Last Friday, the terrorist organization HAMAS declared a “Worldwide Day of Jihad.” While not too much happened, I think it’s prudent to be prepared for additional threats from this organization and its unaffiliated followers.
I just returned from a 10-day trip to Turkey. Being much closer to the conflict over there and experiencing the increased security measures taken by the Turkish National police prompted me to write this article.
If you want some more background on the current conflict, I would suggest the following podcasts:
Israel and Hamas | Out of the Loop
World Events and Their Implications with Randy Watt
The Funker Tactical Twitter (X) page has a collection of videos showing exactly how HAMAS targeted civilians in Israel. It is explicit, but it doesn’t rise to the level of “snuff pron” that I’ve seen on some other sites.
Since my return, I’ve spoken with several high ranking folks in the American counter-terrorism community. They don’t believe this problem will go away soon and are predicting a higher risk of attacks on Americans for the next three to six months.
What do I think will happen here?
I think the most likely scenario is that we will see several individual “lone wolf” mentally ill terrorists with a strong attraction to HAMAS ideals randomly attacking people or places in the United States. I say “randomly” because although Jewish people and physical locations occupied or owned by Jews might seem like the logical target, they present some difficulty for an attacker of this type. In my experience, Jewish synagogues and schools are much better defended than the churches and schools of other religions. That makes these random terrorist attackers less likely to choose them as victims.
I think most of these attacks will be low-tech in nature, focusing on knife attacks and vehicle run downs. That’s what we have seen so far in other countries. Take a look at the articles below to see examples of the kind of attacks that have occurred worldwide within the last week.
Employee at Israeli Embassy in China Stabbed; Foreign Suspect Detained
One of the French knife attacks
As we are in America and guns are easier to get than in other countries, we might see these lone wolf terrorists using firearms in an active killer style attack. There is a possibility that there might be small-scaled organized terrorist attacks by several terrorists similar to what we saw in Israel. While I don’t think we’ll likely see activity from terrorist cells currently active in the United States, there is a chance that some terrorist affiliated individuals could be convinced to band up for an attack.
A good book to understand why active terrorist cells aren’t the most likely threat.
You’ve probably seen news about the tremendous number of illegal immigrants coming through our southern border. Not all those immigrants are coming from Latin America. You must understand that those folks generally pay a large fee to a “coyote” to be smuggled into our country. Lots of them arrive with huge debts (usually $5K-20K) that they have to pay off. I’m worried that some of these folks could be convinced to commit larger scale attacks on behalf of a terrorist organization in exchange for their debts being paid off or forgiven.
What should you be doing?
1) Commit to being more aware in public locations and carrying your firearm wherever you are legally able to do so.
For some awareness tips check out my recent podcast appearance and this article.
Consider which gun you choose to carry. While a .38 snub or a small auto pistol might be a fine choice for a skilled practitioner in a low-threat environment, I would submit that we are no longer in a “low threat environment.” I love my snubbies, but I’d much rather have my Glock 19 if I have to shoot a charging knife armed attacker or stop a terrorist threat.
2. Understand what terrorist knife attacks look like and how to best counter them.
Take a look at the articles below to better understand these kind of attacks and how to counter them successfully.
The Reality of the Knife Attack
Tactical Training Scenario- Playground Stabbing
Knife Attacks: Dealing with the Charging Attacker
3. Understand how to identify and respond to terrorist vehicle run-down attacks.
These articles will give you a solid understanding.
10 Tips for Surviving a Terrorist Vehicle Attack
Terrorist Vehicle Attack Information Compendium
4. Have a plan to defeat restraint and abduction attempts.
As I mentioned, there is a small chance that we will see an attack similar to the one that happened in Israel last week. In those attacks, HAMAS took over 100 prisoners. Learning how to defeat criminal/terrorist restraint might be worth a few minutes of your time.
Plan For The Worst- Preparing for Abduction and Restraint
Your Tactical Training Scenario- Tied Up During a Home Invasion
5. Decide in advance how you will act if you are targeted by such a terrorist attack or you happen to observe an attack on others.
Pre-planning your response will shorten reaction time and help to ensure that you make the best decisions possible. Here are some references to look at.
Active Killer Response Options for Armed Citizens
Weapon Handling in an Active Killer Event
Maybe You Should Reconsider Your Active Killer Response Strategy
I hope we don’t see any terrorist attacks on US soil, but I think it’s prudent to prepare for the worst. Do your homework now so that you are better prepared should the violence spread to our shores.
Some of the above links (from Amazon.com) are affiliate links. As an Amazon associate I earn a small percentage of the sale price from qualifying purchases.
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