By Charlotte Smith
September 11, 2001, will never be forgotten. Nearly 3,000 people perished on this day 19 years ago. The terrorist attacks in New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington D.C. live in our memories.
Today many are reminded the war on terrorism is not over. The war has lasted for almost two decades. The United States Department of Defense recently released the casualty status as of August 31, 2020. View the casualty list here: https://www.defense.gov/casualty.pdf
The terrorist organization, Al-Qaeda, blamed for the 9/11 terror attacks almost two decades ago still remains. However, Islamic terrorist groups like Al-Qaeda are not the only terrorist organizations the United States and allies continue to guard against to protect citizens.
Recently on a plane headed out of Fayetteville, N.C., a military Sargeant wore a black bracelet with three names inscribed in honor of three men who died in Africa on January 5, 2020, due to terrorists.
This week the New York Times reported, the Shabab, “who are a branch of Al Qaeda’s terrorist network and seek to overthrow Somalia’s Western-backed government,” may be responsible for a bombing attack in southern Somalia on Monday. There were at least two people killed and others were injured. The media report also noted an American was among the injured victims.
Oversees terrorists are not the only focus. In June, a U.S. soldier, Ethan Melzer, was accused of planning an attack on his own unit with the assistance of an extremist group named Order of Nine Angles. According to the BBC report, “He was allegedly planning for information to be passed to jihadists, who would then carry out an attack.”
The National Department of Homeland Security was formed to help protect the U.S. against terrorists. The department offers the following tips to be involved in the fight against terrorism.
- Be Cyber Smart. The #BeCyberSmart Campaign is a national effort to raise public awareness of how to recognize cyber vulnerabilities and educate the nation on how to protect themselves against cyber assaults and take personal responsibilities for online security measures.
- Citizens Corps. The mission of Citizen Corps is empower individuals through education, training, and volunteer service to make communities safer, stronger, and better prepared to respond to the threats of terrorism, crime, public health issues, and disasters of all kinds.
- Ready.gov. Ready.gov is a national public service campaign designed to empower Americans to prepare for and respond to emergencies, including natural disasters and terrorist attacks.
- If You See Something, Say Something. Learn about indicators of terrorism and violent crime, and about the importance of reporting suspicious activity to the proper state and local law enforcement authorities.
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