The hackings of 82 synagogue websites during Israel’s Operation Pillar of Defense by the “Moroccan Ghosts” brought appropriate responses from law enforcement agencies. The intrusions should remind us that cybersecurity is in our own hands. The following recommendations from the ADL make sense.
Read More Considerations for digital & online security at Jewish institutions
Unfortunately, some of it sounded familiar. At the NYPD High Holiday Briefing on September 5th, NYPD Police Commissioner Ray Kelly reported that, once again, the Jewish High Holidays brought with them heightened threats against Jewish institutions. Fortunately, the NYPD will respond with additional coverage.
Commissioner Kelly invited Michael S. Miller, Executive VP & CEO of the JCRC-NY to speak at the briefing. Michael Miller spoke of the role that the leaders of Jewish institutions have played as partners to the police and how they can do more. He also recognized the importance of intelligence operations, which interrupted the Riverdale and Manhattan bomb plots against synagogues.
Read Michael Miller’s remarks after the jump.
As the High Holidays approach, organizations should be refining their security arrangements, along with their other planning obligations. Those responsible for synagogue security are not alone. Some important resources follow:
Click here for an excellent analysis from the New York Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of the shootings in Colorado. The greatest horror is the realization that such incidents are all-too-easy to commit. How should organizations plan to protect their students, staff, congregants and others?
Recommendations (scroll down for resources)
There are no perfect solutions, but planning and training can mitigate active shooter incidents. The first step is maintaining good access control. Keeping someone who wants to do harm outside is the best way of protecting those inside.
Summer camps
Summer camps bring special challenges, especially when the campers are young. Planning and training may be even more critical, but the general guidance remains:
Resources
SCHUMER, GILLIBRAND SECURE OVER $3.4 MILLION TO IMPROVE EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS FOR 42 AT RISK JEWISH SCHOOLS AND CONGREGATIONS
Schumer and Gillibrand Secured over 30% Of Total Funding For Organizations Based in New York Out of the Total $10 Million Granted to Awardees Across the Country
The Awardees Include 42 Jewish Educational Institutions and Congregations; The Money Will Help These At-Risk Nonprofits For Security Preparedness
Schumer, Gillibrand: These Schools and Congregations are Vital Parts of our Community – the Grant Money Will Go To a Good Cause
U.S. Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand today announced that 42 New York Jewish organizations, including schools and congregations, have received a combined total of $3,419,184 for the 2012 fiscal year as Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI) Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) Awardees. The program, run by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, awards federal funds to nonprofit organizations that are at a high risk of a national terrorist attack to encourage preparedness efforts.
Mayor Bloomberg explained in his opening remarks:
“Yesterday, detectives from the NYPD arrested two men who said they wanted to destroy a major synagogue in Manhattan, and then purchased several weapons and a hand grenade from an undercover officer.
“Fortunately, long before their aspirations could take hold, New York City police officers were watching them and were in a position to take them into custody, before they could maim and murder innocent New Yorkers.
Read Mayor Bloomberg’s full remarks here.
Ahmed Ferhani, 26, and Mohamed Mamdouh, 20, are charged with multiple felony counts and hate crimes carrying a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole. In the course of the investigation Mr. Ferhani expressed clear anti-Semitism and asked an undercover officer whether he would join him in a plan to bomb a synagogue.
Manhattan DA, Cyrus Vance, Jr., noted:
“The defendants plotted and took concrete steps to bomb synagogues and kill Jewish New Y orkers as an act of terrorism”
Read DA Vance’s statement here. Read the full criminal complaint providing more details here.
NYPD Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly described the police activities leading to the arrests and commended NYPD Deputy Commissioner for Intelligence David Cohen and his team for their outstanding work. He also commented that:
“While there are no specific plots targeting New York City in the wake of Bin Laden’s death, this latest case reminds us that we must remain vigilant every day.
Read Commissioner Kelly’s account of the investigation here.
When the news of the arrests broke this morning the JCRC called for heightened vigilance and tighter access policies in a security alert to synagogues, yeshivot and other Jewish institutions. Read the recommendations here.
Organizations wishing to apply for Nonprofit Security Grants will find more information at www.jcrcny.org/securitygrants and can reserve for the JCRC May 23rd Grants Webinar here. Find guidance and practical suggestions on how to increase the security of your Jewish institution at: www.jcrcny.org/securityresources.
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Get more info at: /securitygrants
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| Law enforcement and Homeland Security officials are counseling that Americans should heighten their awareness regarding possible terrorist activity. All organizations should do so. For more information on basic security click here.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) offers a competitive grant to eligible nonprofit organizations planning to install hardware and conduct training to support target hardening and counter-surveillance. The program this year was delayed (along with many other allocations) by the budget battle and details about the grant program have not yet been released. For the latest suggestions on how to put together a successful application reserve here for the online JCRC webinar (see below) on May 12th at 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM. The following includes the current available information:
Based on input from past participants, we are offering this session exclusively over the internet. Information applicable to all eligible applicants will be presented at the beginning of the webinar, followed by NY specific guidance.
For further information contact Dov Horwitz at horwitzd@jcrcny.org. Note that all of this information is tentative. The JCRC webpage (www.jcrcny.org/securitygrants) will have ongoing guidance. |
NYPD SHIELD Terrorism Assessment
Open Source Assessment
January 6, 2011 Information cutoff: 4:00 PM
NYPD Counterterrorism Bureau Terrorism Threat Analysis Group
Key points. Two packages ignited shortly after being opened in two separate government buildings in Maryland. Investigators are examining two additional suspicious packages in a courthouse and a state office building in Baltimore.
The first device ignited in the mailroom of the Jeffrey Building, located in the state capital of Annapolis. A second device ignited at the state’s Department of Transportation headquarters, located in Hanover, Maryland. Two people suffered minor burn-related injuries. No claim of responsibility has been made.
Details of Incident. On Thursday, January 6, 2011, two incendiary devices concealed in packages ignited in two government office buildings in Maryland. At approximately 12:30 pm, a package addressed to Governor O’Malley ignited when it was opened in the mailroom of the Jeffrey Building located at 16 Francis Street in Annapolis. The mailroom attendant who opened the package suffered minor burns on his hands. The Jeffrey Building houses several different offices of the Maryland state government, including Homeland Security, Veterans Affairs, and the Secretary of State.
At approximately 12:45 pm, a second package of similar size and color ignited when it was opened in the mailroom of the Maryland Department of Transportation, located in Hanover, MD. The state employee who opened the package suffered minor burns, and several others were transported to medical facilities as a precautionary measure.
Both ignitions included a brief flash of fire, smoke, and an odor. Officials evacuated both buildings following the incidents. No claim of responsibility has been made regarding these incendiary devices.
Conclusions. Several factors suggest that the two devices that ignited may be linked: reports indicate that the packages were of a similar shape and color; both packages targeted government officials and buildings; and the devices ignited within approximately 15 minutes of each other. Moreover, the two devices that ignited appear to have been either poorly constructed or not intended to cause severe injury. The deliberate targeting of Maryland’s governor and state office buildings suggests that these attacks may have been motivated by anti-government sentiment.
Implications for New York City.
JCRC comments: Later reports indicate that the standard yellow padded envelopes had both excess postage and a fictional return address. Both are standard indicators of suspicious mail. See JCRC’s guidance on screening suspicious packages and mail here.
Sources
1. WP Editors. “Incendiary Devices at Md. Buildings.” Washington Post. January 6, 2011.
2. M. Dresser, T. Bishop, J. Bykowicz “Explosive Devices Cause Injuries At Two Maryland State Buildings; One Addressed To O’Malley.” Baltimore Sun. January 6. 2011
3. This Just In. Explosions at Maryland State Offices Injure 1. CNN. January 6, 2011.
The UK Christmas bombing campaign by nine alleged terrorists primarily targeted iconic sites such as the London Stock Exchange, Big Ben, the Millennium Wheel and the American Embassy in London. The religious sites on their list included Westminster Abbey and two British synagogues and rabbis (The CST is the lead British organization dealing with Jewish security, see their information here).
Prosecutors reported that the group had conducted pre-operational surveillance of some of their potential targets and had tested explosives.
This plot echoes many of the “homegrown terror” plots here in the U.S. and is a reminder that: