The Terrorist Effect Weapons Of Mass Disruption

This book provides a warning to the United States about the immanent dangers of a terrorist attack using radioactive materials. Such materials are ubiquitous in our society and can be obtained from over 25,000 sources in the USA. In this unsymmetrical war with terrorism, the beneficial and life-saving advantages of radioactive materials can be turned against us. This book is intended to inform the reader of the dangers of terrorist attacks, to show how attacks can be mounted and, more importantly, to indicate how the consequences of an attack can be mitigated. Terrorist use fear as a weapon; this book shows how an informed public can overcome our natural aversion to all things radioactive and fight back against the potentially paralyzing effects of such an attack.

This book provides a warning to the United States about the immanent dangers of a terrorist attack using radioactive materials. Such materials are ubiquitous in our society and can be obtained from over 25,000 sources in the USA. In this unsymmetrical war with terrorism, the beneficial and life-saving advantages of radioactive materials can be turned against us. This book is intended to inform the reader of the dangers of terrorist attacks, to show how attacks can be mounted and, more importantly, to indicate how the consequences of an attack can be mitigated. Terrorist use fear as a weapon; this book shows how an informed public can overcome our natural aversion to all things radioactive and fight back against the potentially paralyzing effects of such an attack.

Examines the class of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) for terrorist use. The authors have found that their (terrorist) effects range from serious nuisance value up to catastrophic destruction of a large urban area.

“The greatest danger of another catastrophic attack in the United States will materialize if the world's most dangerous terrorists acquire the world's most dangerous weapons.” —The 9/11 Commission Report The bipartisan Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism was established by the U.S. Congress to build on the work of the 9/11 Commission by assessing our nation's progress in preventing weapons of mass destruction proliferation and terrorism, and providing a roadmap to greater security with concrete recommendations for improvement. The Commission has interviewed over 200 experts inside and outside of government. They have met with counterterrorism and intelligence officials here at home and abroad who are working to stop proliferation and terrorism The Commission's report examines the government's current policies and programs, identifies gaps in our government's prevention strategy and recommends ways to close them. The threat of terrorist attacks in the United States and elsewhere is still very real. The world remians at risk There is more that can and must be done. Our security depends on it.

The Oklahoma City bombing, intentional crashing of airliners on September 11, 2001, and anthrax attacks in the fall of 2001 have made Americans acutely aware of the impacts of terrorism. These events and continued threats of terrorism have raised questions about the impact on the psychological health of the nation and how well the public health infrastructure is able to meet the psychological needs that will likely result. Preparing for the Psychological Consequences of Terrorism highlights some of the critical issues in responding to the psychological needs that result from terrorism and provides possible options for intervention. The committee offers an example for a public health strategy that may serve as a base from which plans to prevent and respond to the psychological consequences of a variety of terrorism events can be formulated. The report includes recommendations for the training and education of service providers, ensuring appropriate guidelines for the protection of service providers, and developing public health surveillance for preevent, event, and postevent factors related to psychological consequences.

In WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION AND TERRORISM, 2/e, Dr. James Forest and Brigadier General (Retired) Russell Howard have collected original and previously published seminal articles and essays by scientists, academics, government officials, and members of the nation’s security and intelligence communities. The editors and several of the authors write from practical field experience in nonproliferation and counterterrorism efforts. Others have had significant responsibility for developing government policies to address the threat of weapons of mass destruction and terrorism. The contributors include many significant names in the field including Bruce Hoffman, Ashton Carter, William Perry, Brian Jenkins, Jonathan Tucker, Charles Ferguson, David Albright, Gary Ackerman, and Gregory Koblentz. Unit I of the book introduces key terms and addresses important strategic and policy debates. Authors explain how the new forms of terrorism affect the post-9/11 security environment and how weapons of mass destruction could give terrorists short-term, asymmetric attack advantages over conventional military forces. Unit II offers detailed accounts of the characteristics, availability, and dangers of specific types of WMD, along with five case studies that associate theory with practice—an important feature of this volume. Unit III is focused on key dimensions of the WMD threat to critical infrastructure. Unit IV deals with past, present, and future national and international responses to—and defenses against—the threat of WMD terrorism. And in the final section of the volume, authors provide several analytical frameworks for predicting future WMD threats, and draw from historical events to identify lessons and strategies for the future. Appendices include U.S. national strategy documents on countering terrorism and standards for controlling WMD materials and technologies.

Anthrax, smallpox, sarin, blister, blood and choking agents - the list of potential weapons of mass destruction is enormous and varied. It was once thought that technological problems would prevent terrorists developing these weapons whilst moral issues would stop them using them. That has now changed. The technical and organizational sophistication of the attacks on 11th September 2001 heralds a new era in the age-old war against terrorism. After these attacks, attention focused on the activities and capacities of Islamic extremist groups, such as Osama bin Laden's al-Qa'eda organisation, but the reality is that terrorist threats could come from almost any quarter. This revised edition is the comprehensive and sobering account of the possibilities - technological and political.