START Newsletter: State Department utilizes START terrorism data and analysis

 
START provides statistical annex for Country Reports on Terrorism
Yesterday, the U.S. Department of State released the congressionally mandated report, “Country Reports on Terrorism 2012,” which includes the Annex of Statistical Information prepared by START. The statistical annex is a guide to worldwide terrorist activity as reported by unclassified sources, and it also describes the 2012 patterns of worldwide terrorist activity. Full story…
 
Study examines communities where terrorists lived, planned and prepared
According to a new START study, perpetrators of terrorist attacks in the United States have lived, planned and prepared for attacks in communities that are generally characterized by lower socioeconomic status, poorer housing conditions and sociodemographic characteristics that are significantly different than those without residential or pre-incident activity. Full story…
 
Repost: Ricin Background Report            
With news that two letters sent to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg contained the deadly poison ricin, START is reposting its April Background Report about ricin. The Background Report examines terrorist plots and attacks involving biological agents from 1990-2011, finding that terrorist organizations, cells and lone actors with political or ideological motives expressed interest in or plotted (22%), pursued acquisition of (44%), threatened (8%) or used (26%) 21 different biological agents in 74 separate incidents. Full story…

 
Counter-Terrorism Strategies and Democracy: Lessons for the US from the (Unfortunate) Example of Turkey
In this editorial piece, START visiting scholar Nil Satana offers lessons learned in counterterrorism strategies from her home country of Turkey. Satana argues that Turkey is not the “democratic example” or “inspiration” for Arab Spring countries that the West often says it to be. Full story…
 

 
Apparent intended lethality: Toward a model of intent to harm in terrorist bomb attacks
Authored by Margaret Wilson and Lucy Lemanski, this Dynamics of Asymmetric Conflict article assesses the apparent intended lethality for 120 bomb attacks carried out by animal rights and anti-abortion extremists in the United States. Their analysis reveals that single-issue terrorist bombers' intended lethality can be modeled according to three independent dimensions: device strategy, targeting, and pre-event warnings. Article available here…
 
The Political Effectiveness of Non-State Violence: A Two-Level Framework to Transform a Deceptive Debate
In this Security Studies article, Peter Krause presents an alternative concept of political effectiveness based on a two-level framework that accounts for the fact that insurgencies are not unitary actors, but are instead marked by armed groups that pursue strategic objectives that benefit their larger social movements, while they simultaneously pursue organizational objectives that benefit the groups themselves. Article available here…
 
Networks as strategic repertoires: Functional differentiation among Al-Shabaab terror cells
In this Global Crime article, Christian Leuprecht and Kenneth Hall explain variation across the characteristics and structure of Al-Shabaab (AS) networks as a function of strategic repertoires. The article concludes that, from a network perspective, terrorist recruitment and fundraising are distinct problems that require differentiated law-enforcement and security-intelligence approaches. Article available here…
 

 
Can verbal communication quell terrorist violence?
START researchers Laura Dugan, Brooke Fisher Liu and Erica Chenoweth, earned a seed grant to investigate whether certain types of verbal communication by a government can reduce terrorist violence. Full story…
 
START increases access to security studies for underrepresented students
Thanks to a new grant from the University of Maryland, START will expand access to education in the security studies field. The grant will support students from underrepresented populations in the National Security field as they participate in START’s Global Terrorism Minor courses. Full story…
 
Researcher Spotlight: Erik Dahl
After serving 21 years as a U.S. Navy intelligence officer, START Researcher Erik Dahl earned a doctorate and pursued a career in academia, where he has focused his research on intelligence, terrorism and international and homeland security. Full story…
 
START student earns competitive Boren Scholarship
To build on her education as an anthropology major with minors in Global Terrorism and International Development and Conflict Management, Elizabeth Teoman’s Boren Scholarship allows her to study Turkish and prepare for a career in diplomacy, national security or intelligence. Full story…
 
START talk profiles history and culture behind suicide bombings
Terrorism scholar Jeffrey Lewis discussed this history of the phenomenon of suicide bombing at START’s headquarters during a talk based on “The Business of Martyrdom,” the book he began as a START post-doctoral student. Full story…
 
START participates in 15^th annual Maryland Day
Students and staff from START were on hand to discuss research and educational opportunities with the more than 100,000 visitors to Maryland’s campus for Maryland Day. Full story…

 
Turkey: Car bombs near Syrian border kill at least 50
On May 11, two powerful car bombs exploded minutes apart near a municipal building and a post office in the town of Reyhanli. The blasts left at least 50 people dead and about 140 people injured. Full story…
 
Egypt: Government shuts down border crossing after police and soldiers kidnapped
The Egyptian government has shut down a border crossing between the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza after four police officers and three soldiers were kidnapped. Media reports have not yet stated who kidnapped the security officials, but have said the kidnappers are demanding the release of family/group members from prison. Full story…
 
Niger: Deadly coordinated attacks claimed by two emerging groups
On May 23, militants armed with guns and explosives attacked a military base and a French-owned uranium mine in different areas of Niger. Between the two attacks, more than 25 people were killed, including five suicide bombers. The Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO) claimed responsibility for the attacks. Full story…
 

 
Validating Models of Adversary Behavior
Join risk analysts, statisticians, economists and other social scientists studying terrorism for the inaugural conference on Validating Models of Adversary Behavior, June 23-26 in Buffalo/Niagara Falls, New York. The conference aims to bridge theoretical and empirical research on adversarial modeling, and assess and demonstrate the validity and applicability of the best existing models of adversary behavior. Register now...
 
Study to stop terrorism: Earn your Graduate Certificate
Apply by July 15 for START’s fully online, open enrollment Graduate Certificate in Terrorism Analysis at the University of Maryland. The yearlong program provides participants – both scholars and practitioners – with advanced education on the causes, dynamics and impacts of international and domestic terrorism. Apply now…
 
Teaching assistants needed for Global Terrorism Minor
START is currently seeking applications for graduate teaching assistants in the following two courses: BSST330 Terrorist Motivations and Behaviors and BSST332: The Practice of Terrorism Studies. Apply now…
 
Apply for Fall START internships
Students from all universities and colleges are encouraged to apply for START internships for the Fall. Applications for Fall internships must be received by July 14 (priority deadline June 2). Apply now...
 
Teach a terrorism or political violence class? Participate in a study.
If you teach a terrorism or political violence course, you are eligible to participate in this study being conducted now by Peter Krause, an assistant professor of political science at Boston College and former START Terrorism Research Awardee. Full story…
 
Call for papers: Special Issue of Terrorism and Political Violence
In this special issue of Terrorism and Political Violence, Guest Editors Joshua Freilich and Gary LaFree propose a direct focus on “Criminological approaches to the study of terrorism.”  Full story…

 
CNN: State Department releases annual U.S. report on international terrorism
START’s contribution to the State Department’s Country Reports on Terrorism is mentioned in this article. Full story…
 
The Daily Show:
Host Jon Stewart uses START GTD data in a discussion of terrorist attacks against diplomatic targets. The clip begins at approximately 0:45 seconds. Full story…
 
Fox News: Russian city visited by Boston bomber a nest of terror, violence
START Researcher Mila Johns is quoted in this article about the Boston Marathon bombing and the Caucuses Emirate. Full story…
 
Baltimore Sun: To deter terrorism, think beyond punishment
START Researcher Laura Dugan authored this START Discussion Point, which was published as an op-ed in the Baltimore Sun about how punishment alone will not deter terrorists. Full story…
 
Tampa Bay Times: Social media shares news when storms threaten
This article cites the report, “Social Media Use During Disasters,” which is part of a project being conducted by START Researchers Brook Fisher Liu, Yan Jin and Julia Daisy Fraustino. Full story…

 
Help Support START Research and Education
The START Consortium is dedicated to generating knowledge of the human causes and consequences of terrorism. Applying rigorous standards to both research and education, START seeks to illuminate one of the most highly politicized and understudied phenomena in the social sciences for students, practitioners and policy-makers. Funded primarily through research grants to date, START is seeking to generate an endowment that will provide the flexibility and autonomy to ensure that it can continue to serve as an objective source of data and empirically based analysis into the future.  To donate, or for more information, please click here.