From In Homeland Security A would-be impostor was prevented from entering the United States last week when a new facial recognition system spotted something that human inspectors would almost certainly have missed. Facial recognition is a biometric process that utilizes algorithms to identify the physical characteristics of an individual’s face and compares the results to […]
Terrorism
Coherent Afghanistan Strategy is Elusive
From In Homeland Security Three presidents have had to deal with Afghanistan and often made ambitious claims that the U.S. was making progress toward victory. However, none of the three chief executives defined that victory, articulated a clear path for ending the conflict or even described what peace would look like. Afghan Governance The Trump […]
‘Terror Threat Snapshot’ Details U.S. Terrorism Plots
From In Homeland Security House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) has released the “Terror Threat Snapshot” for August, and—as usual—it includes some haunting revelations. The monthly “Terror Threat Snapshot” is a comprehensive and informative look at all of the recently reported plots against the United States and its Western allies by the Islamic […]
Competing for Regional Power and Peace in Afghanistan
As the Unites States tries to break the long stalemate of war in Afghanistan, regional powers continue jockeying for position, attempting to carve out their own spheres of influence in the country. A combination of fears over the Islamic State’s Afghanistan branch—Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP)—and prospects of mineral wealth have pulled more of Afghanistan’s […]
Is Afghan Opium War a Path to Taliban Peace Talks?
Doubling down on a longtime policy of countering the opium trade in Afghanistan, U.S. and Afghan forces began conducting airstrikes against opium production facilities and insurgent funding sources in November. After years of back-to-back record-breaking poppy yields, the move represented a policy shift targeting terror groups and their revenue streams. Opium has long been the […]