How do United States special military teams play a role in combatting Research Paper

How do United States special military teams play a role in combatting terrorism, irregular warfare strategy, domestic intelligence gathering, and foreign law assistance - Research Paper Example This commitment of the American government becomes evident from the revamping of the US Special Forces activities in the aftermath of 9/11 terrorist attack by Al-Qaeda. In the wake of this disastrous event, controversies have mounted on the effectiveness of domestic intelligence and the coordination of the activities of existing joint forces. Most of the criticism in this regard has been directed at the intelligence community for its purported failure to warn other agencies of an imminent threat. On the other hand, problems also prevail in other areas and terrorist organizations have been exploiting this vulnerability to wreak havoc on the nation. Thus, an urgent and imperative need has emerged for a dedicated Homeland Security Intelligence (HSI) in the nation to augment the existing intelligence collection system and solidify the functions of security forces. In addition, a necessity has also been felt for further sharpening the cutting edge of operational efficiency of the US Speci al Forces so as to enable them to combat terrorism more effectively. Though there no single definition universally for the term ‘terrorism’ the most commonly accepted definition perceives this phenomenon as the â€Å"use of violence to create fear† to attain political, religious or ideological objectives (Matusitz, 2012, p.4). Thus, terrorist activities, most of the times, are directed at noncombatant civilian population with a view to inflict maximum damage to human life and property so as to create terror and thus propagate their cause amongst the citizens. Terrorist organizations usually function as clandestine entities with a hierarchical system including a leader and other chieftains, â€Å"planners, trainers and actual bombers/killers† (p.4). Most of them are highly educated, motivated, physically competent, and trained in various types of combat tactics as well as electronic and information and communication