Suicide Bomber Kills Dozens at Moscow's Domodedovo Airport

A suicide bomber has murdered dozens at Moscow's busiest airport, Domodedovo. The current death toll is 35, and it may well climb higher as at least 130 were wounded. While details remain sketchy this early on, authorities have said that the explosion occurred next to the international departure zone. No doubt, Chechen radicals will get the blame, or may even take credit. What this attack proves is that airport security is a mirage, and more gadgets won't really improve it.

Thus far, security efforts around the world have focused on keeping firearms and bombs off airplanes. This began a generation ago when airline hijackings became popular ways for Cuban sympathizers and Palestinian nationalists to make their point. Until then, there were no metal detectors at airports at all. However as the September 11 attacks proved, that was not enough.

The security at airports now has passengers taking of their shoes, traveling with less than 3 ounces of shampoo, and walking through metal detectors and full body scanners. While it is vastly harder to get a weapon onto a plane than it was 50 years ago, even 10 years ago, terrorists do not need to get onto a plane to cause death and destruction.

The bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, back in 1988 proved that an unattended bomb in the luggage compartment could achieve the ends of terrorists. To this day, it is a miracle that FedEx, DHL and other couriers have not lost aircraft to this kind of attack. However, authorities are trying to improve cargo security before that happens.

What one can learn from the Domodedovo bombing is that no security cordon is wide enough and secure enough to keep a large collection of humanity safe. There are natural bottlenecks that occur at the access points, and that is where terrorists can strike most easily and effective -- before anyone is searched and where a great many have assembled.

For reasons that are unclear, the bad guys have so far focused on airports only. The Beslan school incident is almost unique -- a terrorist attack on a school. Thus far, shopping malls, sports stadia and places of worship have been safe locations in the developed world. One can readily see how that could change very easily.

The uncomfortable truth is that physical security efforts are only part of the picture, and probably the smaller part of it. Intelligence actions are far more effective at preventing attack, and that means talented and trained people as well as ample funding. Gadgets are nifty, but people are the most effective ways to fight terror. That doesn't just mean professionals, either. Each and every person is a target, and therefore, each and every person needs to pay attention to his or her surroundings. "If you see something, say something" is excellent advice. However, to see something, one must have one's eyes open.

© Copyright 2011 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Ubuntu Linux.

Kensington Review Home