Hunter,+Cole,+and+Harry


 * and Ammar**

Domestic Terrorist Groups > The May 19th Communist Organization was a US-based, self-described revolutionary organization formed by members of the Weather Underground Organization. The group was originally known as the New York chapter of the Prairie Fire Organizing Committee (PFOC), an organization devoted to legally promoting the causes of the Weather Underground. M19CO was a combination of the Black Liberation Army and the Weather Underground. This allaince had three main goals, to free political prisoners in US prisons, appropriate capitalist wealth (armed robberies) to fund the third stage, and, to initiate a series of bombings and terrorist attacks. This group did not like America at all because they believed we were capitalist idiots and did not like our style of government.
 * The 2001 Anthrax Attacks: Conducted by Bruce Edwards Ivins, anthrax was a newly developed chemical that was used in a series of attacks one week after the 9/11 attacks. The FBI stated that this was one of the most complex and intricate investigations ever conducted. Ivins used letters filled with the anthrax spores and sent them to two senators. He also sent a letter to the New York Post, NBC News, and a few other news stations in New York. These attacks killed five people and infected twenty-two others. During the investigation, the FBI traveled to six different continents, interviewed over nine thousand people and conducted sixty-seven searches. At first, people thought that these attacks were conducted by Al-Qaeda considering it was right after the 9/11 attacks. But in 2007 they started watching Ivins until he killed himself in 2008. The FBI stated that Ivins was the culprit and officially closed the case in 2010.
 * **__May 19th__**


 * Al-Shabaab: International Terrorist Group **

Al Shabaab meaning “the men” in Arabic is an international terrorist group. They are operated out of Somalia and are known to be the militant wing of the Somali Council of Islamic Courts which took over southern Somalia in 2006. Although their control in the south was overthrown by the Somalia and Ethiopian governments the group continues to organize and carry out violent acts. To control regions in the south of Somalia along with instilling fear both domestically and abroad against America and the west Al shabaab uses guerilla warfare and terrorist acts. Al shabaab is an affiliate of Al Qaida and the leaders of both organizations work closely together to plan attacks especially those on Americans. Recent Al shabaab activity includes suicide car bombing in northern Africa along with the assassination of Somalia peace keepers. Our team expects their next team will be to take control of more local tribes, villages, and gain more political power and install sharia law in the areas they control. They do not pose a direct threat to America but they are well known for generating anti US sentiments and harboring and assisting anyone who plans to attack the US along with their cooperation with al-Qaida makes then an international threat.



The army of god is a domestic Christian terrorist anti-abortion organization. They are one of the few groups that act on their views and carries out violent terrorist like acts to combat abortion. Their first attack involved three men part of the Army of God kidnapping and holding hostage an abortion clinic doctor and his wife. In 2001 the group then mailed over 500 letters with power resembling anthrax to 280 abortion clinics. Their most violent attack involved Shelly Shannon who an Army of God assassin was shooting an abortion doctor, Dr. George Tiller. She was unsuccessful in killing the doctor and instead shot him in both arms outside of his clinic. The group is heavily influenced by their religion which is the main source of their sentiments.
 * Army of God (AOG) **



Al-Qaeda is an Islamist militant organization that was founded by Osama bin Laden in Peshawar, Pakistan. The organization is comprised of a stateless army composed of mostly radical Sunni Muslims who advocate a strict interpretation of enforcement of //shari’a// law and call for war against western countries. The UNSC, EU, NATO, UK, and US all have designated the organization as a terrorist organization.
 * Al-Qaeda ( ****القاعدة ****‎ ****): “The Base” -INTERNATIONAL **

The goals of the organization are mainly based on its interpretation of a hierarchy of divine laws, called //shar’ia//. Al-Qaeda mainly seeks to eradicate Western influence in the Arab spring and to spread the religion by means of force (which is contrary to the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad). It also wants to reclaim the holy land of Israel and avenge Palestinian losses. Additionally, due to its long tenured hatred of Western ideals and liberalism, it wants to unite the world under //shar’ia// and impose an Islamic state upon the face of the Earth. The organization has been known to be anti-American, such as the case with Bin Laden, who frequently released videos proclaiming how he would by all means promote //jihad// amongst his followers to bring down the United States. //Jihad// is the Arabic word for “struggle,” but it is most often used in a context meaning “holy war.”

 These goals are mainly carried out by frequent suicide attacks and bombings of different targets in and around the Arab spring. The organization has established training camps in several countries including Sudan, Iraq, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, where known militants seek refuge in the Hindu Kush and Himalayas. Larger plans of major destruction have occurred under the name and blame of Al-Qaeda. On December 29, 1992, two bombs were detonated by Al-Qaeda operatives in Aden, Yemen. In 1993, a truck bomb was intended to fracture the foundation of the World Trade Center, fortunately however, only 6 people died and the foundation held tight. In 1998, bombings of the United States Embassy in East Africa resulted in 300 local deaths. In October 2000, militants bombed the missile destroyer //U.S.S. Cole// in a suicide attack, in which 17 servicemen were killed and the vessel was damaged while being offshore. Most recently, Al-Qaeda was blamed for attacks on the World Trade Center towers and Pentagon on September 11, 2001.

The group is heavily dangerous and frequently commits murders and other tortuous activity under its military leaders. They are considered an extremist group of Islam, basing their attacks off of ideas that have been condemned by organizations such as CAIR (The Council on American-Islamic Relations). Worldwide intelligence services are constantly monitoring the group’s activities and are working to alleviate their pervasive presence in the Arab spring as we speak.

Potential threat level: 10 Current threat level: <span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; color: #ff7f00; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">7 <span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">Reason for threat level(s): Al-Qaeda has a longstanding history of mass destruction and terror plots, clearly illustrated by the 9/11 and WTC attacks. Its militants are being readily observed and can possibly attack any NATO, SEATO, UNSC countries. Past national threats include a 9/11 anniversary plot, underwear bombs, etc.


 * __ASG__**

Since the early 1990s, a terrorist group known as ASG, or Abu Sayyaf, has been terrorizing the people of many countries. At first, the group was domestic in the Philippines, but in 2000, they kidnapped many international tourists and journalists in Sipadan. They have been known to target catholic and Christian missionaries with bombings and kidnappings. The group itself was founded and led by Abdurajak Janjalani who continued to lead the group until 1980, when he was killed in a police confrontation. Right before he was killed, he planned to assassinate the pope in his visit to the Philippines, and to skyjack and blow up 12 US civilian planes. Both of these plots were foiled by one of the group’s members, and the group gained a lot more attention from the US and other countries. It is commonly thought that the reason they attempted such daring attacks is because they became very close to Al-Qaeda. Osama Bin Laden, the leader of Al-Qaeda personally stated his support of Abu Sayyaf and helped to train many of its members. But after Janjalani’s death, the group split up into three splinter cells. The group lost its main focus of promoting Islam and began to be more focused on money than religious beliefs. These groups realized that they could make a lot of money off of their ransom demands, and the group now has lost any discipline it had under Janjalani. The group is still gaining many more members now because of the high payouts and advanced weaponry that was bought by the group. Although the group did not always target the US, they stand with Al Qaeda in believing that the US is greedy and an axis of evil.

//<span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">Anonymous //<span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;"> is a decentralized online community that is based on //hacktivism//. //Hacktivism// is the use of computers and computer networks as a means of protest to promote political ends. The community and group is focused on retaliating against anti-digital piracy campaigns and focuses many of its efforts on the entertainment industry. The organization consists of online users from multiple imageboards and internet forums, through which relay chat networks are used to maintain and overcome the limitations of imageboards. The group is banded through the internet and connected through various social networking sites which reach out to people to mobilize in real-world protests. There is no leader or controlling party; thus, Anonymous relies on the collective power of its users acting in a way that the net effects the group.
 * <span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 10pt;">Anonymous (Hacking group) -DOMESTIC **

<span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">The goals and purpose of the Anonymous group is based on about four different things: anti-Internet censorship, internet activism, internet trolling, and internet vigilantism. It seeks to alleviate censorships of the web by governments and seeks to continue to keep webpages up online even after they have been shut down. It absorbs itself in internet activism by propagating its views in the takedown of websites and advocating how it feels different legislations should be used and worked around. Subsequently, it engages in internet vigilantism and trolling by working its way around the authorities and enforcing rules that governments have been unable to enforce for long periods of time. <span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">Most goals of Anonymous are carried out in as a distributed denial of service attack (DDoS). This is an attempt to make a computer or network resource unavailable to its intended users. These attacks typically occur on target sites of high profile web servers of banks, credit card payment getaways, etc. Furthermore, DDoS attacks also suspend the services of a host connected to the internet, causing more infrastructural outage. Starting in 2009, Anonymous has engaged in widespread //<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">hacktivism //<span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">. After //<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">The Pirate Bay //<span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;"> website’s co-defendants were found guilty of facilitating copyright infringement, a coordinated DDoS attack was launched against the International Federation of the Phonographic industry. A statement read: “We will continue to attack those who embrace censorship. You will not be able to hide your ludicrous ways to control us.” When Megaupload.com was shut down by the US Justice Department and FBI, Anonymous carried out protests in refutation of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). The Justice Department, FBI, Universal Music Group, Recording Industry Association of America, and Motion Picture Association of America websites were quickly shut down after even more DDoS attacks. In late March 2012, Anonymous threatened to take down the Internet as a whole; this attempt has been considered largely unsuccessful.

<span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">Overall, the Anonymous group is dangerous, but one that acts on its own sovereignty to do what it believes. Going above the law and engaging in online //hactivism//, however, has seemed to really distort the public’s perception of their actions. Taking down websites and encouraging internet trolling isn’t //that// big of an issue. Nevertheless, Anonymous leaders and hackers have been arrested and indicted all around the globe and more are being sought out by US & global intelligence officials throughout the years. The US Federal Bureau of Investigation has been recently monitoring the activities of Anonymous and efforts to stop //hacktivism// are being pursued.

<span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">Potential threat level: <span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; color: #ff0000; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">9 <span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">Current threat level: <span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; color: #008000; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">1 <span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 9pt;">Reason for threat level(s): Anonymous can instantaneously take down the websites of the FBI, Justice Department, etc. with a collective DDoS attack. Internet hacktivism can be deadly, but the threat isn’t as high as global terror and destruction, such as the case with Al-Qaeda, etc. Domestic efforts haven’t been largely resonating to bring down the US.

International Terrorist group: CIRA- Continual Irish Republican Army The IRA is a terrorist organization that conducts terrorist attacks in Northern Ireland and England but receives money from Irish Americans in the United States. The mission of the IRA is to have a united and independent Ireland. The Protestants in the north fear catholic oppression if they are united with the rest of Ireland. The IRA feels that the Protestants have no claim to control North Ireland because the land was given to Protestants by Oliver Cromwell, an English dictator. The IRA originally formed as a force that fought against the British in the Irish war for Independence 1919-22. Once the war was ended by the Anglo-Irish treaty, the IRA split into the pro Treaty Irish Defense Forces and the anti-treaty Irish Republican army. The IRA then split into the Official IRA and the more radical Provisional IRA. The Offical IRA started to become inactive in 1972, however the Provisional IRA lasted until 1997. More radical groups persevered beyond the Provisional IRA, one of them being the Continual IRA. Goal(s): Unite Ireland Method(s): The Independent Monitor Commission cites the CIRA with committing [|robbery], [|tiger kidnapping] , [|extortion] , [|fuel laundering] , [|smuggling] , stoning, using petrol bombs, and shotting. So far they have been held responsible for the death of one police officer in Northern Ireland. Threat Level: The independent Monitor Commission has labeled them as “very serious threat.”

International Terrorist Group: Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement The PIJM is a terrorist organization that conducts terrorist attacks primarily in Israel. In 2003, Dr. Sami Amin Al-Arian was arrested in the United States for conspiring to assist the group. The group’s goal is to secure Palestinian independence and sovereignty from Israel. The groups primary method of terrorism is suicide bombing, shooting, and car bombing. The group was founded in the 1970’s and is still active today. Goals: Liberate Palestine Methods: Car bombing, Suicide Bombing, Shooting Threat Level: Active, very high Domestic Terrorist group Animal Liberation Front ALF is active in 40 countries and originated in England. The group is funded in large part by PETA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Activists claim the movement in non-violent, as well as the ALF’s code itself which states that any act that futhers the cause of animal liberation that reasonable precaution has been taken to avoid harming human and non human life is considered ALF action. However there is criticism that the ALF has both failed to condemn violent acts or even participated in violent acts in order to advance animal liberation. ALF’s first actions in America date back to the 1970’s. The first action attributed with the ALF in the US is in 1977, when two dolphins were released into the ocean from research. However Newkirk, the President of PETA, claims the first ALF cell was established in 1982. Since then they have been responsible for attacks on University and Private research centers for animals. Goal: Animal Liberation Method: Animal Kidnapping and release, firebomb, homemade bombs, university raids, direct action, Eco-terrorism Threat Level- Active but less lethal


 * <span style="font-family: 'Modern No. 20',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Conclusion (answers to supplemental questions, by A) **

<span style="font-family: 'Modern No. 20',serif; font-size: 10pt;">1. The threat for terrorism against the United States lies mostly outside. Domestic terrorism can easily be absolved by authorities, whereas international terrorism is unpredictable and very dangerous. Consider the 9/11 attacks, where the US hadn’t acted on its superstitions and Al-Qaeda carried out a very successful attack against the US. International terrorism is by far a greater threat in both magnitude and unpredictability. <span style="font-family: 'Modern No. 20',serif; font-size: 10pt;">2. The aforementioned groups having legitimate arguments are all based on their //subjective// one-dimensional view. Anonymous hackers believe in anti-censorship, which isn’t necessarily a legitimate belief, it is just a subjective belief. Terrorist groups act on their persona of political threats, for which they have all reasons to combat by the sovereignty of their own individualism and democracy in itself, respectively. <span style="font-family: 'Modern No. 20',serif; font-size: 10pt;">3. US citizens especially are being constantly subjected to terrorist activities through the pervasive media. The mass media has played a very significant role in determining the perception of Americans. The way issues and plots are posed can have an adverse affect on this perception, and with the observation that the American media //can// be largely subjective, our perception has the potential to be distorted from other objective media. Most of the time, this is not the case. US Citizens always seem to fulfill their own self-efficacy by protecting themselves and thus the activities of terrorists largely scare most Americans.

__Why has the US been the target of so much terrorism?__ The United States has been continually targeted because of its assertion in internatinoal affairs that has a longstanding reputation for intervention. The US continues to intervene in affairs and thus conflicts with other countries which causes further conflicts and retaliatilon by subordinate terrorist groups that do not wish to be subjugated by the United States' policies in foreign countries or their respective opinions. Domestic terrorism spawns because of civil liberties designated by the constitution. Retaliators of legislation believe that thy are exercising their rights in responding to things that they don't agree with and thus put themselves above the law. In this instance, the constitution sort of destroys the US, or has potential to do so.

__Impact of religion on spawning terrorist organizations__: Religion has a profound impact on terrorist organizations. Seeking to fulfill their rites of passage, or spiritual nirvana, those associated with these organizations will do anything and everything to accomplish their task. Not only do they want to fulfill their own spiritual needs but also propagate and spread their messages, often using methods of forced conversion or brainwashing. Such is the case with Al-Qaeda, who aims to fulfill these rites by use of //shar'ia,// etc.