August 29, 2017
The Threat of Small-Dollar Terrorism
The recent ISIS terrorist attacks in Barcelona and Cambrils likely cost no more than a few thousand dollars—little more than the cost of renting vehicles and housing and feeding operatives for a few weeks. These attacks fit a pattern of high-impact, low-cost terrorism across Europe. Even the Paris attacks in November 2015, which killed 130 revelers, likely cost no more than $10,000.
It’s not clear whether the terrorists in Spain received money from abroad or raised funds locally to carry out the attacks. But we know that even as coalition military forces have scored victories against ISIS in Iraq and Syria, ISIS operatives and terrorists have turned to these kinds of low-cost attacks across the West. Just since the beginning of January, we have seen horrific examples in London, Paris, Manchester and Stockholm, in addition to the attacks in Spain.
Read the full article in Politico.
More from CNAS
-
Can the U.S. Win a War in the Pacific Against China?
Podcast
We sit down with former U.S. Navy submariner and defense analyst Thomas Shugart, now an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, to examine the rapidly...
By Tom Shugart
-
Video
Defense / Energy, Economics & Security
Defense Stocks Strain as Conflict WidensBecca Wasser and Chris Kennedy, adjunct senior fellows at the Center for a New American Security, join Bloomberg This Weekend to discuss the Iran War and the its impact on U.S...
By Becca Wasser & Chris Kennedy
-
Accelerate Production by Modernizing Acquisition
Commentary
Introduction The threats facing the United States and its allies today demand more than incremental improvements to defense capacity—they require a fundamentally different mod...
By Frank St. John
-
German Military Power Needs to Go It Alone
Commentary
But those who worry about a mighty Germany going it alone need to face an uncomfortable truth: NATO needs a powerful German military backed by the continent’s biggest economy ...
By Franz-Stefan Gady
