Terrorism has been a major threat to many countries in the world. In the United States the threat of terrorism was heightened during the September, 11, 2001 attacks in New York when about three thousand Americans lost their lives. Since then, the U.S government introduced a policy against terrorism. The counterterrorism policy aims to help deter and respond swiftly to any terrorist threat against the country, citizens and the facilities. All terrorism attacks are regarded as a threat to the national security. They may occur in international waters, on domestic or foreign territory. Therefore the US government works with other governments to fight against terrorism. Efforts are made to discourage and anticipate attacks by apprehending the individuals who perpetuate them.
The military is involved in counterterrorism tasks. They have done this through intervention in countries thought to harbor terrorists for example Iraq, Colombia, Philippines, Sudan and Afghanistan. They have been able to kill a number of people believed to be behind Al Qaeda a terrorist group. This has led to success to some degree. For example in Afghanistan the military has helped to streamline the drug trade that supports the Taliban By wiping out this people they have only managed to derail them in their activities however they have not wiped them out completely.
Some urge that the reason for the military invading these nations is not purely to counter terrorism but to protect its own trade interests (Feickert, 2005, 1, 25). Luckily there have been no terrorist attacks on the American soil since September 11th 2001 though the threat is very real. We can only hope that the efforts put in by the various units to deter terrorism will do so before an attacked is launched.
On the other hand the army educates the American citizens about safety. February 2009 was the month of safety against terrorism acts. During the awareness people were told to report suspicious activities going on in their neighborhoods or persons. People should also try to keep themselves and their homes secure. More importantly they should be observant of their surrounding and people because this can mean stopping a potential terrorist from carrying out an attack if they report them to the authorities (Carrington, 2009, ¶1, 2, 4). This plan is good as it prepares the Americans to be proactive. This can go a long way in keeping a lot of people out of harm’s way.
The home land security is another government unit involved in counterterrorism. The unit ensures that the US citizens are protected by preventing attacks against the land. The unit prepares and plans for emergencies in case of an attack. They invest in a strong response plan. This plan is very good because in case an attack happens then the team can get to the casualties quickly and this can be critical in reducing the number of people that would die in attack (Homeland Security Counterterrorism, n.d).
The unit works with other units of the government such as the military, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as well as other governments to counter terrorists attack. By having an improved intelligence capacity and sharing of information this makes their activities more efficient. This strategy is good because they are able to share intelligence with others. This ensures that they are up to date with the events taking place in the American territory and the rest of the world. Their partnership with other units fighting terrorism in the US and other governments will help to defeat terrorist attacks before they are executed (Homeland Security Counterterrorism, n.d).
Terrorists threaten to use nuclear devices and diseases. The homeland security takes this threat seriously and they have focused on risk reduction of the high consequence of such threats. They plan to work with decision makers to ensure they have the tools necessary to manage such an attack. This can be done by linking all stakeholders of the health sector. The other plan is nuclear detection. They ensure that their own nuclear materials are protected and in case of a nuclear attack they have the capability to mitigate the effects of the nuclear incidents (Homeland Security Counterterrorism, n.d).
The war on terror requires the involvement of all the stakeholders in fighting this menace that.. Every single contribution from the various stakeholders involved in this fight will make a difference in fighting this terror. The counterterrorism units should seek to understand the reason behind the attacks against innocent humanity. By understanding the mind of the terrorists, the units will be in a better position to fight this terror that threatens to kill on a genocidal scale.
Reference list
Carrington, N. (2009). Preventive measures can limit terrorism, speed reaction time. Web.
Homeland Security and Counterterrorism. Web.
Feickert, (2005). U.S. Military Operations in the Global War on Terrorism: Afghanistan, Africa, the Philippines and Colombia. Web.