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Posted: April 23rd, 2022
Discuss how intelligence has evolved in the United States
Intelligence
Discuss how intelligence has evolved in the United States. What challenges does the intelligence community face in fighting terrorism?
Discuss how intelligence has evolved in the United States. What challenges does the intelligence community face in fighting terrorism?
The US intelligence community (IC) has evolved over the last six decades in line with the changing security environment. The first phase of evolution was in 1947, with the CIA being formed to deal with the communist subversion of Greece, Turkey, and Italy, which was considered a threat to the US. The second phase which was termed “Analysis” aimed at the collection of intelligence data to look at the issue of the bomber and missile gap. The third phase aimed to correct the deficits of the second phase by increasingly focusing on the existing human resources in synergy with the soviet policies. The “Star Wars” missile program is one of the most remarkable efforts of this phase. The fourth phase was influenced by the increased use of technology and the rise of global Islamic terrorism (Bureau of Counterterrorism, 2020). The phase started in 1997 and was accelerated by the September 2001 terrorist attack necessitating the use of high-tech weapons and Special Forces military intelligence. The capabilities of the IC in this phase have been demonstrated by various events such as the raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound by the Seal Team 6 in 2011.
However, despite the progress made, the IC continues to face major challenges in dealing with the terrorism threat (Bureau of Counterterrorism, 2020). Digital technology and social media have revolutionized terrorism with individuals being radicalized and mobilized through these social platforms. Social media has made it easy for domestic and international terrorists to have virtual access to sympathizers from any part of the world. Therefore, it is very easy for them to mobilize resources and plan attacks. This presents some of the major challenges that the IC struggles with as they work towards increasing domestic and global security.
References
Bureau of Counterterrorism. (2020). Country Reports on Terrorism 2020. US Department of State.