Chairman Mccaul Releases September Terror Threat Snapshot

Statement

The September Terror Threat Snapshot was released today by Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX). The "snapshot" is a monthly Committee assessment of the growing threat America, the West, and the world face from ISIS and other Islamist terrorists.

Chairman McCaul: "We are confronting a lethal enemy in Islamist terrorists targeting the U.S. and our allies. Eliminating senior terrorist leaders is an important part of the battle, but it alone will not achieve victory in the war against radical Islam. ISIS and al Qaeda have entrenched themselves in key terrain, capitalizing on power vacuums and exploiting the dangerous actions of the Iranian regime. President Obama has failed to confront these threats to America and its broader interests. He has, perversely, emboldened our enemies -- freeing terrorists and paying ransom to terror sponsors in Tehran -- and undermined the confidence of our allies and partners. Addressing this national security crisis is an urgent task facing our nation today."

Key takeaways in this month's Terror Threat Snapshot:

Islamist terrorists will continue to pose a significant threat to the United States and its allies -- ISIS and its supporters, undeterred by battlefield setbacks, have now been linked to 105 plots targeting Western interests globally.

ISIS, al Qaeda, and other Islamist extremists have built a global network of sanctuaries they can leverage for directing and inspiring terrorist attacks.

Radical Islamists are exploiting everything from social media applications, including encrypted technologies, to refugee flows to improve their ability to recruit adherents and conduct terror operations.

Detainees freed from Guantanamo Bay have returned to the battlefield at an alarming rate, and now the recruiting pool for these terrorists has expanded under the Obama Administration's surge of transfers.
An emboldened Iranian regime has been building its military capabilities, vying for hegemony across the Middle East, and threatening the United States and its allies.

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