• Abstract and Figures
• Public Full-text

Page | 1 CBRNE-TERRORISM NEWSLETTER – March 2016 www.cbrne-terrorism-newsletter.com Page | 2 CBRNE-TERRORISM NEWSLETTER – March 2016 RAF Brimstone Missile Has Not Killed Any Isis Militants In Syria, And Only Seven Hit By UK Bombs Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2016/02/18/syria-bombing-brimstone-raf-isis-killed-_n_9261278 .html Feb 18 – The RAF's celebrated Brimstone missile system has yet to kill or wound a single Isis terrorist in Syria since MPs controversially voted to support bombing raids in December. A Freedom of Information (FOI) request by The Huffington Post UK also revealed just seven Isis militants have been killed or wounded by bombs dropped by RAF jets - either with Paveway bombs or Hellfire drone missiles. Brimstone, hailed for its accuracy, was the main reason for the UK going into Syria, offering a military capability lacking among the US and French air forces, and was cited repeatedly by the Government and MPs. Isis casualties broken down by location and missile type The revelation has raised questions over Britain's involvement, the number of targets and costs. The Scottish National Party's Alex Salmond said the finding "contrasts dramatically" with David Cameron's argument Brimstone would "cut off the 'head of the snake'" in Isis's Raqqa HQ. The Brimstone missile, a rocket-propelled, radar-guided air-launched ground attack weapon The Ministry of Defense (MoD), however, said the point of the air raids was not just to kill extremists, and pointed to the disruption they had caused to Isis infrastructure, including its lucrative oil fields. www.cbrne-terrorism-newsletter.com Page | 3 CBRNE-TERRORISM NEWSLETTER – March 2016 Brimstone was used in nine raids between the vote and January 29, which is where the FOI data runs to. Often more than one bomb was dropped in a raid, taking out cranes, trucks and other Isis infrastructure. All the strikes are detailed on the MoD website, but the department has until the FOI refused to specify how many militants have been killed. No civilian casualties have resulted from British attacks, it says. Each Brimstone missile dropped is estimated to cost £100,000. Estimates vary, but Isis is thought to be able to muster as many as many as 32,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria. Cameron has hailed the accuracy of the Brimstone missiles for causing “the lowest level of civilian casualties” - heralding the plane’s high-definition camera that can “hover over the Isle of Wight and be able to read the hands on Big Ben”. The SNP's MPs to a man and women opposed the raids. SNP MP Mr. Salmond, the party's International Affairs spokesman in Westminster, told HuffPost UK: "This information contrasts dramatically with the case made by the Prime Minister for bombing when he said that the much-lauded Brimstone missile system would be crucial in cutting off the 'head of the snake' in Raqqa. "It is now the common practice of this Prime Minister to mislead the country into military engagement and then to only devote a passing interest towards these crucial issues as his case crumbles before our eyes. "I have little doubt that we shall soon be informed that it is back to Libya as the new crucial theatre of engagement as Cameron's attention span wanders elsewhere. Occasional spurts of interest do not represent a coherent policy against Daesh and bombing campaigns should not be used as a substitute for strategy." A Ministry of Defense spokeswoman said: “We are playing a crucial role in a campaign that will take time and patience. Using the right weapon for each scenario, RAF jets have struck Daesh almost 600 times. Some 397 MPs voted for the Government motion to expand bombing raids from Iraq and 223 against, a majority of 174 "In Iraq we have helped to drive them out of Sinjar and Ramadi. In Syria, we have severely weakened them by targeting their key infrastructure.” The UK is part of a coalition with allies including the US and France, and the specifics of where strikes occur are decided to ensure "maximum coalition effectiveness". The thinking behind targeting ISIS infrastructure, such as the Omar oil field, is to reduce its ability to raise finance to fund their terror campaign. So far, oil revenue has been reduced by around 30% and their entire income has been cut by around 10%, the MoD says. The MoD explained in the response to the FOI: "Since December 2015 UK military air activity has contributed to the Coalition’s aim of disrupting and degrading Daesh military infrastructure, logistics and revenue streams inside Syria. "This includes targeting oil infrastructure and enabling equipment under Daesh control, helping to reduce their ability to profit from selling oil to fund their activities. "We have also targeted Daesh’s military equipment and infrastructure, including vehicles, defensive fighting positions firing on friendly forces, a tunnel complex, weapons stores and a command and control center. "We estimate that 7 Daesh combatants have been killed or wounded as a result of RAF airstrikes in Syria between 2 December 2015 and 29 January 2016." HuffPost UK has approached the Ministry of Defense for any further comment. www.cbrne-terrorism-newsletter.com Page | 4 CBRNE-TERRORISM NEWSLETTER – March 2016 The House of Commons vote to back airstrikes in Syria - unlike in neighboring Iraq a year earlier - proved controversial after Labor leader Jeremy Corbyn came out against the policy, causing a deep divide among the Opposition. Though the vote passed comfortably, it was set against a backdrop of protests outside Westminster and later contributed to Corbyn's "revenge reshuffle", despite giving his Shadow Cabinet a free vote. The RAF is using three aircraft to drop missiles: older Tornado jets which can carry Brimstone missiles and Paveway bombs; newer Typhoons that drop Paveway bombs but are not - as yet - capable of firing Brimstone missiles; and unmanned Reaper “drones” equipped with Hellfire missiles and bombs. Brimstone missiles are estimated to cost £100,000 each, while heavier Paveway IV bombs are thought to cost £30,000 each. Hellfire missiles have a £71,300 price-tag each. EDITOR’S COMMENT: If this is not a case of bad intelligence then perhaps the possibility of jamming might require further exploitation. Turkish new mobile CORAL electronic warfare systems (by Aselsan – range >100 km) deployed since July 2015 in the Hatay Province (bordered with Syria), might have something to do with poor results of Tornado jets. Wearing hijab is “passive terrorism”: USAF study Source: http://www.homelandsecuritynewswire.com/dr20160225-wearing-hijab-is-passive-terrorism- usaf-study Feb 25 – A study issued by the U.S. military has suggested that wearing the hijab by some Muslim women represents a form of “passive terrorism.” The Independent reports that a policy paper issued by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory and titled Countering Violent Extremism: Scientific Methods & Strategies, included a chapter which contained discussion of radicalization. The Intercept reported that in addition to the comment about hijabs, the chapter also claims that support for militant groups is driven by “sexual deprivation.” The USAF paper, first published in 2011, and was reissued by the Air Force last summer, after President Barack Obama’s announcement of a national counter-extremism strategy. The summer 2015 revised version was published online in January by Public Intelligence Web site. The introduction to the revised report referred to the counter-extremism summit convened by Obama, sayig the renewed focus by the government on countering www.cbrne-terrorism-newsletter.com Page | 5 CBRNE-TERRORISM NEWSLETTER – March 2016 radicalization makes “the wisdom contained in this paper collection … more relevant than ever.” The chapter which contains the references to the hijab was written by Dr. Tawfik Hamid, who describes himself as a former Islamic extremist and fellow at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies. Hamid argues that support for ISIS and other militant groups was the result sexual deprivation among young Muslim men and that terrorism bears relation to religious dress. He says that among the best ways to combat terrorism is “addressing the factors underlying [sexual] deprivation” among young men, as well as “weakening the hijab phenomenon.” “Extremism occurs when increasing numbers of women begin to wear the hijab, which is both a symptom of Salafi proliferation and a catalyst for Islamism,” writes Hamid. “In turn, the proliferation of militant Salafism and the hijab contribute to the idea of passive terrorism, which occurs when moderate segments of the population decline to speak against or actively resist terrorism. “Speaking from my own experience with the radical groups, I believe young Muslims are motivated to join radical groups because of sexual deprivation.” Will ISIS Launch a Mass Drone Attack on a Stadium? By Clive Irving Source: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/02/24/will-isis-launch-a-mass-drone-attack-on-a- stadium.html Feb 24 – A team of British intelligence What they now see is a cheap and easily analysts has drawn up a chilling scenario in accessible technology that is particularly suited which terrorists launch a swarm of small to the limited resources and ability of the small, drones in an attack on a major sporting widely dispersed terrorist sleeper cells that are event like the Super Bowl, unleashing known to exist in Western Europe and the multiple explosive devices on the crowd in United States—or lone wolves indoctrinated by the stadium. ISIS or al Qaeda, like the San Bernardino “If we do not act to prevent it, it is only a matter attackers. of time,” Chris Abbott, the executive director The experts believe that ISIS has already of a think tank called Open Briefing, told The recognized the opportunity provided by off- Daily Beast in an exclusive interview.

Load more

  116

Copy Link