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1 Introduction
Pages 17-32

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From page 17...
... The use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime in Syria and violent extremist organizations as part of the Syrian civil war also brought renewed attention to the risk of chemical threats (the White House, 2012)
From page 18...
... This committee will ad dress the adequacy of strategies to prevent, counter, and respond to chemical terrorism, and identify technical, policy, and resource gaps with respect to: 1. identifying national and international chemical risks, and criti cal emerging threats; 2.
From page 19...
... 11B Chemical Weapons 229F) .a Chemical Terrorism The unlawful use of chemical hazards/agents/weapons or threat of use of chemical hazards/agents/weapons against persons, property, environmental, or economic targets, to induce fear or to intimidate, coerce, or affect a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political, social, ideological, or religious objectives (DHS, 2017)
From page 20...
... Staying within the scope of this study, the committee placed more focus on chemical terrorism threats that were likely to cause immediate or significant impacts. Chemical terrorism threats considered include agents identified as chemical weapons as well as existing and emerging threats, including toxic industrial chemicals and materials (TICs and TIMs)
From page 21...
... , this chemical terrorism-focused committee decided that agents and terrorist activities where the harm primarily derives from radioactivity and the hazards derived therefrom are the purview of the nuclear committee. Differentiation between the focus of the biological and chemical committees could be more difficult.1 While some areas, such as bacteria (e.g.
From page 22...
... 1.2.1 Erosion of Norms of Nonuse of Chemical Agents While chemical agents have a long history, the world saw a transformative change in the scope and scale of their use on the battlefield in WWI continuing through the ongoing Syrian civil war. Recent use by authoritarian states to target defectors and dissidents has also revitalized international and domestic attention and interest in chemical weapons.
From page 23...
... Since WWI, efforts domestically and internationally have led to the creation of international institutions and the establishment of international law and norms intended to reduce and eliminate the horrors of chemical weapons. These efforts grew out of visceral experiences from the war, during which chemical agents were extensively used, especially in the Western operational theater of trench warfare.
From page 24...
... . The committee tried to be attentive to how this major strategic shift is or could potentially impact the United States' ability to prevent, counter, and respond to chemical terrorism threats.
From page 25...
... . Nonetheless, terrorist organizations, notably al-Qa'ida, have shown a capacity to exploit expectations regarding terrorist behavior and operations (National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, 2004)
From page 26...
... and the threat of chemical terrorism, the foremost reason for this consideration is that it may be a proxy for thinking and preparing to respond to other agents. This concept is not new; the world witnessed the potential for opioid-like compounds to cause significant fatalities in 2002 when Russian special police used an aerosolized fentanyl analog, carfentanil, to end the siege of a Moscow theater by Chechen separatists.
From page 27...
... 8 is not chemical terrorism and that pharmaceutical pain medications, licit or illicitly obtained, are not chemical weapons.
From page 28...
... 2016. Chemical Control: Regulation of Incapacitating Chemical Agent Weapons, Riot Control Agents and Their Means of Delivery.
From page 29...
... 2003. "Beware the Siren's Song: Why ‘Non-Lethal' Incapacitating Chemical Agents Are Lethal." https://fas.org/programs/bio/chemweapons/ documents/sirens_song.pdf.
From page 30...
... Nurul Izzati. "Advice from the Scientific Advisory Board of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons on Riot Con trol Agents in Connection to the Chemical Weapons Convention.
From page 31...
... 2006. "Preventing the Entry of Weapons of Mass Effect into the United States." Homeland Security Advisory Council.


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