You are an intelligence analyst for the Department of Homeland Security assigned to the Office of Intelligence and Analysis (DHS-OIA). You are currently working in the Special Events Unit and are responsible for producing an intelligence assessment outlining potential threats to the upcoming United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) meeting that is to take place in New York City 2 months from now. As a result of the collection plan you recently developed, you have just received the following source reporting from a HUMINT source. This source has reported information in the past and is deemed reliable. The source had direct access to the reported information by virtue of his normal daily activities:

Source recently met with an individual by the name of Adnan Last Name Unknown, an Albanian national and suspected member of AKA, residing in New Jersey. According to Source, Adnan explained a scheme by which he traffics MDMA (ecstasy) tablets acquired in Elbasan, Albania into the United States. Adnan traveled to Elbasan, Albania four times last year. Adnan has been able to acquire ecstasy tablets at a wholesale price of $1 per tablet. Adnan purchased $10,000 worth of ecstasy tablets per trip. Adnan then purchased 25 bags of coffee beans packaged in foil wrappers. The coffee bean packages were opened, and the ecstasy tablets were comingled, 400 tablets per bag, with the coffee beans, and the foil wrappers are then resealed. The coffee bags are placed in his luggage. Adnan stated that he has had no problem smuggling the ecstasy into the United States using this method, and he stated that his associates, also Albanian nationals, have successfully smuggled ecstasy tablets into the United States for Adnan using this same method approximately three to four times per year. Adnan has a connection in New York, NY who buys the ecstasy tablets for $5 per tablet.
Source reported that several AKA members in the New York area were planning to conduct an operation during an upcoming major event that is scheduled to take place sometime in the next couple of months. Source was not clear what event they were referring to but stated that it was something “the whole world” would be watching. Source stated that the operation would include the use of suicide bombers disguised as guests of the event. Source also stated that other AKA operatives would be positioned near the venue to set off some sort of chemical device within the subway system for those trying to evacuate the scene. Source stated that an identified U.S. citizen named Randolph King recently established a group he referred to as AKA-NY as a local branch of the terrorist group AKA. King has been in contact with alleged AKA member Alek Alothman, who lives in New Jersey, and other unidentified AKA affiliates throughout the United States, including AKA commander Zameer Rayani. King hopes to obtain the names and contact information of other group members. King plans on promoting his new group through a Web site and hopes to also sell T-shirts and hats with the group’s logo on them to raise money. Source stated that AKA has become more aggressive in its campaign against the government of Albania. AKA has gone beyond its efforts of attacking government assets within Albanian borders, and it is looking to target the Albanian government on a larger scale. According to the source, AKA is looking to embarrass the Albanian government and to make it look weak in front of the world. Source stated that AKA members from Albania are being sponsored by a New York–based company called Al-Akzam World for those individuals to obtain H1-B visas to enter the United States. Once the AKA members receive sponsorship, they can apply for the H1-B visa, which will allow them to enter the United States for a period of up to 1 year. Although they are supposed to be coming to work for this company, most of the members do not. According to the source, these members only use the company to get into the United States and then go their separate ways. In fact, most overstay the terms of their visa and never leave.

Portion (1)

• In the first group portion of this assignment, you must use the Small Group Discussion Board to review the following:
  • Discuss the HUMINT source reporting with your group, and identify the key pieces of raw intelligence from the scenario above that may potentially satisfy the intelligence requirements listed below:
    • What individuals or groups are planning terrorist acts directed at the UNGA meeting in New York?
    • What individuals, groups, or delegations attending the UNGA meeting in New York are being targeted by domestic or international terrorists?
    • What groups or individuals associated with criminal or terrorist activities are active in the New York area of operations?
    • Which foreign intelligence service will attempt to use the UNGA meeting in New York as an intelligence collection opportunity?
    • Which delegations attending the UNGA meeting in New York are being targeted by foreign intelligence services?
• Be sure to record the group discussions because the information will be used throughout the remainder of this project.

Answer preview

Analysis of Intelligence

According to the source, Adnan, some AKA members based in New York are planning to conduct terrorist acts. These members have formed a subunit they refer to as AKA-NY. This group was established by a US citizen going by the name of Randolph King. According to the source, the members were planning to carry out an operation in New York during an upcoming major event in the area in the next couple of months. According to the intelligence available, the United Nations General Meeting is scheduled to take place in two months. This meeting is one of the most significant international events, and it occurs at least once annually. The United Nations has 193-member states which represent 98.97% of the entire number of countries in the world (Freeman, 2016). The United Nations General Assembly is one of the six organs of the UN where each member state is represented by one vote per member. As a result, the General Assembly is one of the most significant eve…