authorities, and ensure that information about any security measures taken is concealed from them. One of this strategies is ensuring physical security of their own people by rereading crime-prevention checkups. These can also be done providing the pictures of the known terrorists to the relevant people and ensuring that the pictures are well displayed to the public areas to ensure that people view them. This will be very effective in that incase the faces are seen anywhere people can be alarmed and an immediate action taken.
Under the same measure physical security survey should be reviewed, these surveys acclaims for action as a result of an area’s inspection of installations like communication barriers transportation barriers and others like the intrusion detective system barriers are protected from sabotage and any possible destruction (Pollack, 2016). Threat assessment should also be put into consideration as one of the strategies to ensure physical security. This strategy of corporal security must ensure balancing its coordination with equivalent emphasis on thwarting both felonious acts and above all the acts of the terrorists. There should be updates on the plan based on threat assessment continually to ensure the fin nest detail upcoming is captured. Thismeasure effectively help the intellectuals to get that which is necessary for them to combat any illegal action either from criminals or the terrorists.
The other strategy that can be applied is ensuring operational security, where protecting information is the main source of success against the ISIS terrorists. This strategy demands for coordination in all action needed to ensure that the enemy or terrorist does not learn about any plans or operations. Whenever plans are being made they must ensure inclusion of measures to any potential terrorist from getting access to the information. These are information in areas like the human intelligence where they use people to get information about military abilities (Harman, 2015). This danger can be countered by using countersurveillance activities and also countering the intelligence ability.
The other area where the enemy can adventure is to the signal intelligence which involves the signal emanation gear and systems of communication (Pollack, 2016). The problem here is that the enemy might affect the day to day communication activities of certain target areas for easy attacking. The only way to counter this by installing communication and information security. They can also can exploit is the operational array which the terrorists get to understand when there is an operation and when none exists. This can be solved by ensuring that there is no operation arrangement followed or rather mask the well-known by deception. This will help security operations to be effective whenever they are conducted against the ISIS terrorists (Harman, 2015).
There is yet the personal security strategy which is operative in contesting terrorism. In this case it is clear that every person is vulnerable to terrorism threat for no one is immune to it. This is where terrorist make government’s representatives of the U.S, the big companies and assets in the country their bombing or sabotage targets. This can only be curbed by restricting the key personnel’s history data for it can of use to the terrorists to get to their homes and access their families. Sensitive areas can be denied direct access and ensure proper equipping of their entrances (Harman, 2015). This will help ensure security to the country’s property and key personnel that highly count in its support.
The analysis process also incorporates various strategies that should be analyzed in order to combat terrorism attacks from the ISIS organization. For the fruitfulness of the work done by the skilled team of personnel, the team is supposed to identify its weak points for it to strengthen itself. On the other hand, the team should be having full account of the ISIS including their plans, their background information as well as their secrets. This can perfectly be done well by the trained specialists in the intelligence collection through various tactics. The data collection programs are the most important teams of this move because they are expected to provide primary data to the analysis team (Harman, 2015).
The other analysis strategy would involve require the U.S to embrace trans-governmental networks. These networks can allow in working directly with other countries who are their counterparts. This would reduce the risk of over relying on the internal political which is of high level (Pollack, 2016). For instance, the United States immigration and Customs enforcement body should pair with its foreign counterparts to inhibit and track the movements of the terrorists. This is a strategy that is ought to be adopted by other bodies like the U.S. military, the treasury department, the FBI, NSA as well as the CIA investigators.
From the overall analysis of the ISIS, I would recommend the United States to take some steps of willingness that will aim at establishing long-term commitment. First, the U.S. government should support that of Pakistan from which the ISIS organization comes from. This would help the achievement of the fight against Islamic extremists and seize their attacks. The most essential factor is for the United States to fill in the gaps that exists between it, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and other Islam dominated countries. By working with the international community, United States will have a guarantee of paralyzing the ISIS efforts.
The other recommendation suggests that the U.S. president should maximize the effectiveness of his authority to designate the governments who fail to cooperate fully in the fight against ISIS. The president should specifically designate Afghanistan and Syria through the secretary of the state. The governments will become reliable sponsors and further review should accompany the move. The United States should also seek to strengthen and empower the counter-proliferation efforts in opposition to weapons that are used to commit massive destruction by ISIS. This can simply be achieved by the expansion of the Proliferation Security Initiative as well as the Cooperative Threat Reduction program.
The last recommendation calls for the United States to put up a comprehensive strategy that incorporates economical policies, opportunities and openness of societies. This can only be boosted by the enhancement of the states’ coalition and cohesion to counter the ISIS terrorist organization. Careful consideration of these recommendations will assist the United States to overcome ISIS to a remarkable significance.
References
Byman, D. (2016). ISIS Goes Global. Foreign Affairs, 95(2), 76-85.
Harman, J. (2015). Disrupting the Intelligence Community. Foreign Affairs, 94(2), 99-107.
Pollack, K. M. (2016). Fight or Flight. Foreign Affairs, 95(2), 62-75.
