In Letter to Secretary of Defense Senators Push Administration to Crackdown on Smuggling of Ammonium Nitrate Fertilizers that Create Bombs / New Reports Indicate Smugglers Exploiting Porous Turkey - Syria Border / Lethal Bombs Have Targeted Iraqi Security Forces and Civilians in Syria and Iraq
Washington DC- Today, U.S. Senators Bob Casey (D-PA) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) announced that they have sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of Defense, Dr. Ashton Carter, urging the Administration to take steps to crackdown on the flow of materials from countries like Turkey that ISIS is now using to make IEDs that target security forces and civilians in Iraq and Syria. New reports indicate the ISIS is using ammonium nitrate based fertilizer to create deadly bombs that are similar to what was once used against U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan.
The Senators’ wrote: “There is evidence that ISIS is using greater numbers of more powerful IEDs in both Iraq and Syria. For example, news reports indicated that after ISIS was expelled from Tikrit in April, Iraqi forces said they identified and dismantled hundreds of IEDs concealed around the city. To support these activities, ISIS would require precursor chemicals and parts to be smuggled on a massive scale”
The full text of the Senators’ letter can be seen below:
Dear Secretary Carter:
I am concerned by recent reports about the use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) by the terrorist group ISIS. On a daily basis, Iraqi security forces and civilians alike are targeted by these dangerous weapons. In Syria, IED attacks not only threaten the security of civilians already besieged by the continued fighting but imperil the ability of aid organizations to safely and reliably deliver relief to vulnerable communities.
There is evidence that ISIS is using greater numbers of more powerful IEDs in both Iraq and Syria. For example, news reports indicated that after ISIS was expelled from Tikrit in April, Iraqi forces said they identified and dismantled hundreds of IEDs concealed around the city. To support these activities, ISIS would require precursor chemicals and parts to be smuggled on a massive scale. The United States and our Coalition partners in Afghanistan learned important lessons about how to combat IEDs and get ahead of the threat by degrading the facilitation networks in Pakistan. I believe it is appropriate for those best practices to be adapted and applied to the fight against ISIS.
First, I urge you to consider the establishment of a mechanism to coordinate the efforts of all relevant federal departments and agencies involved in addressing this problem. We learned in the context of Afghanistan-Pakistan that each agency has a particular skillset and capabilities that are invaluable to the fight. The U.S. government personnel in the region – both military and civilian – should be essential contributors to this effort against ISIS.
Second, although detection technology has improved dramatically over the past decade, we learned in Afghanistan that basic education about the threat of IEDs can help save lives. As such, I strongly encourage you to ensure that basic IED and precursor chemical detection skills are integrated into training provided to Iraqi and Kurdish security forces. I also ask that you consider making it an element of the nascent train and equip program for moderate, vetted Syrian opposition fighters.
Improving the ability of these forces to safely identify and exploit bomb-making facilities or materials caches can help improve the Coalition’s understanding of the networks that facilitate this illicit activity. The Defense Department helped develop manuals that were provided to American servicemembers deploying to Afghanistan. I ask that you consider whether the provision of this type of basic manual to local forces training for the ISIS fight would be appropriate. Such training will be essential as Iraqi and Kurdish forces work to roll back ISIS’s territorial gains and begin the process making these areas inhabitable for civilians once again.
Third, I ask you to accelerate efforts to identify and disrupt the networks that supply ISIS with the precursor parts and chemicals, like nitrate-based fertilizer, that are used to build IEDs. I was troubled to read the New York Times article from May 4 describing the regular flow of ammonium nitrate fertilizer in large quantities across the border between Turkey and Syria. Although ammonium nitrate fertilizer has some legitimate applications in agriculture, strict controls are needed to ensure it is not repurposed into weapons by terrorist groups like ISIS. The development of these smuggling networks not only poses a threat in Iraq and Syria but to the security of neighboring countries.
I respectfully request that you respond to this letter with an explanation of the steps that the Department of Defense is taking, in concert with coalition partners, to respond to the increased use of IEDs by ISIS. Thank you for your leadership, and I stand ready to work with you on this important issue.
Sincerely,
Robert P. Casey, Jr.
United States Senator
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