Terrorism Open Source Intelligence Report
(TOSIR) No. 423
18 February 2010

Contents

Article 1 “Senators Warned of Terrorist Attack on U.S. by July,” by Mark Mazzetti, New York Times, 3 February 2010. America’s top intelligence official told lawmakers on 2 February that Al-Qaeda and its affiliates had made it a high priority to attempt a large-scale attack on American soil within the next six months. The assessment by Dennis C. Blair, the Director of National Intelligence, was much starker than his view last year, when he emphasized the considerable progress in the campaign to debilitate Al-Qaeda. Moreover, Mr. Blair began his annual threat testimony before Congress by saying that the threat of a crippling attack on telecommunications and other computer networks was growing, as an increasingly sophisticated group of enemies had “severely threatened” the sometimes fragile systems undergirding the country’s information infrastructure.

Article 2 “The Jihadist CBRN Threat,” by Scott Stewart, Stratfor, 10 February 2010. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she considers weapons of mass destruction in the hands of an international terrorist group to be the largest threat faced by the United States today. Although counterterrorism actions have dealt a significant blow to Al-Qaeda’s near-term efforts to develop a sophisticated chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) attack capability, the group is still intent on acquiring the capability. Efforts to counter the proliferation of nuclear materials and technology will certainly continue for the foreseeable future, especially efforts to ensure that governments with nuclear weapons programs do not provide weapons or fissile material to jihadist groups. While the chance of such a terrorist attack is remote, the devastation one could cause means that it must be carefully guarded against.

Article 3 “Can Gaza Become a Somalia or Yemen?” By Matthew Levitt, Jerusalem Post, 10 February 2010. While