An Cosantóir

www.military.ie the defence forces magazine | 21 when and where to target. The Syrian refugee crisis also enabled many IS fighters to infiltrate Europe with false papers and assistance from various quarters. These individuals linked up with cells, managing to evade detection and travel to their targets throughout Europe. Groups were well supplied with money, a network of safe houses, weapons and explosives. Today, extremists are using 'safe spaces' online to plan and plot, which makes the threat much harder to detect. Long before the devastat- ing events of 11th September 2001, countries throughout the world had developed ways of dealing with terrorists, but for the most part these groups were regarded only as domes- tic threats. In recent years, with austerity measures, military and police intelligence have been hampered by limited bud- gets, bureaucratic infighting and weak laws for crime and terrorism offences. Agencies also failed to share intelligence, as one na- tion's terrorist was another nation's informer. Many of the perpetrators were known to the authori- ties and many opportunities to apprehend them before they launched their attacks were missed. Cutbacks forced agencies to pick and choose who they monitored. While some groups received 24/7 surveillance, others were for- gotten, while some new ones slipped under the radar com- pletely. The counter-terrorism infrastructure that had been decades in the making was overnight simply not there due to budget and manpower restraints. Some sought greater pow- ers to investigate potential suspects but others saw this as an abuse of power and that certain freedoms would be compromised. The question that was being asked was, 'How much freedom do you want to sacrifice for your security?' For many years terrorism was something hypothetical, an act of unspeakable violence that happened elsewhere. Intelligence agencies were formed and expanded to deal with organi- sations such as the IRA, ETA, Red Brigades and the PLO. However in recent years we have seen this trend change dramatically. Today, with the hindsight of recent events, we can now deduce that no country can claim neutrality and that no country is safe. Ireland possesses two special counter- terrorism forces that in the event of an at- tack would be ready for immediate deploy- ment, the Garda Emergency Response Unit (ERU) and the Army Ranger Wing (ARW). The Irish Government has established a special division to examine and monitor terrorist threats and this year the ERU con- ducted a full-scale exercise combining an unarmed and armed response to a terror attack. However, more is needed. Security analyst, Declan Power, recently stated in an interview the importance of maximising the state's skills. Our history has demonstrated that these two units have proven themselves more than effec- tive in combating organised crime and dis- sident republican terrorists. Now, Ireland is faced with a different foe, with different and varying tactics, ranging from complex and somewhat skilled attacks, such as those launched in Manchester and Paris, to more DIY attacks, such as those carried out at London Bridge and Barcelona. Full scale exercises involving the ERU, the ARW and all the frontline emergency responders such as the Fire Brigade and Ambulance Service are needed. Our re- sponders' capabilities need to be assessed and any shortcomings need to be ad- dressed as a matter of urgency. While we possess some of the best trained people for the job, they lack the vital equipment needed to combat not only the threat, but also an actual attack. Vehicles, helicopters, and adequate medical facilities are just some of the basics needed to face a potential terrorist attack and without these in place we are far from prepared to counteract such a scenario. While the Defence Forces work as an aid to the civil power (ATCP), more collabora- tion and training of our frontline staff in relation to counter-terrorism strategy and tactics are needed. Some analysts believe that an opportu- nity by the world's intelligence agencies to cooperate against transnational terrorism has been missed, but others believe that it is never too late. To combat the surge in terrorist attacks, agencies must put aside their petty differ- ences and work together to achieve a safe and secure Europe. As IS loses ground in Syria and Iraq, they have promised more attacks in Europe. Those that perpetrate these attacks are people that want to die; they are not afraid to die and they are not afraid to kill other people while doing so. The question is not if something will happen, but when and where. Las Ramblas crash map Barcelona on 18th August 2017. Armed Spanish police after Barcelona attack on Las Ramblas. Belgian soldiers stand guard in front of the central train station in Brussels, as the capital remained on high security alert level over fears of a Paris-style attack. Photo: AFP/Getty

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