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Handling Of The Boston Attack By The FBI And Lessons For India Analysis
There have been many questions raised after the killing of the elder brother Tamerlan Tsarnaev and the capture of the younger brother Dzhokhar Tsarnaev post the Boston Marathon bombing.
The blasts caused due to the pressure cooker bombs killed three and injured more than 260 victims on 15th April at the finishing line of the Boston Marathon. About fifty are still in the hospital after the heinous attacks.
While the citizens of Boston heaved a sigh of relief that the terrorists were neutralized / captured on 19th April, there are increasing concerns about the action (or lack of it) by the FBI in hind sight. As per the reports, there was a request from Russia to check on the credentials of the elder brother when he applied for US citizenship. The request was put on hold for some time after the interview. The FBI apparently cleared the applicant after going through the usual drills though with some delay. It is obvious that this drill did not prevent the granting of US citizenship to a potential terrorist. It is also not known if such doubtful persons with questionable antecedents are constantly under observation and for how long. It is obvious that the processes need a review to prevent such lapses if there were any. There is also a need to examine if there were human failures due to lack of training/orientation or even supervision.
The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security had come in for praise for not allowing any act of terrorism to succeed on US Soil after the multiple coordinated attacks on 11th September 2001. There are reports that since 2001, apparently there were five similar cases of people under scan indulging in attempts for carrying out terrorist attacks. With most counter terrorism effort going right for the last twelve years whether complacency did creep in to the system would be a question that needs to be answered in all earnestness. The agencies will doubtlessly double their efforts from now on to ensure that there are no recurrences by having a close look at the existing practices. There can however be no guarantee that a similar attack by radicalized individuals anywhere in the world including in the adopted countries can be prevented.
Despite some doubts about whether any terrorist organization was involved, there is no confirmation about links with any other terrorist organization as of now. According to the younger brother, Dzhokhar, his elder brother was radicalized by the internet propaganda. How much impact did the visit of Tsarnaev to Dagestan have on his plans to attack the Marathon in Boston is yet to be established. Apparently, it is the role of US in Iraq and Afghanistan that prompted the duo to take the ****** route with a decision to attack the innocent participants in the marathon at Boston. It is clear that the younger brother who is still a teen was guided by his elder brother and joined hands with him to carry out the terrorist attack on 15th April. The fact that the siblings came under the influence of the elder brother was corroborated by other siblings and the parents of Tamerlan.
In most of the cases where such terrorist acts take place in India, the press and even some of the political parties jump to conclusion about the identity of the group behind the attacks and pass judgments even before the investigation has commenced. Indiscriminate comments on whether the origins are Islamist or Hindu terror is freely used without any proof or concern for public sentiments even before the FIR is filed. Most of the statements made invariably are politically motivated and causes enormous harm to peace and harmony. Also, even when the police are investigating they face criticism by accusations that they are targeting a particular community. The investigations themselves are impeded due to interference from the political establishment or religious leaders. Even the media which is caught up in the breaking news first , syndrome do not care to check on the reports/rumours and tend to be irresponsible in reporting on such incidents with great haste. The damage is already done even if the media does correct/retract their statements subsequently. The panel discussions go viral and are a free for all where many allegations and counter allegations are made without any qualms. At the end of such discussions with out objectivity, unfortunately, there are no positive outcomes.
Though there are questions now about the efficiency of the FBI in keeping tab on persons of dubious antecedents, the mature manner in which the leadership and the police conducted themselves in Boston after the incident is praiseworthy. The systematic investigation and analysis of the video capture from different cameras led to the identification of the suspects and the follow up action. The reporting by the boat owner who noticed blood next to his boat brought the police to the scene to apprehend the bleeding terrorist. Though the subsequent action resulted in the capture of the younger sibling, the elder brother Tamerlan and a police officer died in the shootout.
The process of apprehending the terrorists was also enabled by ensuring that the police were not interfered with by the citizens who were asked by the civil authorities to remain in their own homes till the situation was under control. The media likewise did not indulge in wild speculation and waited for the FBI to nab the terrorists and ascertain the facts. Even now, since the sole survivor is not fully fit to provide information, there are gaps in the analysis related to whether the attackers really were self-motivated or were part of any other terrorist outfit that indoctrinated Tamerlan during his reported visit to Dagestan for over six months in 2012 .
It is clear that there was no monitoring by any agency on the impact of such visit to a radical area in Dagestan/Chechnya. If there was indeed any kind of monitoring, it has remained ineffective as it did not prevent the attacker from executing his plans.
The US authorities did not lose any time in visiting the parents of the bombers with the assistance of the Russian authorities. While the father maintained that the his sons have been framed, the investigators have also established that Tamerlan came under the influence of a converted Muslim Misha who apparently had long sessions with Tamerlan on the virtues of Islam. Tamerlan apparently also came under the influence of ****** websites and as per the police investigations, it has been brought out that he regularly accessed Inspire an online ****** publication in English brought out by Al Qaeda from Yemen. The magazine not only includes the procedure for making bombs but also advocates lone wolf terror attacks. Wikipedia has more details on the magazine and the modus operandi. Detailed report is available at Inspire (magazine) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In the case of India, the track record for preventing terrorist attacks is quite poor just as the post terrorist attack investigations also suffer from delays and even in not making any headway in the investigation to bring the culprits to book. Even in the proven cases, the legal processes and procedures of the land prevent speedy trial and prosecution. Even after the upholding of the death sentences in case of terrorist and other acts, as in the case of Afzal Guru and Kasab unfortunately, the Governments developed cold feet fearing reprisals and delayed the process of justice with long term irreversible damage.
In the case of the Boston bombing, it is to the credit of the investigating agencies that they zeroed in on the perpetrators of the crime within a few days of the incident and were able to nab the younger brother alive for facilitating the detailed investigation. Law enforcement agencies and investigating agencies anywhere in the world do have an unenviable task in preventing terrorist acts and also in ensuring that the culprits are brought to book without delay, if for some reason the terrorists have succeeded.
In the Indian context, the creation of the National Investigation Agency post Mumbai terror attacks has only yielded limited results. From the track record, it is clear that the agency still has a long way before being fully effective in the primary task of preventing acts of terror and other similar acts. While the primary function was to prevent terrorist acts, it has now being regularly tasked for investigation including the investigation of the shooting of fishermen by Italian Marines who were onboard Enrica Lexie on 15th February 2012.
In conclusion, it is clear that Boston bombing has many lessons for investigating agencies around the world both for preventing and for bringing the culprits to book. The leadership irrespective of the political/religious allegiance has a lot to learn in how to exercise restraint and allow the due process of law to take its prescribed course. The media has plenty to emulate in terms of responsible and restrained reporting without adding any political or religious hues to yet to be investigated incidents. It may be recalled that the FBI did not lose any time in interacting with the Mumbai police and other investigating agencies post Mumbai terror attack to learn the lessons. Likewise, the National Investigation and other agencies would need to interact with the FBI in the next few days to redefine the Dos and Donts, both pre and post terrorist attacks.
Handling Of The Boston Attack By The FBI And Lessons For India - Analysis Eurasia Review
There have been many questions raised after the killing of the elder brother Tamerlan Tsarnaev and the capture of the younger brother Dzhokhar Tsarnaev post the Boston Marathon bombing.
The blasts caused due to the pressure cooker bombs killed three and injured more than 260 victims on 15th April at the finishing line of the Boston Marathon. About fifty are still in the hospital after the heinous attacks.
While the citizens of Boston heaved a sigh of relief that the terrorists were neutralized / captured on 19th April, there are increasing concerns about the action (or lack of it) by the FBI in hind sight. As per the reports, there was a request from Russia to check on the credentials of the elder brother when he applied for US citizenship. The request was put on hold for some time after the interview. The FBI apparently cleared the applicant after going through the usual drills though with some delay. It is obvious that this drill did not prevent the granting of US citizenship to a potential terrorist. It is also not known if such doubtful persons with questionable antecedents are constantly under observation and for how long. It is obvious that the processes need a review to prevent such lapses if there were any. There is also a need to examine if there were human failures due to lack of training/orientation or even supervision.
The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security had come in for praise for not allowing any act of terrorism to succeed on US Soil after the multiple coordinated attacks on 11th September 2001. There are reports that since 2001, apparently there were five similar cases of people under scan indulging in attempts for carrying out terrorist attacks. With most counter terrorism effort going right for the last twelve years whether complacency did creep in to the system would be a question that needs to be answered in all earnestness. The agencies will doubtlessly double their efforts from now on to ensure that there are no recurrences by having a close look at the existing practices. There can however be no guarantee that a similar attack by radicalized individuals anywhere in the world including in the adopted countries can be prevented.
Despite some doubts about whether any terrorist organization was involved, there is no confirmation about links with any other terrorist organization as of now. According to the younger brother, Dzhokhar, his elder brother was radicalized by the internet propaganda. How much impact did the visit of Tsarnaev to Dagestan have on his plans to attack the Marathon in Boston is yet to be established. Apparently, it is the role of US in Iraq and Afghanistan that prompted the duo to take the ****** route with a decision to attack the innocent participants in the marathon at Boston. It is clear that the younger brother who is still a teen was guided by his elder brother and joined hands with him to carry out the terrorist attack on 15th April. The fact that the siblings came under the influence of the elder brother was corroborated by other siblings and the parents of Tamerlan.
In most of the cases where such terrorist acts take place in India, the press and even some of the political parties jump to conclusion about the identity of the group behind the attacks and pass judgments even before the investigation has commenced. Indiscriminate comments on whether the origins are Islamist or Hindu terror is freely used without any proof or concern for public sentiments even before the FIR is filed. Most of the statements made invariably are politically motivated and causes enormous harm to peace and harmony. Also, even when the police are investigating they face criticism by accusations that they are targeting a particular community. The investigations themselves are impeded due to interference from the political establishment or religious leaders. Even the media which is caught up in the breaking news first , syndrome do not care to check on the reports/rumours and tend to be irresponsible in reporting on such incidents with great haste. The damage is already done even if the media does correct/retract their statements subsequently. The panel discussions go viral and are a free for all where many allegations and counter allegations are made without any qualms. At the end of such discussions with out objectivity, unfortunately, there are no positive outcomes.
Though there are questions now about the efficiency of the FBI in keeping tab on persons of dubious antecedents, the mature manner in which the leadership and the police conducted themselves in Boston after the incident is praiseworthy. The systematic investigation and analysis of the video capture from different cameras led to the identification of the suspects and the follow up action. The reporting by the boat owner who noticed blood next to his boat brought the police to the scene to apprehend the bleeding terrorist. Though the subsequent action resulted in the capture of the younger sibling, the elder brother Tamerlan and a police officer died in the shootout.
The process of apprehending the terrorists was also enabled by ensuring that the police were not interfered with by the citizens who were asked by the civil authorities to remain in their own homes till the situation was under control. The media likewise did not indulge in wild speculation and waited for the FBI to nab the terrorists and ascertain the facts. Even now, since the sole survivor is not fully fit to provide information, there are gaps in the analysis related to whether the attackers really were self-motivated or were part of any other terrorist outfit that indoctrinated Tamerlan during his reported visit to Dagestan for over six months in 2012 .
It is clear that there was no monitoring by any agency on the impact of such visit to a radical area in Dagestan/Chechnya. If there was indeed any kind of monitoring, it has remained ineffective as it did not prevent the attacker from executing his plans.
The US authorities did not lose any time in visiting the parents of the bombers with the assistance of the Russian authorities. While the father maintained that the his sons have been framed, the investigators have also established that Tamerlan came under the influence of a converted Muslim Misha who apparently had long sessions with Tamerlan on the virtues of Islam. Tamerlan apparently also came under the influence of ****** websites and as per the police investigations, it has been brought out that he regularly accessed Inspire an online ****** publication in English brought out by Al Qaeda from Yemen. The magazine not only includes the procedure for making bombs but also advocates lone wolf terror attacks. Wikipedia has more details on the magazine and the modus operandi. Detailed report is available at Inspire (magazine) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In the case of India, the track record for preventing terrorist attacks is quite poor just as the post terrorist attack investigations also suffer from delays and even in not making any headway in the investigation to bring the culprits to book. Even in the proven cases, the legal processes and procedures of the land prevent speedy trial and prosecution. Even after the upholding of the death sentences in case of terrorist and other acts, as in the case of Afzal Guru and Kasab unfortunately, the Governments developed cold feet fearing reprisals and delayed the process of justice with long term irreversible damage.
In the case of the Boston bombing, it is to the credit of the investigating agencies that they zeroed in on the perpetrators of the crime within a few days of the incident and were able to nab the younger brother alive for facilitating the detailed investigation. Law enforcement agencies and investigating agencies anywhere in the world do have an unenviable task in preventing terrorist acts and also in ensuring that the culprits are brought to book without delay, if for some reason the terrorists have succeeded.
In the Indian context, the creation of the National Investigation Agency post Mumbai terror attacks has only yielded limited results. From the track record, it is clear that the agency still has a long way before being fully effective in the primary task of preventing acts of terror and other similar acts. While the primary function was to prevent terrorist acts, it has now being regularly tasked for investigation including the investigation of the shooting of fishermen by Italian Marines who were onboard Enrica Lexie on 15th February 2012.
In conclusion, it is clear that Boston bombing has many lessons for investigating agencies around the world both for preventing and for bringing the culprits to book. The leadership irrespective of the political/religious allegiance has a lot to learn in how to exercise restraint and allow the due process of law to take its prescribed course. The media has plenty to emulate in terms of responsible and restrained reporting without adding any political or religious hues to yet to be investigated incidents. It may be recalled that the FBI did not lose any time in interacting with the Mumbai police and other investigating agencies post Mumbai terror attack to learn the lessons. Likewise, the National Investigation and other agencies would need to interact with the FBI in the next few days to redefine the Dos and Donts, both pre and post terrorist attacks.
Handling Of The Boston Attack By The FBI And Lessons For India - Analysis Eurasia Review
