CANBERRA, Australia, Sept. 28 (UPI) -- An Australian think tank has proposed that a team of intelligence analysts be set up to think like terrorists, in an effort to predict and prevent their moves.
The Australian Strategic Policy Institute said in a report released Wednesday that those in charge of anti-terror operations and policy needed a long-term strategy and a better understanding of the enemy to deal with the threat posed by jihadist terrorism in the region.
The institute's program director, Aldo Borgu, suggested an approach similar to that used by the U.S. military with its Defense Adaptive Red Team, which draws on a wide range of expertise to simulate adversaries including states and terror groups, The Australian reported.
Borgu said terrorism analyst Bruce Hoffman from the Rand Corp. had adopted a novel approach, suggesting attention should be directed at what terrorists hadn't done yet, and why.
Borgu said almost anyone could imagine cruel and dreadful terrorist acts, but real terrorists often have stuck to a limited and repetitive tactical repertoire, operating below what was believed to be their capacity.
"We also need to develop a far better understanding of terrorists, especially of what motivates them and how they measure success," he said.
