UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY INTELLIGENCE NOTE 3 October 2018 (U//FOUO) Terrorism: FTOs Very Likely Will Continue Promoting Arson (U//FOUO) We assess that Foreign Terrorist Organizations {FTOs)-such as /SIS and al-Qa'ida-very likely will continue promoting arson as a tactic, underscoring the continuing need to identify fire causes and threats through investigations, training, inter-agency coordination, and fire service integration into fusion centers. (U) On 25 August 2018, a Telegram user on a pro-ISIS chat group wrote a post encouraging lone wolf attackers in Western countries to prioritize arson. The post advises setting fires in forests, on the upper floors of high-rise apartment buildings, shopping centers, and factories. It also stated arson attacks can be carried out unnoticed and will be assumed to be accidents, while causing financial damage and forcing evacuations.1 (U) On 8 July 2018, the French pro-al-Qa'ida AI-Kifah media distributed articles on wildfire arson from al­ Qa'ida in the Arabian Peninsula's (AQAP) Inspire magazine, releasing them as part of its "Knowledge and Action" series. The articles were titled, "The Ruling of Burning the Forests in the Land of the Kuffar Enemies" and "It is of Your Freedom to Ignite a Firebomb." It also published an infographic on the financial cost of wildfires in France.2 Inspire encouraged igniting wildland fires in 2012, calling for "forest jihad" against countries fighting with coalition forces in the Middle East.3 (U) Source: Image from IS S' I Rumiyah magazine (U) 2018 Case: Tnuza Jamal Hassan (U) Source: Ramsey County Sheriff' s Office (U//FOUO) Tnuza Jamal Hassan, charged in (U) California resident Amer Sinan Alhaggagi usPER_ arrested in November 2017-pledged to kill 10,000 people in several plots, including one involving "setting Berkeley Hills on fire."4 Other extremists and FTOs have used arson as a tactic-including Tnuza Hassan usPER, who set eight fires in January 2018 at a university in Minnesota, and HAMAS' recent use of "fire kites" to set fires in Israel. February 2018 with providing material support to al-Qa'ida, is the most recent case of an FTO inspired individual using arson as a tactic. 6 (U) Hassan set eight fires in seven buildings on the St. Catherine University campus in St. Paul, Minnesota·7 (U) Prosecutors said Hassan started the fires as a response to US military ac tiviti es in Iraq and Afghanistan.8 (U) In October 2017, ISIS highlighted the death and destruction caused by California wildfires and conditions hindering rescue and firefighting operations in their weekly magazine, AI-Naba. Rumiyah, another ISIS publication, encouraged its readers to consider igniting forest fires as a tactic-referring to the use of fire in Israel in 2016.5 THE STAC INTELLIGENCE NOTE PROVIDES NEW OR URGENT INFORMATION WIT!i ONLY LIMITED COMMENT OR ANALYSIS. STAC-20181002 WARNING: This dOCtlment is the exclUSM? property of the C.lifomia State Threat Assessment center (STAC) and is UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY (U//FOUO). It contains infonmation that mav be exempt from pu blic release under the catifomia Public Records Aa (Govt. Code Sec. 6250. etseq.).It isto be controlled, stored, handled, transmitted, distributed and disposed of in accordance with STAC potky rel ating to U//FOUO information and is not to be re leased to the public, the media, or other per sonnel who do not have a vatKI need-to-know without prior approval of an autho rized STAC official. UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY • (U) State and local agencies probably would benefit from certain mitigation strategies, such as increasing investigatory resources, enhancing inter-agency cooperation, integrating fire service into fusion centers, data collection, and augmenting existing training. Taken together, these efforts probably would assist federal, state, and local officials in identifying, responding, and ultimately preventing potential arson attacks. (U) ADMINISTRATIVE NOTE (U) For comments or questions related to the content or dissemination of this document, please contact the STAC at (U) TRACKED BY (U) HSEC 8.1; HSEC 8.2; HSEC 8.3; HSEC 8.5; HSEC 8.6; HSEC 8.7; HSEC 8.8; HSEC 8.8; STAC KIQ 2.1; STAC KIQ 2.2; STAC KIQ 2.4; STAC KIQ 2.5 (U) FEEDBACK (U) The STAC encourages your feedback using the survey found at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/3JX7CMT (U) ENDNOTES 1 (U//FOUO) Original Source; Telegram.me; accessed 25 August 2018; UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY; UNCLASSIFIED. 2 (U//FOUO) US Government Publication; National Counterterrorism Center; “Counter-terrorism Weekly”; 11 July 2018; accessed 25 August 2018; UNCLASSIFIED// FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY; UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY. 3 (U) Publication; International Institute for Counter-Terrorism; ”The Forest Jihad”; 28 October 2008; Fighel, Jonathan (Col Ret.); accessed 25 August 2018; UNCLASSIFIED; UNCLASSIFIED. 4 (U) Online News Article; Frances Dinkelspiel; Berkelyside; “FBI alleges Berkeley High graduate, ISIS sympathizer, planned to set fires, plant bombs https://www.berkeleyside.com/2017/07/27/fbi-alleges-berkeley-high-isis-sympathizer-planned-set-fire-hills-plant-bombs; accessed 13 September; UNCLASSIFIED; UNCLASSIFIED. 5 (U) Online News Article; Tom O’Connor; Newsweek; “ISIS Celebrates Death Toll as Supporters Suggest Wants to Make it Worse”; 10 October 2017; https://www.newsweek.com/isis-celebrate-california-wildfire-death-toll-689937; accessed 25 August 2018; UNCLASSIFIED; UNCLASSIFIED. 6 (U) Online Press Release; Department of Justice; “Minneapolis Woman Charged With Terrorism Offenses, Arson, And Making False Statements”; 7 February 2018; https://www.justice.gov/usao-mn/pr/minneapolis-woman-charged-terrorism-offenses-arson-and-making-falsestatements; accessed on 13 September 2018. 7 (U) Online News Article; Star Tribune; “Charges: Former student set fires on St. Catherine campus in retaliation against U.S. military intervention”; 19 January 2018; http://www.startribune.com/charge-former-student-set-fires-on-st-catherine-campus-in-retaliation-against-us-military-intervention/470144173/; accessed on 13 September 2018. 8 (U) Ibid. UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY