Authorities

The authorities of the Federal Preparedness Agency (FPA) for

issuing this document and for its emergency preparedness responsibilities are found in Executive Orders 10421, 11051, and 11490.

Executive Order 10421 requires the FPA Director to supervise programs for the physical security of facilities important to defense mobilization, defense production, or the essential civilian economy. These security programs are directed at protection against sabotage, espionage, and other hostile and destructive acts.

Executive Orders 11051 and 11490 require the FPA Director, under the direction of the President, to be responsible for the preparation of nonmilitary preparedness programs of the Federal Government under all conditions of national emergency. This includes overall Federal civil emergency preparedness policy determination and program coordination. Authorities of Federal Departments and agencies for emergency

preparedness measures are found in Executive Order 11490 and other Executive orders, statutes and administrative authorities pertaining to

each agency.

II. THREAT

Acts of terrorism have occurred in the United States and are

expected to continue. Many experts predict an eventual increase in such activity and an escalation in its intensity. Part of the basis for this prediction is the success of international terrorists. Making full use of modern communications media and taking advantage of the divisions and disagreements among nations, these terrorists have been unable to accomplish their goals with a substantial degree of impunity. Terrorism has been and continues to be a profitable activity. It accomplishes the objectives of extremist groups at minimal costs.

Definition

Although there is no universally accepted definition of terrorism, there are several areas of relative agreement. Terrorism involves the threat or use of violence for persuasion, coercion or publicizing the existence, grievances or causes of a particular group. Although the two often overlap, terrorism is separated from purely criminal activities by its devotion to political ends. Terrorism is usually a means to an end, i. e., a weapon of subversion or of carrying out an extreme political ideology.

In this guidance, terrorism is defined to mean the threat or use

of violence against selected targets for the prime purpose of (1) creating

overwhelming fear, (2) extracting concessions, (3) weakening the

power of institutions, (4) gaining publicity, (5) expressing a grievance,

or (6) threatening U. S. security.

Symbolic Terrorism

In the past, terrorist incidents in the U. S. have been symbolic

in nature and have been directed at individuals and property. These

incidents have been isolated events with only local impact. They have included bombings, hijackings, kidnappings, arson, murder and

extortion. Such symbolic terrorism is expected to continue and may increase.

State and local governments have taken measures to prevent and cope with the effects of symbolic terrorist acts. They have developed organizational and functional arrangements that have permitted adequate response to the localized consequences. Many of these measures are well defined in existing procedures and have been tested under actual conditions. Generally, State and local capabilities, supported by Federal law enforcement agencies, are expected to be adequate to cope with the future consequences of symbolic terrorism. Disruptive Terrorism

Of more concern to the overall security and living standard of the U. S. is the potential for a change in the character of domestic terrorism. Expanded objectives and activities of extremist groups

could become more regional or national in scope.

Activities could

involve a different class of targets with more widespread impact.

Terrorism could change from isolated events to coordinated attacks

causing major property damage, extensive loss of life, severe disruptions of resources, disruptions to the continuity of government or situations of unique political significance. This possible new dimension of the threat could cause more serious and more nationally significant consequences than previous incidents.

To distinguish this new dimension from symbolic terrorism, the term disruptive terrorism is defined to mean acts that cause economic, social, political or national security effects of sufficient magnitude to produce regional or national consequences requiring a coordinated Federal response. Disruptive terrorism is the principal focus of this document and the use of the word terrorism in the remainder of the guidance is understood to mean disruptive terrorism.

Background

To prepare for a Federal response to the consequences of disruptive terrorism, it is necessary to understand the motivations

of terrorist groups, their destructive capabilities, the vulnerabilities of likely targets and the consequences of exploiting these vulnerabilities.

Currently, intelligence on the motivations and capabilities of

extremist groups is less than adequate. The nature of terrorism

itself contributes significantly to this situation.

Covert acts are

undertaken by small groups of dedicated secretive individuals with

loose leadership alliances between groups. These groups are difficult

to penetrate and thus accurate information is difficult to obtain.

Federal and State protective legislation regarding invasion of privacy compound this problem. As a result, gaps in intelligence related to terrorist groups are likely to continue.

Consequently, trends in U. S. terrorist activity cannot be

predicted with acceptable certainty. The unsatisfactory nature of available data and the scattered and fragmentary sources make it difficult to estimate the severity, frequency, and possible change

in character of the domestic terrorism threat. The threat will

continue to be a debatable question until it has been clearly proven or disproven by experience. The most dreadful possibilities have not been realized, but they remain and must be faced realistically.

Although trends cannot be predicted, conditions that may cause changes in terrorist activities can be identified.