Homeland Security Essay ⋆ Political Science Essay Examples ⋆ EssayEmpire

The issue of homeland security took on new meaning in countries around the world after the attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001 (9/11). The surprise attacks proved that at-will countries could be successfully attacked if they were not prepared to defend themselves. The attacks occurred when al-Qaida forces hijacked four commercial airliners for use as instruments of mass destruction. Two attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City and a third attack on the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., were successful. However, passengers averted a fourth attack by driving United Flight 93 into the ground in rural Pennsylvania. Before the day was over, nearly three thousand people, including nine from the al-Qaida network, had lost their lives, and the safety of the civilized world had been challenged.

Concerns over militant attacks throughout the twentieth century were primarily restricted to national or regional threats, such as those from the Irish Republican Army in Northern Ireland, the Red Brigades in Italy, and Hamas in the Middle East. Prior to 9/11, groups halfway around the world had not successfully carried out an attack on a distant target.

After 9/11

Within days of the September 11 attacks, the U.S. Congress passed the USA PATRIOT Act (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism), giving the national government unprecedented powers to fight terrorism. The following year, Congress expanded government counterterror ism powers with the passage of the Homeland Security Act. In the most far-reaching government reorganization since World War II, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was charged with coordinating the activities of twenty-two government agencies, including Customs and Border Protection, the Secret Service, Citizenship and Immigration Services, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the Coast Guard. DHS was also given the responsibility for overseeing the gathering and sharing of intelligence among government agencies and for coordinating responses to national emergencies among private industries and state, local, and regional governments.

DHS was specifically created to identify potential terrorist threats and avert future attacks. In practice, however, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have retained control of antiterrorist activities. Critics of DHS contend that the agency has not been successful in responding to natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina, which devastated the Gulf Coast in August 2005. DHS is perceived as more successful in working with states to enhance defensive capabilities and in establishing national warning systems.

While the United States responded to 9/11 with heightened government powers and an aggressive new military policy (preemption), European nations, in addition to pledging support for the United States, strengthened their existing security measures and passed new antiterrorism legislation that, in large part, focused more on prosecution than militarily driven action. The issue was particularly relevant in Europe, where groups such as the Basque Separatist Movement in Spain and the Baader-Meinhof Gang in Germany had long made terrorism a concern. The European Union (EU) responded to 9/11 by creating a joint policing authority and taking measures to coordinate counterterrorism activities among member nations. These measures included the sharing of intelligence and police information, issuing warrants across national boundaries, strengthening border controls, and cooperating with the United States.

Despite its heightened security efforts, Europe has proved to be vulnerable to attacks since 9/11. On March 11, 2004, forces likely linked to al-Qaida exploded ten bombs on the commuter train system in Madrid, Spain. At least 192 people were killed, and 1,500 others were wounded. A few weeks later, after an unsuccessful bombing attempt on April 2, police trapped suspected individuals inside a home where they committed suicide. One police officer was also killed.

To battle the problem, rather than reorganize its homeland security systems as the United States had done, the Spanish government chose to draw on laws designed to fight domestic terrorism. Authority over homeland security activities remained in the hands of the secretary of the interior. The new strategies Spain announced were an expansion of antiterrorism resources, improved coordination within and among security and intelligence agencies, and heightened security at vulnerable points.

Another major attack took place on the London commuter system during the morning rush hour on July 7, 2005, when three bombs exploded. A fourth bomb was detonated on a bus one hour later. Overall, 52 people were killed and 700 were wounded. Four suicide bombers also perished in the attacks. Two days later, on July 9, a second set of explosives was set off, but no casualties were reported. These perpetrators, who were suspected of having links to al-Qaida, were later arrested.

A year before the 9/11 attacks, the British parliament had enacted a new antiterrorism package that expanded the government’s authority for dealing with suspected terrorists both legally and financially. This strategy stressed enhanced information sharing, immigration monitoring, and tightened security at laboratories and aviation, civilian, and nuclear sites. After 9/11, the government chose to leave the responsibility for homeland security dispersed among several departments. In 2004, the government announced a new antiterrorism strategy, CONTEST, designed to focus on prevention, pursuit, protection, and preparation.

Bibliography:

Archick, Kristin, and Paul Gallis. Europe and Counterterrorism. New York: Nova Science, 2003.
Archick, Kristin, Carl Ek, Paul Gallis, Francis T. Miko, and Steven Woehrel. European Approaches to Homeland Security.Washington, D.C.: Congressional Research Service, 2006. http://fas.org/sgp/crs/homesec/ RL33573.pdf. Department of Homeland Security. http://dhs.gov/dhspublic/.
Graham, Bob. Intelligence Matters:The CIA, the FBI, and the Failure of America’s War on Terror. New York: Random House, 2004.
Howard, Russell D., James J. F. Forest, and Joanne Moore. Homeland Security and Terrorism: Readings and Interpretations. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2006.
Kamien, David G., ed. The Homeland Security Handbook. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2005.
Smith, Norris, and Lynn M. Messina. Homeland Security. New York: H.W. Wilson, 2004.

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