July 23, 2015

ISIS Ice Delivery Draws Crowd to Truck Bomb

An Islamic State suicide operative lured

hundreds of shoppers toward a truck carrying over a ton of explosives with the promise of discounted ice in an open -air
market in Diyala Province on the eve of Eid al Fitr (a Muslim holiday marking the end of Ramadan). At least 130 people
were killed in the mostly Shiite town of Khan Bani Saad, 20 miles northeast of Baghdad, as families prepared for
festivities. Although the truck was packed with explosives, actual ice obscured the danger and seemingly legitimized the
promised bargain, causing many to rush in. After the blast, bodies littered the street around the bomb crater, amid
secondary fires and partially collapsed buildings. The bomb blast was the largest yet carried out by Islamic State in Iraq.
Assessment: Suicide attackers often seek to penetrate to the center of a large group (or to a specific target) and at
times will position themselves in the path of a crowd fleeing some real or perceived danger, but in this case, the plot was
devised to draw the crowd in proximity to the bomb. Similarly, emergency responders may be similarly drawn into a
bomb location through an initial incident, in the form of a secondary attack, or even a report of an incident.

Crater marks place in market where truck

bomb detonated

Islamic State ups Ante with Strikes in Turkey A 20-year-old Turkish student, who is an ethnic Kurd with links to Islamic State militants,
carried out a suicide-bomb attack on his peers at a cultural center in a town near the Syrian border on Monday, killing 32. Though there was no claim of
responsibility, Turkish authorities blamed Islamic State for the attack, which also wounded 100. The victims were about to embark on a trip to the SyrianKurdish town of Kobani to build a childrens day care center and playground. Tensions further escalated when one Turkish sold ier was killed and four were
wounded by IS militants firing across the border, prompting Turkish military to return fire, including tank rounds into Syria from border positions.
Assessment: On Wednesday, Turkey agreed to allow U.S. military airstrikes from both manned and unmanned planes to be launched from a U.S. air base
near the Syrian border, after months of negotiations. Although this development can be viewed as bad news for ISIS in Syria, terror and insurgent groups draw
adversaries into battle as a recruitment tool. Politics in the region are complicated between the Turkish and Syrian governments, as well as amongst terror
groups/insurgencies, such as ISIS, Jabhat al Nusra (al Qaeda affiliate), and the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), a terrorist-listed group fighting for autonomy
in southeastern Turkey.

Calif. Lawmakers Declare War on Drones After Fire Imperils Drivers California legislators

Vehicles burn after wildfire jumps highway

proposed a new law that would allow firefighters to destroy drones that impede operations at a fire or emergency. The
proposal comes after yet another drone flying in restricted airspace forced firefighters to abandon aerial operations at a
wildfire, significantly delaying airborne water delivery and allowing the fire to burn across a major highway in Southern
California, leaving a number of destroyed cars and fleeing civilians in its wake. This marks at least the third time in the l ast
month drones delayed firefighting operations at a wildland fire.
Assessment: While drone technology certainly holds great potential for the fire service, the increasing popularity and
unregulated use of these aircraft continue to create significant challenges for firefighters, particularly in wildland areas. The
presence of a drone at a fire operation makes it impossible to safely use firefighting aircraft, which are sometimes used for
water drops to contain large wildfires. The proposed legislation would help avoid catastrophe by empowering firefighters to
take the necessary steps to get the job done, which could include disabling or destroying a privately-owned drone.

Anonymous Targets ISIS with Cyber-Attacks

Anonymous, the international hacking collective, conducted a barrage of coordinated

cyber-attacks on ISISs social media presence this week in an effort to weaken the groups vast online presence. Hackers gained access to several hundred
Twitter accounts that had been posting ISIS propaganda and flooded the accounts with images of Japanese Anime-style characters. The intention of the attack
was to not only disable the propaganda-spewing accounts, but to also manipulate web searches, so a search for ISIS would yield harmless anime images
instead of terrorist propaganda. Anonymous began conducting cyber-attacks on ISIS earlier this year after the Charlie Hebdo attack in Paris.
Assessment: The ability of groups, such as Anonymous, to conduct coordinated cyber-attacks across international boundaries on targets, as well as private
entities, raises serious questions (despite this weeks quarry) about the level of damage cyber warfare can inflict. The leaderless, unstructured form of
Anonymous and the dispersed location of the hackers themselves, make combating the group a great challenge. Compounding cyber vulnerabilities is the fact
that infrastructure, both physical and economic, is increasingly dependent on computerized systems, as was recently demonstrated by the massive security
breech at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management that compromised the personal information of over 20 million security clearance holders. Many cybersecurity experts agree that a serious cyber-attack on infrastructure is imminent and will lead to civilian deaths, which reinforces the need to remain vigilant. But
the news isnt all bad: there are also hacker groups that have actually cooperated with counterterrorism efforts. A group called GhostSec (an affiliate of
Anonymous) recently provided authorities with intelligence that contributed to several arrests in connection with terror plots in New York and Tunisia.

Local Swimmer Disrupts Pro Surfing Contest at J-Bay

A professional surfing contest at Jeffreys

Bay, South Africa was canceled after a shark collided with three-time world champion, Mick Fanning, while he was waiting for
his next wave. The shark is believed to have been an adolescent Great White about ten feet long. The species is not known
to intentionally attack people, though their exploratory bites can be fatal. Some experts think it was not technically an attack,
but that the shark was trying to free itself after getting tangled in the surf leash that tethers the surfer to the board. The shark
never made an attempt to bite Fanning, but it may have confused the surfer or his board for potential prey, and it could have
been circling for an actual strike.
Assessment: The U.S. leads the world in shark attacks (about 50 per year and rarely fatal) with the vast majority occurring
in Florida, but as one article points out, the odds of getting killed by a dog are 33 times greater. The statistics on the most
dangerous (wild) animals in North America are surprising; Deer (indirectly) kill more people, about 200 per year, than any
other animal due to car accidents. Also, in 2014, there were 42 fatal dog bites in the U.S., and one study estimates an
average of 53 fatal bee/wasp stings a year. Based on the data, responders should be most wary of dogs, driving in wooded,
mountainous areas, and bees. If disease transmission is considered, mosquitos are by far the worlds deadliest animal
through the spread of malaria.

Watchline@fdny.nyc.gov
(718) 281-8399
DISTRIBUTION: FOUO: This document is provided for your information and use. It is intended for firefighting, EMS, law enforcement, security, antiterrorism and intelligence personnel. Further dissemination should be limited to a minimum, consistent
with the purpose of supporting effective law enforcement and security of installation personnel, equipment and facilities. This document shall not be furnished to the media or any other agencies outside of those in support of homeland security and public
safety missions. It contains information that may be exempt from public release under the Freedom of Information Act (5 USC 552) and/or the Freedom of Information Law (New York Public Officers Law, Sections 87 & 89).