The Terrorist-Criminal Nexus : An Alliance of International Drug Cartels, Organized Crime, and Terror Groups

Postmodern global terrorist groups engage sovereign nations asymmetrically with prolonged, sustained campaigns driven by ideology. Increasingly, transnational criminal organizations operate with sophistication previously only found in multinational corporations. Unfortunately, both of these entities can now effectively hide and morph, keeping law enforcement and intelligence agencies in the dark and on the run. Perhaps more disturbing is the fact that al Qaeda, Hezbollah, FARC, drug cartels, and increasingly violent gangs—as well as domestic groups such as the Sovereign Citizens—are now joining forces. Despite differing ideologies, they are threatening us in new and provocative ways. **The Terrorist-Criminal Nexus: An Alliance of International Drug Cartels, Organized Crime, and Terror Groups** frames this complex issue using current research and real-world examples of how these entities are sharing knowledge, training, tactics, and—in increasing frequency—joining forces. Providing policy makers, security strategists, law enforcement and intelligence agents, and students with new evidence of this growing threat, this volume: * Examines current and future threats from international and domestic criminal and terror groups * Identifies specific instances in which these groups are working together or in parallel to achieve their goals * Discusses the "lifeblood" of modern organizations—the money trail * Describes how nefarious groups leverage both traditional funding methods and e-commerce to raise, store, move, and launder money * Explores the social networking phenomenon and reveals how it is the perfect clandestine platform for spying, communicating, recruiting, and spreading propaganda * Investigates emergent tactics such as the use of human shields, and the targeting of first responders, schools, hospitals, and churches This text reveals the often disregarded, misunderstood, or downplayed nexus threat to the United States. Proving definitively that such liaisons exist despite differing ideologies, the book provides a thought-provoking new look at the complexity and phenomena of the terrorist-criminal nexus. This book was excerpted in the February/March 2013 issue of __The Counter Terrorist__ We Are Currently Faced With A New National Security Challenge That Is Both Vexing And Complex. The Once Clear Lines Between The International Drug Trade, Terrorism, Organized Crime, Domestic Terror, And Mexican Drug Cartels Are Blurring As Groups Increasingly Join Forces To Further Individual Interests And Goals. The Synergistic Potential Of The Alliance Between Nonstate Actors And Terrorists Is Alarming. Factor In A Rise In Domestic Terror And Cartel Activity Spilling Over U.s. Borders And The Resulting Impact To America Is Grave. This Text Highlights The Often Disregarded, Misunderstood, Or Obscured Criminal/terrorist Nexus Threat To The U.s. Destroying The Myth That Such Liaisons Don't Exist Due To Differing Ideologies, The Book Provides A Thought-provoking And New Look At The Complexity And Phenomena Of The Criminal/terrorist Nexus.-- Chapter 1 A Poisonous Brew While Organized Crime Is Not A New Phenomenon Today, Some Governments Find Their Authority Besieged At Home And Their Foreign Policy Interests Imperiled Abroad. Drug Trafficking, Links Between Drug Traffickers And Terrorists, Smuggling Of Illegal Aliens, Massive Financial And Bank Fraud, Arms Smuggling, Potential Involvement In The Theft And Sale Of Nuclear Material, Political Intimidation, And Corruption All Constitute A Poisonous Brew--a Mixture Potentially As Deadly As What We Faced During The Cold War : R. James Woolsey Former Director, Cia Al Qaeda Works With The Mafia. The Mafia Works With Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs. Biker Gangs Work With White Supremacists. Surprised? Ten Years Ago, When I Wrote My First Book On This Subject, The Number Of Experts Who Would Acknowledge That A Nexus May Exist Between Terrorists And Criminals Could Be Counted On One Hand. In Fact, Mr. Woolsey's Statement Above Was Made In 1994, Long Before Most People Heard Of Al Qaeda, Human Trafficking And Loose Nukes. Unfortunately, The Poisonous Brew Is Becoming More Toxic With Time. Transnational Organized Crime Is Escalating, The Cartels Are Global And Undeterred, And The List Of State Department Foreign Terrorist Organizations Continues To Grow. Transnational Crime Is A Growing U.s. National Security Concern, And It Threatens Us In New, Provoking Ways. For Example, Americans Formerly Viewed Drug Use As A Law Enforcement Or Health Issue. Only Very Recently Has Drug Trafficking Been Established As A Global Crime With A Corresponding National Security Threat-- Machine Generated Contents Note: References -- Multinational Corporate Sophistication -- Transnational Organized Crime On The Rise -- Scoping The Toc Challenge -- Eurasian Transnational Crime: Size, Wealth, Reach -- Italian Transnational Crime: Not Your Grandfather's Mafia -- Baltic Transnational Crime: Emergent And Deadly -- Asian Transnational Crime: Sophisticated And Multicultural -- African Criminal Enterprises: Internet Savvy And Vast -- Emerging Area Of Concern: North Korea -- Fighting Transnational Crime Overseas ... And Within Our Borders -- Palermo Convention: First Strike On Toc -- National Strategy To Combat Transnational Organized Crime -- Agencies And Methods -- Inl -- Doj -- Fbi -- Major Areas Of Concern, Progress, And Lessons Learned -- Counternarcotics -- Human Trafficking -- Money Laundering -- Corruption -- Lessons Learned -- References -- Postmodern Organizational Theory: The Rise Of Modern Terrorism And Groups -- Genesis Of Postmodern Groups And Thinking. Contents Note Continued: Upstream Thinking -- Epistemology -- Deconstruction -- Deconstruction's Danger -- Postmodern Organizational Theory -- Neo-marxist Organizational Theory -- Diagnostic Tools Of Postmodernism -- Systems Theory -- Environmental Theory -- Symbolic Theory -- Postmodern Theory And The Rise Of Modern Terrorism -- Final Thoughts On Postmodernism -- Modern Terrorism's Roots -- What Is Terrorism? -- Terrorism's Target -- The New Anatomy Of A Terrorist Group -- Life Cycle Study -- Terrorist Group Members -- Behavior -- Motivation -- Culture -- Environment -- How Terrorist Groups End -- International Terrorist Groups: The Big 3 -- Al Qaeda And Affiliates -- The Ideology -- Rise Of Bin Laden And Al Qaeda -- Emergent Al Qaeda -- Aqap Or Ansar Al-sharia -- Other Al Qaeda Splinter Groups -- Bin Laden Speaks -- Al Qaeda's New Goals And Tactics -- Al Qaeda And Nexus -- Hezbollah -- Unique Structure -- Methodology And Objectives -- Primary Area Of Operations. Contents Note Continued: Tactical Depth And Breadth -- Political Acumen -- Leveraging The Community -- Strong Leadership -- Active And Deadly -- Global Operations -- Latin America -- Nexus Concern: Venezuela -- West Coast Of Africa -- Europe -- Iraq -- Canada -- United States -- U.s. Response -- Farc -- Colombia: A Sophisticated, Transnational Narco-state -- Final Thoughts -- References -- History Of Domestic Terrorism In The United States -- The Twenty-first Century And The Rising Tide Of Domestic Extremism -- Right-wing Extremism -- Militias -- Sovereign Citizens -- Left-wing -- Anarchists -- Single-issue Or Special-interest Terrorism -- The Earth Liberation Front (elf) -- Animal Liberation Front (alf) -- Homegrown Terror -- Rehabilitation And The Domestic Terrorist -- Jihadist Defined -- Recidivism -- Terrorist Recidivism -- Counterradicalization Efforts -- Inside The Saudi Program -- Possible Solutions In The Homeland -- The Lone Wolf -- Gangs: Evolving And Collaborating. Contents Note Continued: Ms-13-moving Toward 3g2 -- History -- Structure -- Operational Activities -- Adaptable And Morphing -- Sophistication -- Internationalization -- Rival Gang -- Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (omgs) -- Prison Gangs -- Special Concern: Gangs And The Military -- The Way Ahead -- References -- The Battle In Mexico -- Ideology: Money -- Tactic: Brutal Violence -- Goals: Money, Power, Control -- Major Dtos Impacting The United States -- Nuevo Cartel De Juárez -- Gulf Cartel/new Federation -- Sinaloa Cartel -- Beltran Leyva Organization (blo) -- Tijuana/arellano Felix Organization (afo) -- La Familia Michoacana (lfm) -- Special Concern: Los Zetas -- Zeta Tactics -- Increasing Reach In The United States -- Interaction With Dark Networks -- Nexus With Gangs -- Criminal Activity Expanding -- Savvy Propaganda Campaigns -- Dtos Cross The Border: Cartels In The Heartland -- Le Operations Against Dtos In The United States -- Operation Dark Angel -- Project Delirium. Contents Note Continued: Project Deliverance -- Project Xcellerator -- Project Reckoning -- Nexus Area: Terrorists, Slas, And Dtos -- Corruption At The Border: Opening The Gates -- Dtos: Foreign Terrorist Organizations? -- Final Thoughts -- References -- Funding Terror -- Earning, Moving, Storing -- Tactics -- Earn -- Move -- Store -- Earning -- Charities -- Designation -- Zakat -- Commodities Smuggling And Organized Retail Crime -- Intellectual Property Crime (ipc) -- Identity Theft -- Other Fund-raising Methods -- Mortgage Fraud: Emergent Earning Method -- Moving -- A Paper Chase In A Paperless World: Informal Value Transfer Systems -- Hawala -- Storing, Earning, And Moving -- Precious Metals And Diamonds -- Money Laundering -- Fronts, Shells, And Offshores -- Bulk Cash Smuggling -- E-gambling And E-gaming: Emergent Money-laundering Concerns -- E-gambling -- E-gaming -- The Way Forward -- References -- New Payment Methods Defined -- Typologies And Concerns. Contents Note Continued: Use Of A Third Party -- Person-to-person (p2p) Transactions -- Lack Of Human Interaction And Oversight -- Npm Financing -- Nonbanks -- Internet-based Nonbanks -- The Msb -- Methods Of Using Msbs To Move Money -- Digital Currency Exchange Systems -- Prepaid Access Cards -- Limited-purpose/closed-loop Cards -- Multipurpose/open-loop Cards -- E-purse Or Stored-value Cards (svcs) -- Devices With Stored Value -- Auction And Bulletin Board Websites -- Auction Sites -- Auction Site Intellectual Property Theft (ipt) -- P2p Websites -- Digital Precious Metals -- E-dinar -- The Battle Ahead -- References -- The Internet: A Twenty-first-century Black Swan -- Rise Of Social Networking: Are We Users ... Or Targets? -- The Mind As A Battlefield: The War Of Ideology -- Shifting The Cognitive Center Of Gravity -- Preying On Maslow's Needs: Affiliation -- Social Cognitive Theory At Play -- Marketing Ideology And Fear -- Hizb-ut-tahrir (hut). Contents Note Continued: Exploitation By Other Groups -- Looking Through A New Lens At Social Networking -- Second Life -- Linkedin -- Facebook -- Youtube -- Hidden Messages On The Web -- Enter Hackers And Cyber Vigilantes -- Th3j35t3r And Th3raptor -- Other Notable Vigilantes -- The Way Ahead -- References -- Drug-trafficking Organizations And Terrorist Group Interface -- Tunnels -- Bombs -- Ira Inc. -- Hezbollah And Hamas: Partnering For Success -- Ieds, Fertilizer, And Sticky Bombs -- Ieds -- Fertilizer -- Sticky Bombs -- First Response And The Threat Of Secondary Devices -- Use Of Human Shields By Terror Groups On The Rise -- Hamas -- Ltte -- Asymmetric Threats -- Wmd -- Final Thoughts -- References -- Resiliency As A Weapon -- Current List Of Designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations -- Identification -- Designation -- Legal Criteria For Designation Under Section 219 Of The Ina As Amended -- Legal Ramifications Of Designation -- Other Effects Of Designation. Author, Jennifer L. Hesterman. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Front Cover 1 Contents 7 Preface 17 About the Author 23 Chapter 1 - A Poisonous Brew 25 Chapter 2 - Transnational Organized Crime: The Dark Side of Globalization 31 Chapter 3 - Postmodern Terrorist Groups 67 Chapter 4 - Domestic Terrorism and the Homegrown Threat 117 Chapter 5 - Drug-Trafficking Organizations Go Global 157 Chapter 6 - Traditional Terrorist and Criminal Financing Methods: Adapting for Success 189 Chapter 7 - Terrorists and Criminal Exploitation of E-commerce: Following the Money Just Got Tougher 229 Chapter 8 - Exploitation of Social Networking and the Internet 267 Chapter 9 - Sharing Tactics 297 Chapter 10 - Conclusions about the Nexus and Thoughts on Resiliency and the Way Forward 319 Glossary 325 Appendix: List of Foreign Terrorist Organizations 337 Back Cover 343