Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
have direct eye contact with it. If you are, for example, working at the U.S.
embassy and park in a secure lot guarded by vetted security personnel, you
probably can skip the intensive inspection. If, however, you are parking
anywhere where potential assailants can approach the vehicle unhindered,
you need to give it at least a cursory examination. Before you discount the
importance of this practice, remember why terrorists often select car bomb
attacks. Because the car is usually used by the same person, generally on
a regular schedule, the car is a perfect choice for a successful method of
attack. People who want to hurt you know that at some point they will be
able to find you in the driver's seat at a specific time and in a specific loca-
tion. This can be a deadly combination. Just because you may not be a par-
ticularly high-profile target, don't assume that you will not be attractive
to a terror group operating in the local country. The purpose of terror is
to terrorize. A stated goal of many terrorist organizations is the murder
of Americans anywhere in the world.
CAR BOMBS
Car bomb attacks occur all over the world. Even the United States has its
share of car bombings every year. While David was an agent on Long
Island, a Suffolk County Narcotics detective named Dennis Wustenheuff
was killed by a car bomb in the driveway of his home. The U.S. Depart-
ment of State, Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism, docu-
mented a pattern of car bomb attacks in South Africa for the year 2000.
During that year there were nine car bomb attacks in the city of Cape
Town. These bombings targeted not only South African government offi-
cials but also restaurants and nightclubs with Western affiliations. Gov-
ernment officials noted that the trend was characterized by larger bombs
and more sophisticated remote detonation devices. South African author-
ities blamed the attacks on the People Against Gangsterism and Drugs
(PAGAD), a militant Muslim organization.
Ilan has trained Israeli diplomatic personnel over a number of years
in the proper techniques used to check a vehicle. Often when he starts to
discuss the issue, students commonly say, “This is a waste of time. I am
not a mechanic, and if someone put a bomb in my car's engine I will never
find it.” Ilan privately agreed with that argument and decided to research
actual car bombings to evaluate the effectiveness of the program he was
