Disruption: Inside the Largest Counterterrorism Investigation in History. Aki J. Peritz. Lincoln, NE: Potomac Books, 2021.

Countering terrorism often requires a bit of good fortune for law enforcement and intelligence officers, combined with bad luck on the part of the terrorists. In fact, it is widely-known in the world of counterterrorism professionals that terrorists defeat themselves far more often than some experts would like to admit. Furthermore, terrorist networks have inherent vulnerabilities that can be exploited as part of an effective counterterrorism strategy. Indeed, the efforts of a terrorist network can be undone by a lack of finances, trust, discipline, strategic direction and for many other reasons. Sometimes shoddy training (and incompetent trainees) are responsible for a lot of mistakes, misadventures, and failures in the world of terrorism. But while the media (along with Hollywood movies and television shows) have often provided a frightening depiction of terrorists as brilliant evil masterminds, the public is far less familiar with the ordinary, mundane foot soldier whose fallibility, ad-hoc decision-making and misguided beliefs have contributed to the failure of a terrorist plot.

The author is uniquely positioned to provide an insightful account of these events, having served as a CIA intelligence officer and counterterrorism analyst.

These are some of the key takeaways from Aki Peritz’ new book Disruption, an engaging account of how a major—and potentially devastating—terrorist attack was set in motion over the course of many months, but was eventually thwarted by a confluence of events, by the occasional mistakes of individual terrorists, and by the relentless efforts of intelligence and law enforcement agencies in several countries. The author is uniquely positioned to provide an insightful account of these events, having served as a CIA intelligence officer and counterterrorism analyst. He is currently an adjunct professor at American University, teaching courses on intelligence analysis and foreign policies.

Written in the style of an engaging spy thriller, the story takes the reader through a series of events involving real individuals with capabilities and intentions to harm others. The plot in a nutshell: a handful of individuals inspired–and in some cases trained–by al-Qaeda attempted to smuggle liquid explosives on board U.S.-bound transatlantic flights. If successful, they would have destroyed multiple aircraft, murdered thousands of people, and increased public fear worldwide about aviation travel. The economic toll could have been comparable to that of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. In the end, the most impactful thing these plotters did was provoke a change in aviation security wherein passengers can no longer bring over three ounces of liquids through the airport security checkpoints. This is a story, certainly a compelling one, about the failure of a terrorist plot.

Essentially, this is a story about ordinary people who were inspired by al-Qaeda leaders and the global jihadist ideology to participate in what could have been a major terrorist attack.

There is also some limited character development that draws the reader into this story. Terrorism is after all a form of human—albeit inhumane—behavior, and the narrative provides brief glimpses of the frequently mundane daily aspects of human life that can disrupt the flow of a developing terrorism plot. For example: one of the terrorist operatives is concerned about the well-being of his wife and young children. Glimpses into the friendships between a handful of the conspirators, one of whom brings Tupperware dishes full of curry and rice are to another who is longing for food from home. One of the would-be terrorists forgets to bring something important to a meeting, while another procrastinates on writing the script for his martyrdom video until the very last second.

Essentially, this is a story about ordinary people who were inspired by al-Qaeda leaders and the global jihadist ideology to participate in what could have been a major terrorist attack. They believed that their actions could have a major global impact that would somehow benefit those they cared about. Unfortunately, the book does not provide all that much about their personal motivations—they were true believers, but what was it about their formative background experiences and personal influences that led them to believe this kind of violence would be beneficial? The jihadist ideology resonated with them, but why did it? And why did it not resonate with so many of their friends and family members? Addressing these and related questions would be of interest to scholars and counterterrorism professionals, but as the book is written for a much broader, public audience it makes sense to omit in-depth psychological analysis in order to keep the story moving along at a reasonable pace.

However, readers are provided some interesting details about operational tradecraft in the world of terrorism, with plotters checking to see if they’re being followed, destroying evidence (including papers with accounts and passwords), using burner email accounts, phones and phone cards, and using coded language when committing with the plot mastermind in Pakistan. In several instances, these individuals were operating independently, only meeting other operatives toward the last stages of the plot. The plotter responsible for acquiring materials for constructing the bombs visited multiple locations to purchase hydrogen peroxide, citric acid and other precursor chemicals instead of trying to get everything all at once at a single location.

Much of the book focuses on the terrorists themselves–their travels, communications, logistical challenges and so forth.

With these various insights into the life experiences of individuals committed to terrorism, Disruption compares favorably to the book Nine Lives, by former al-Qaida member turned British informant Aiman Dean, who Aki Peritz mentions in a couple chapters of this book, as well as other first-person terrorist accounts like Omar Nasir’s Inside the Jihad.[1] One of the central things needed in any effective counterterrorism effort is a solid understanding of the terrorist network’s capabilities and intentions. “Know thy enemy,” the sage advice of Sun Tzu, also applies to violent non-state actors. To that end, the more information that can be gathered about the inner workings and deliberations of a terrorist network’s members, the better, and this is a strong asset of Disruption.

Much of the book focuses on the terrorists themselves—their travels, communications, logistical challenges and so forth. The author also reveals important details about what the British, American and Pakistani authorities did to effectively confront this threat. For example, the author emphasizes that British surveillance techniques were excellent, never tipping off even the most suspicious or paranoid of the suspects. The importance of communication between different government agencies, both within and between countries, is made very clear. The author also recounts the tensions that arose between the U.S. and the U.K. over their different approaches to counterterrorism.

As the scope and breadth of information emerged about the developing al-Qaeda plot, leaders in the U.S.—clearly fixated on preventing another 9/11-style attack—placed increasing pressure on their British counterparts to arrest all suspects immediately, while the British were dedicating a massive amount of resources toward building a court case that would ensure convictions and prison sentences. This difference between “arrest them now” and “don’t blow our case” is further complicated by the role of a third party, the Pakistani authorities who sometimes sought to placate their impatient U.S. counterparts, while simultaneously providing support for al-Qaida-connected Kashmiri (and other) militant groups attacking Indian targets. A reflection of this is seen in the strange mystery surrounding the escape from custody in Pakistan, and subsequent disappearance of  Rashid Rauf, the plot’s mastermind and key handler. As Peritz wryly notes, “Who knows what Rauf might’ve told London and Washington about ongoing Pakistani complicity with various terrorist organizations.”[2]

The book also provides a brief account of the July 7, 2005 terrorist bombings in London, and the failed bombing attempts two weeks later. Peritz describes how, in both cases, the perpetrators were linked to Rauf and other al-Qaeda members in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Differences in the quality of training, intelligence and self-discipline among a terrorist plot’s members appear to be most responsible for the difference between a successful attack and a failed one.

In sum, Disruption provides a well-informed and well-written account of a disturbing and potentially disruptive terrorist plot…

All publications have imperfections, so while I liked the book overall, some deficiencies must be acknowledged here as well. First, it is sometimes difficult to follow all the different names and places from chapter to chapter. This is partly due to the complexity of the evolving terrorist plot, rather than a choice made by the author. The author does provide a short list of names and aliases toward the end of the book. Similarly, there are several parts of the story that provide considerable details, while in others the level of detail is noticeably sparse. This inconsistency and uneven-ness is likely a result of two things beyond the author’s control. First, clandestine networks do not keep transparent records, nor are their members inclined to reveal hidden details willingly. Second, there are surely a number of details that were flagged by the CIA Publication Review Board as unpublishable for a variety of reasons, including the need to protect sources and methods. In support of the many details that are included, Peritz provides a wealth of footnote references pointing the reader to original sources of information, which include court records, think tank and media reports, personal interviews with government agency leaders and operators in multiple countries, and scholarly books and journal articles.

In sum, Disruption provides a well-informed and well-written account of a disturbing and potentially disruptive terrorist plot, the cast of characters involved in this plot, the ways in which several government agencies worked together to disrupt it, and the aftermath. As such, it serves as a useful case study for university courses on terrorism and counterterrorism, and in a broader sense offers worthwhile lessons for security policymakers, their staff and the general public. An optimist like myself will hope the lessons learned from this book can help prevent a catastrophe of similar proportions.

James Forest is a Professor in the School of Criminology and Justice Studies at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. He is also a Visiting Professor at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, and co-editor of the internationally distributed journal Perspectives on Terrorism. He has taught courses and seminars on terrorism, counterterrorism, and security studies for a broad range of civilian, law enforcement, and military audiences for two decades.

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Notes:

[1] Aimen Dean (with Paul Cruickshank and Tim Lister), Nine Lives: My Time As MI6's Top Spy Inside al-Qaeda (London: OneWorld, 2019); and Omar Nasiri, Inside the Jihad: My Life with Al-Qaeda (New York: Basic Books, 2006).

[2] Aki Peritz, Disruption, p. 261.