In early June, Italian police staged a majorcoup against the perpetrators of the March 11 bombings in Madrid withthe arrest of Rabei Osman El Sayed Ahmed, also known as The Egyptian.

On July 22, Yildirim Bayazer Tumer, a Turkish national who was the captain of the dry cargo vessel MV Cenk Kaptanoglu, allegedly threatened to detonate an explosive device when he docked in Philadelphia (as reported in the article “High Seas Security” in the September issue of HSToday). The Turkish vessel was ordered to a secure anchorage and allowed to unload its cargo on July 24.

When 22 agencies combined to form theDepartment of Homeland Security (DHS) in March 2003, only seven ofthose agencies came with procurement support. The department’s effortto establish new organizational processes and procurement procedurescreated new strains that further stressed the already difficult task ofconsolidating such a huge department.

Two things stand out in both on- and off-the-record interviews of Democratic supporters and non-partisan observers regarding the likely approach that an administration under Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) would take toward homeland security and the war on terror.

It’s easy to see why Rep. Jim Turner(D-Texas), the ranking minority member of the House Select Committee on Homeland Security, is considered by many of his colleagues to be a strong candidate to replace Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge under a Kerry administration. Turner has a sharp, articulate, innovative and pragmatic grasp of homeland-security issues, problems and fixes.

The four years that have defined President George W. Bush’s first term have permanently changed the way we live. The very concept of protecting our nation—and our families—will never be the same. And Bush has characteristically pursued these changes his way: In decisive actions, without second-guessing. Applaud him or criticize him, Bush appears highly comfortable with his words and deeds.

Thinking about the unthinkable is never fun—but it is evolving.

In West Virginia, the efforts of county officials are paying off in unexpected ways—and providing an example for the rest of small town America.

In a city like Los Angeles, where buildings are blown up and cars are routinely destroyed in the name of entertainment, it can be hard to determine when a disaster is real or just plain surreal. But on Aug. 5, when dozens of bodies littered the cargo area at the Port of Los Angeles and hundreds of police and fire officials swarmed the decks with guns drawn and fire hoses unraveled, residents were given a reality check on post-Sept. 11 life in this city.

The first big event of the summer, the Democratic National Convention in Boston, enjoyed flawless execution. Police Commissioner Kathleen O’Toole sat down with HSToday to examine what went right.

In the days and months leading up to the Democratic National Convention from July 26-29, Bostonians were concerned. Traffic delays threatened to cripple the city, raucous delegates would surely disrupt the nightlife and the possibility of a terrorist attack seemed to loom over crowded downtown. Few were as apprehensive as Beantown’s Police Commissioner Kathleen O’Toole.

Amid allegations that they ignored warnings and put tourism ahead of terrorism, members of the Las Vegas office of the FBI, local law enforcement and state and city politicians responded by emphatically denying an Associated Press story that they said gave Las Vegas an unnecessary black eye.

Non-lethal directed-energy weapons just may be the next big development in counterterrorism and law enforcement.

The latest breed of non-lethal weapons being primed to enter the law-enforcement, security and military markets don’t just rely on rubber bullets or bulky nets; these high-tech weapons operate instead at light speed, shooting out laser beams, jolts of electricity and even high-powered microwaves.