Counterterrorism Efforts in International Cities in the Age of Globalization

Article originally published in The Paris Globalist, a magazine of International Affairs (http://www.theparisglobalist.org/2011/01/24/counterterrorism-efforts-in-international-cities-in-the-age-of-globalization/)

The size and complexity of modern cities make them highly vulnerable to terrorist attacks. The security measures undertaken to protect these urban jungles surpass the forces that some small countries have.

“Think globally, act locally” is the motto of the New York City Police Department. A leading example in counterterrorism efforts since September 11, the NYPD is a great case study on how international cities currently deal with terrorism. It stands as one of the largest police departments in the world. With 37,000 police officers and 15,000 support staff, the NYPD is twice as big as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), one of the primary agencies in charge of counterterrorism for the United States. Further, the force has directly benefited from the diversity of its ranks in its efforts to combat terrorism.

Following September 11, the NYPD implemented a threefold plan to tackle terrorism. The city established a counterterrorism bureau supported by 250 officers working hand in hand with the FBI, The Joint Terrorism Task Force and the CIA. The intelligence division of the force now employs a thousand officers dedicated to counterterrorism on a day-to-day basis. The enormity of this effort is further highlighted by the NYPD’s aggressive recruitment of high profile counterterrorism and security experts from the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the CIA – among other security agencies.

Second, the NYPD has employed a large police presence in potential target areas, in addition to regular surges against suspected plotting terrorists in the city. They have proven to be effective at discouraging potential terrorist attacks. Finally, by leveraging their diversity, community outreach has been a very successful endeavor. It counters radicalization by engaging with the various communities living in New York City and adapts the force to the city’s particularities.

Counterterrorism strategy is a hybrid of intelligence and police work as well as a defense and a global security effort. The post-9/11 decade witnessed the civilian world of police and the military joining hands - more or less easily - to address the security threats of the 21st century. Risk assessment, prevention and management stand at the core of today’s counterterrorism policies. Predicting the next attack, whether it is homegrown or from an external source, whether it is an explosive device, chemical, nuclear, or biological is the main goal of counterterrorism units all over the world.

Specifically, managing numerous risks and threats in modern international cities, large and dangerous playgrounds in which the public’s activity can hardly be disturbed, requires complex mechanisms of surveillance and prevention. High rise buildings, extensive underground transportation systems, and other critical infrastructures vital to millions of people represent highly vulnerable targets for attacks. Many global cities now have more resources for counterterrorism than certain small countries and are becoming active, autonomous actors on the international scene.

As Brian Nussbaum explains, “World cities are key nodes in the economic and technological networks that constitute the world community. As such, they represent a sort of international critical infrastructure underpinning the global economy. They face potentially higher threats because of the high profiles, high number of international travelers and citizens, and target rich environments.” (Nussbaum, 2007).

In other global cities like London or Paris, the use of technology along with a massive police force is the current strategy to tackle threats. In fact, London was the first city to come up with CCTVs - closed circuit surveillance cameras - during the 1980s when dealing with terrorist attacks from the IRA. According to Ayse Ceyhan, Director of the “Security, Technology, Society” research program at the Maison des Sciences de L’Homme in Paris, “in an environment characterized by uncertainty, the unknown and risk generated by globalization and reinforced by September 11, the adoption of electronic identification and surveillance tools is perceived as the ultimate solution for fighting insecurity.” (Ceyhan, 2008)

Going just as unnoticed as close circuit recording cameras, the use of biometrics for identification and authentication in airports is of major importance to counterterrorism efforts. We might not think of it, but our own bodies have become the focal point of security nowadays. Ayse Ceyhan notes that bodies are the most reliable way of authenticating people. In a world of suspicion, being able to use biology and genetics is a godsend for security units.

In this sense, the construction of a surveillance infrastructure that encompasses nearly every matter related to a violation of the law is a reality. What used to be a fight against an external enemy is now a suspicion of all. The National Strategy for Homeland Security of 2002 and 2007 also show this trend of a growing world of secrecy. As a result, the very nature of our modern lives is threatened daily not only by the fear of terrorism but also by the fear of the intrusion of authorities into our private lives.

As a consequence, the militarization of civilian security to deter terrorists has changed the way we view security, starting with the tracing of people’s activities and information. We are no longer invisible. We all have what is called “data-doubles”, an electronic trace of ourselves that can be retrieved mostly through credit card transactions, and travelling information - through programs like the Passenger Name Record information, in which airline companies have to share the names of all passengers to the United States before being able to take off. As the scholars Haggerty and Ericson put it, it is the “disappearance of disappearance” for everyone.

This is why experts say that international cooperation stands as a core requirement to an effective fight against terrorism (Cordesman, 2010). And relations between the FBI and the NYPD intelligence division have been rather strained since the post-9/11 era reorganization of the NYPD. There has been a lot of contention as to who has authority over the NYPD, especially because the NYPD currently conducts overseas intelligence and has many agents abroad. This international outreach is somewhat competing with the CIA and underpins the authority of the Department of Homeland Security. But with the necessity for law enforcement and no clarity in terms of lines of authority, the NYPD and other police forces in major global cities have been able to undergo considerable expansion.

This is a clear symptom of the need for States to adapt to the new context of global security. This would mean more international cooperation between intelligence agencies, the high tech security industry, policy makers and cities. Despite any real homogeneity in their approach, the fact that global cities are acting locally to combat international threats is yet “another challenge to the pre-eminence of the traditional state in international politics” (Nussbaum, 2007). But it might yet be the best method to protect global cities from potential terrorist attacks.

If interested in learning more:

- Nussbaum, Brian (2007) “Protecting Global Cities : New York, London and the Internationalization of Municipal Policing for Counter Terrorism”, Global Crime, 8 : 3, 213 – 232

- Ceyhan, Ayse (2008) “Technologization of Security: Management of Uncertainty and Risk in the Age of Biometrics” in Surveillance and society, 5: 2