Global Wars in Secrecy: Terrorism vs. Counterterrorism James Der DerianWatson Institute for International Studies Brown University

Information Operations

Secretary Rumsfeld at the Council on Foreign RelationsOn February 17th, 2006, then-Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld spoke at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York City.

His message: Multi-media as new multi-front battlefield of terrorism.

Terrorists leverage advantages in communication, forming elaborate networks through use of Internet, cell phones and other technologies.

The U.S. government lags behind terrorists in terms of speed and effectiveness of communication.

Fighting a war inthis new media age

Government Countermeasures In 2001, a number of government agencies removed from their websites information that may have proved useful to terrorists, such as CDC warnings of a lack of preparedness for an attack using chemical agents.Since Rumsfelds speech in February, few changes have been made in government policy in the Media War on Terror.

Counterinsurgency OperationsIn the 78-page text of the Department of Defenses 2003 Information Operations Roadmap (declassified 01/2006), there is not one mention of the Internet or countering cyber-terrorism.The Military Counterinsurgency Manual mentions the Internet, but suggests little in terms of government utilization of the Internet to counter terrorism.

Military Counterinsurgency Manual1-43. As was noted earlier, insurgents now use communications technology, including the Internet, to link with allied groups within and outside the country, joining in loose organizations with a common objective but very different motivations.

5-22. Information themes are based on policy and should be distributed simultaneously or as soon as possible using all available means, such as radio, television, newspapers, flyers, billboards, and the Internet. Polling and analysis should be conducted to determine which media allow the widest dissemination of the themes to the desired audiences at the local, regional, national, and international levels.

FBI Seeks Pearl Video Ban on the InternetIn March, 2002, the FBI demanded that a website displaying the horrific 4-minute video clip of reporter Daniel Pearls murder remove the clip.The clip was put back online shortly afterward, and has since been widely disseminated throughout the Internet.

Extensive database of terrorist internet and multimedia use.The SITE Institute both monitors and studies primary source propaganda, training manuals, and chatter of terrorists online citing the failure to do so as a failure in intelligence.http://www.siteinstitute.orgThe Search for International Terrorist Entities (SITE)

Terror Tales

Juba the Sniper: Video IJuba is the name attributed to a sniper involved with the Iraqi insurgency, claiming to have killed 37 American soldiers.Originally thought to be an individual, the name Juba is now used by the Islamic Army in Iraq to designate a cell of snipers.The first video that has been attributed to Juba shows a man dedicating 9 bullets to President Bush, and then cuts to footage of several sniper strikes, showing US soldiers falling to the ground.

Juba the Sniper: Video IIThe first video directly attributed to Juba was released online in Nov. 2005.Featuring slick graphics, the video cuts between images of George Bush, intertitles, and footage of sniper strikes.Displaying the Islamic Army insignia, the video acts as a recruiting tool for Muslim youth.The video has assisted in the formation of anti-occupation groups in both cyberspace and the physical space of Baghdad Internet Cafes.

The second video directly attributed to Juba was released in Oct. 2006 as an end of Ramadan gift.This video features English subtitles that translate a Juba diary entry and an interview with the Baghdad Sniper Commander.Jubas website - jubaonline.org - is marketing Jubas videos as a documentary series, and contains Arabic, English and French text.Jubas videos can be found on YouTube.com, Ogrish.com, and Google Video. And more information can be found at wikipedia.org.Juba the Sniper: Video III, etc.

New Media

Al-Qaeda NetBefore September 11, there was one al-Qaeda website; now nearly five thousand.Imam Samudra, on death row in Indonesia for 2002 Bali bombings, had laptop with wireless Internet access and a cell phone smuggled into his prison cell, through which authorities believe he planned October 2005 bombings.Al-Qaeda, citing technology-based crime(s), recruits online people who understand technology.http://www.sunstar.com/ph/static/cag/2006/11/13/news/al.qaeda.intensifies.recruitment.online.html

Voice-over Internet ProtocolWith an increasing availability of wireless Internet access and Internet-driven phone programs (eg. Skype), Voice-over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is becoming increasingly popular among terrorists who see those types of transmissions as more difficult to tap.Recipes and instructions for explosives using commercial components are now almost as common as restaurant reviews.Successful attack techniques in the Iraq war are being transmitted instantly.http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix/news/nationa/story.html?id=cc9af095-c672-4d5d-8c31-20ca710b3010

Secret Files in ImagesSteganography: a way to hide messages in seemingly innocent digital images.Mathematicians at Iowa State University have developed software to detect data and information disseminated through digital images, the artificial neural net (ANN).http://www.technologynewsdaily.com/node/5147

Seeking anonymity, high-ranking terrorists use internet cafs in the UK.Dhiren Barot, recently sentenced to 40 years in prison, planned to plant bombs in both the UK and the U.S. and on one occasion drove from London to Swansea to use an internet caf, sending emails in a coded language.http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0200wales/tm_headline=terrorists--seeking--to-hide-in--anonymity--of-wales-&meAnonymity on the Internet

Google for TerroristsThe Jihad Media Battalion has published a 26-page guide for using Google to remind our Muslim brothers in general, and the mujahideen in particular, the need to learn the arts of jihad on the internet and Jihad media (sic).Many of the JMBs videos are targeted at Western perceptions of the War on Terror, almost all videos featuring English subtitles.

Al-JazeeraThe television news channel garnered worldwide attention when it aired videos of Osama bin Laden and other al-Qaeda leaders defending and justifying the attacks in America on 9/11.Since then, members of the Bush administration have criticized the channel as having a strong anti-American bias and airing jihadist propaganda.

The Mongols of the Information AgeMax Boot, Senior Fellow for National Security Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, wrote an op-ed on October 29, 2006, detailing the failure of America to maintain supremacy in the Information Age. Boot likens the United States to great powers of the past, such as the Mongol Empire, that were overcome by lesser powers who succeeded in taking advantage of revolutions in military affairs.Boot suggests that the US may be just such a power in the Information Age, giving way to insurgent and terrorist groups more capable of utilizing new technologies.

Mongols, contd:Our most formidable enemies, Al Qaeda and its ilk ... are using relatively simple information technologythe Internet, satellite television, cellphonesto organize a global insurgency.

New revolutions in military affairs, possibly centered on biotechnology and cyber-war, promise to give smaller states or sub-state actors more destructive capacity.

The future of U.S. power rests on our ability to remake a government still structured for Industrial Age warfare to do battle with decentralized adversaries in the Information Age.

Jason Burke of The Observer writes that terrorist use of the media is based on dramatic spectacletheatre. He writes that jihadist use of the media began in the 1980s with crude videos made during the Afghan war. Eventually these videos became more violent and more elaborate as competition for audiences increased.Terrorism has always needed an audience but as consumers of media, we run the risk of becoming desensitized to violent and atrocious acts.Theatre of terror

The Arabic word for martyr (and, incidentally, the Greek word too) also means witness, as in someone who, by their actions or speech, makes a hidden truth clear to an audience. There was no doubt that the 11 September attacks would have an audience.Theatre of terror, contd

What the execution videos have done is take our technology, the spearhead of our invasion, and turned it back on us - exactly as the high-tech passenger jets that so epitomise the modern world were turned on New York.Theatre of terror, contd

The killers are of course aware that what they are doing is deeply controversial The very act of throat-cutting will, they hope, legitimise their actions.Theatre of terror, contd

Scientists at the Institute for Creative Technologies at the University of Southern California have developed a virtual reality simulation for soldiers suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and say that early trial results of this kind of exposure therapy have been encouraging.The ICT was commissioned by the Office of Naval Research.The Flip Side?

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

Independence Day (1996)

Traffic (2000)

The cover graphic of a Federal Emergency Management Agency/ Department of Justice manual, published before May 1998

Homeland SecurityArmed dolphins carrying toxic dart guns have been trained by the US military to shoot terrorists and pinpoint spies underwater.

Facing the Enemy: The Semiopolitics andBiopolitics of Terror

The world wars may have been wars of industrial production; the next war would be won by technological development. Quality of arms replaced quantity as the desideratum of warfare in the second half of the 20th century.Roland: Technology, Ground Warfare & Strategy

The marriage of science and war: Military research skyrocket in the aftermath of WWII with the creation of federally funded agencies.Scientists and soldiers were posed in close collaboration. 1958 Sputnik prompted frenzied efforts to improve in the areas of science and technology.Eisenhower creates DARPA.If youve got an idea that will revolutionize the world and doesnt violate too many of the laws of physics, were listening. DARPA manager

War quickly shattered illusion that superior weaponry alone could overcome inferior numbers.Bombers, fighter jets, helicopters, communications systems, could not overcome the ingenuity and perseverance of the Viet Cong soldier.Napalm: a reinvigoration of the debate over chemical and biological warfare.Vietnam set the stage for Revolution in Military Affairs.Loss of Innocence

Day and night, screaming jets and prowling helicopters seek out the enemy from their swampy strongholds the Viet Congs once-cocky hunters have become the cowering hunted as the cutting edge of US firepower slashes into the thickets of communist strength. Time Magazine, October 1965

Definition of RMA: technological advances, possibly accompanied by broader economic and political changes, bring about dramatic innovations in weapons, tactics, and strategies. (OHanlan, Can High Technology Bring US Troops Home?)Gulf War prompted praise of American military mightparticularly with regards to high tech, smart and humane forms of weaponry and warfare.Revolution in Military Affairs (RMA) and the Gulf War

Technology provided both offensive and defensive strength and protectiontroops equipped with gas masks, speed to stay awake, night vision goggle to see in the dark.This is the first time in history that a ground campaign supported the air campaign.Revolution in Military Affairs (RMA) and the Gulf War

The Terminator Effect:Man Becomes MachineMuscles are guns.Iraq civilians are collateral damage.American strength portrayed in Gulf War I as having the ability to overcome human weakness.Our goal was not to kill people. Our goal was to destroy the Iraq Army. Brent Scowcraft, NSA

The Pinocchio Effect: Machine Becomes Man Weapons are arms, nuclear missiles have warheads and satellites are our eyes and ears.The bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were referred to as Little Boy and Fat Man.Smart bombs.War portrayed as a clash of machines.

Virtual Soldier Projectcreate a virtual soldier which will provide multiple capabilities, including but not limited to automatic diagnosis of battlefield injuries, testing and evaluation of non-lethal weapons, and virtual clinical trials.

Mostly, it would just be fun to play God. DARPA researcher DARPA: Genius or Hubris?A sample of current DARPA projects: Two dozen different insect-related initiatives, including: development of an insect-shaped microaircrafttraining beetles, moths, and bees to hone in on landmine of chemical weapons chemical signature interfacing radioactive controls and a bugs brain to create a remote-control driven bugExoskeletons for Human Performance Augmentation programcreate power suits that contain sensors to amplify human muscle movement, allowing soldiers to extend the load carrying and power delivery of the individual soldier.

The Future of WarEconomist headline, May 1991: The Future of Warfare: Select Enemy. Delete.Newsweek: The day is not far off when the computer chip and the robot will be mobilized in the battle of war.Some, however, are skeptical of this new, virtually soldier-less form of warfare

The Future of War,contdIf a tank is beside a hospital, a soldier needs good judgment more than computer gadgets no screen can convey perfect information: there is always more to know, like, are the enemy soldiers tired and hungry? Infantry Colonel in Iraq

Human fallibility is not an impediment to technological warfare, but rather, an obstacle to be overcome.Past DARPA successes: First networked computer system, the precursor to the Internet Night vision gogglesRadar evading aircraft prototypes that evolved, eventually, into theF-117 and B-2 stealth bomberThe Weakest Link

The Weakest Link,contdThe human being is becoming the weakest link. Sustaining and augmenting human performance will have a significant impact on Defense missions and systems. DARPA report

In Search of the TruthAfter the Korean War, rumors spread that the Koreans had invented a truth serum to brainwash and collect information from American POWs.The US military sought to create its own truth-telling drug.OSS and CIA experimented with alcohol, barbiturates, peyote, scopolamine, marijuana, mescaline, and cocaine.1953 first LSD experiments on unwitting civilians and soldiers.

MKULTRAMilitary began to test LSD on soldiers to see how the drug would affect their performance.Tested on without knowledge of soldiers, without FDA approval, often without medical presence of medical personnel.1500 soldiers tested throughout the course of MKULTRA.Supreme Court ruled the soldiers cannot be compensated for after-affects of drug trials.

New Strategies forFighting FatigueDARPA Continued Assisted Performance:The capability to resist the mental and physiological effects of sleep deprivation will fundamentally change current military concepts of 'operational tempo' and contemporary orders of battle. In short, the capability to operate effectively, without sleep is no less than a 21st Century revolution in military affairs that results in operational dominance across the whole range of potential U.S. Military deployments.

DARPA - Continued Assisted Performance, contdThe goal of the CAP program is the pursuit of genetic tinkering that would permit military combat troops seven sleepless days in which they don't lose the power to reason, react or realize the impact of their actions. The human is becoming the weakest link. DARPA

History of Approved Amphetamine Use in the MilitaryAmphetamines as a combat tool were dispensed to German and British forces in WW II. American pilots were fed amphetamines in the 1950s and 60s who were involved in trans-oceanic missions.During Vietnam both the Air Force and Navy made amphetamines and sedatives available for specific missions.

Amphetamine Use,contdFollowing Desert Storm, a survey conducted by the Virtual Naval Hospital found that 57% of fighter pilots used stimulants(17% routinely, 58% occasionally, 25% only once). Usage among fighter pilots in sustained combat missions saw the most frequent usage with numbers as high as 96%. 61% of those who used stimulants reported them essential to mission accomplishment.

In the Basic Principles section of the Top Gun document Maintenance During Continuous Flight Operations, the U.S military clearly states its intent when employing stimulants in combat: We manage maintenance, we manage fuel and weapons; we can also manage fatigue. Dexedrine (dextroamphetamine) is a potent central nervous stimulant that induces the release of the neurotransmitters dopamine. The drug acts as a psychostimulant, increasing mental alertness and decreasing fatigue.Dexedrine is prescribed legally for off-label use by the military in 5 or 10 milligram doses. These 'go-pills are given to pilots who are completing sustained combat patrol missions in single-seat aircraft missions of more than 8 hours or two-seat aircraft missions of more than 12 hours.Go-Pills: AmphetaminesIn the War on Terror

Positive Effects of Go-PillsAn intermittent low dose regimen maintains aviator performance such as alertness and cognitive performance.Each pilot is screened to determine if he or she experiences side effects and are then given the option of using the pills in-flight but only as a last resort. The low doses allow for the avoidance of undesired medication affects such as changes in mood or perception.In a study conducted at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research dexedrine was found to restore wakefulness for six to eight hours in subjects that had been kept awake for 65 hours. I'm not a big fan of anybody taking medication in the flight business, but sometimes situations call for it in combat. I never had any bad effects from it and it served me well. Retired Col. Richard Graham, logged 4,600 hours of flight time in the Air Force including 210 combat missions in Vietnam.Better bombing through chemistry. John Pike of the defense policy think-tank Globalsecurity.org

According to the Performance Maintenance During Continuous Flight Operations guide possible side effects of Dexedrine are:EuphoriaDepressionHypertensionAddictionIdiosyncratic reactions such as aggression and paranoiaAmphetamine psychosis causing paranoid delusions and hallucinationsAddictive tendency among those who continue to use it regularly as it is easy to build a tolerance

Negative Effects of Go-PillsIt has been explained to me and I understand that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved the use of Dexedrine to manage fatigue...I further Understand that the decision to take this medication is mine alone. Informed Consent Form for Operational Use of Dexedrine

The U.S. military's policy on drug use states that drug use and abuse directly impacts the safety of the drug user and the other soldiers within his/her unit.An increase in drug testing has occurred in Afghanistan and Iraq because of military concern about troops using drugs due to the stress of combat. But what about the amphetamines troops on the ground and in the air are being issued? Dexedrine: the military's approved (non-illicit) form of 'speed.'Dexedrine

In April 2003 former Top Gun flight school instructor, Harry Schmidt and commander Major William Umbach unleashed a single laser-guided 227 kg bomb on Canadian troops in Kandahar, Afghanistan who were performing night time live-fire exercises.Four Canadians were killed, and eight injured.An investigation revealed the pilot's thought they were under attack and the pilots did not wait for clearance to drop their payload.Case Study:When Fatigue Kills

The use of dexedrine may be to blame for the pilot's actions according to some:

The initial depiction of the Canadian friendly fire accident made it seem as if the pilot was behaving in an unusually aggressive fashion. John Pike

Others believed fatigue played a role in the incident:

The culprit here, in my opinion, is sleep deprivation. Dr. Charles R. Schuster, former head of the NIDAWhen Fatigue Kills, contdAfter being charged with involuntary manslaughter, Major Schmidtclaimed he was forced to use amphetamines on the 14 hour long sortie and had not received instruction from the flight controller that the Canadians were performing the drills.

According to Air Force safety officials fatigue was a contributing factor in 391 Air Force aircraft accidents from 1991 to 2002.Lack of sleep in ground troops as they pushed toward Baghdad in 2003 created a dreamlike scene with soldiers in slow-moving convoys nodding off at the wheel causing their military vehicles to drift off route into sandstorms.Contemporary Necessity ofAnti-Fatigue Strategies in Wartime

Sharply reduced manpower within the armed services in the past 20 years has required higher performance from fewer people. Ever extending reach of air power forces combat flight units to fly longer to get to targets.Necessity of Anti-Fatigue Strategies, contdAs asymmetric threats such as ballistic missiles become more available to our adversaries, we are going to stand even farther back, that means this problem of combat fatigue can only grow. Daniel Goure, military specialist at Lexington Institute

Legal Methamphetamines can be prescribed for treating anaesthetic overdose, narcolepsy and obesity. Illicit Methamphetamines are a potent stimulant synthetic drug of the amphetamine series that can be made with inexpensive over-the-counter ingredients. What are Methamphetamines?

Also known as meth, crystal, ice, fire, speed, crank, and glass. Delivery systems include smoking, snorting, injecting and oral ingestion which produce varying effects that last up to eight hours. Methamphetamines, contd

History of Methamphetamine Use and Production1887 Methamphetamine first synthesized in 1887 by Japanese chemist A. Ogata.1932 Amphetamine marketed as Benzedrine as over-the-counter inhaler to treat nasal congestion and was eventually used in clandestine production of methamphetamine.WWII Distributed by Allies and Axis powers to troops under the name of Pervitin. Hitler receives frequent injections of amphetamines by his doctor.1950s Rise in legal prescription of amphetamines to American public for alcoholism, narcolepsy, obesity, and depression.1960s Significant increase in clandestine manufacturing of methamphetamines, legal prescriptions of.1965 All amphetamines become illegal in U.S. without prescription.

1970 Controlled Substances Act restrict legal production of injectable Meth.By 1971, legal production of amphetamines reached 12 billion pills a year.1986 U.S. Government passes Federal Controlled Substance Analogue Enforcement Act, which prohibits the possession of equipment and chemicals for methamphetamine production as well as outlining legal consequences for distribution and use. 1990 Establishment of first meth prison where abusers who have committed non-violent crimes undergo rehabilitation for re-entrance into society. History of Methamphetamine,contd

Mental alertnessEliminate fatigueDecrease appetiteElevate body temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, blood sugar: initiatesFight or flight syndromeProduce convulsions, anxiety, insomniaInflammation of heart lining and damage to blood vessels in brainIncrease violent behaviorCause paranoia, auditory hallucinations, delusions, homicidal and suicidal thoughtsEffects of Methamphetamines

California & MethamphetaminesMethamphetamine remains the primary drug threat in California.Two of the top four cities for adult male arrestees testing positive for methamphetamines in 2003 were in San Diego (36.2) and Los Angeles (28.7).California threat decreases, as purity and availability remain stable. In 2004 the DEA declared a methamphetamine crisis in the western regions of the country.

Tweakers & Meth PopulationsTweakers are identified as people who abuse methamphetamines regularly and who may not have slept for 3-15 days.

How long until we unleash something beyond our control ?

The history of progress is a nightmare from which we have always tried to wake but what if we never fall asleep?

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