Civilian population terrorists’ attacks

Abstract This review describes the use of bacteriophages against bacterial infections in the battlefield and protection of the civilian population. High therapeutic and protective potential of bacteriophages suggests that they could be an efficient means against bio-terrorist attacks. 

Those who are responsible for providing medical response aid to civilian population will certainly have to deal with extraordinary problems of consequence management at the acute stage of the aftermath of a chemical terrorist attack. Depending on a specific nature of the event, the first-responders may have to implement protective measures, which cover the following points ... 

Security aspect. This review of AUM Shinrikyo s terrorist activity reveals a new threat to stability of democratic societies - chemical terrorism. Especially terrifying dimension of the problem is the fact that members of this fanatic cult used nerve gases three times against civilian population - sarin in Matsumoto and Tokyo in June, 1994 and in March, 1995, respectively, and VX in Tokyo in January, 1995. The two sarin attacks were especially dangerous, because they threatened the lives of hundreds of citizens. 

In a civilian setting, such as the terrorist nerve agent attacks in Japan, a single exposure lasting from minutes to hours is the most realistic scenario. Consequently, for both civilian populations and the military, research on potential acute and delayed adverse health effects from low-level exposure to nerve agents should be of the highest priority-human performance should not be an important factor when considering civilian populations. A source of potentially valuable... 

Weapons Convention forbidding the development, production, stockpiling and the use of chemical warfare agents, the world has seen a rapid proliferation of such agents. They pose potential neurotoxic threat to both military and civilian populations as evidenced in recent terroristic attacks (5) as well as occupational hazard to individuals exposed to organophosphorus insecticides (OPI). 

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ATTACKS AGAINST MILITARY PERSONNEL AND THOSE INITIATED BY TERRORISTS AGAINST A CIVILIAN POPULATION... 

There are important differences between on-target military attacks against relatively well-protected armed forces and nerve agent attacks initiated by terrorists against a civilian population. In contrast to military personnel, civilians are unlikely to be pre-treated with pyridostigmine and protected by personal protective equipment (PPE). Furthermore, the time after exposure when specific therapy can first be administered to civilians is likely to be delayed. Even conservative estimates suggest a delay between exposure and the first administration of atropine/oxime of at least 30 min. The clinical importance of this delay is discussed below. 

Naive troops or those equipped with inadequate protective equipment would not be expected to fare well if attacked with mustard. Because of this, sulphur mustard might prove to be an attractive choice for terrorists planning an attack on a civilian population. 

The number of bacterial cells is easily counted by BL in the use of bacterial weapons, as in terrorist attacks. Luciferase BL is a fast and sensitive assay for analysis of the toxic properties of various unknown chemical gases and compounds that could threaten populations. These applications are crucial for military and civilian defense. A typical example is the radiation estimations by Beneckea Harvey BL bacteria [46]. 

The efficacy of the agent that might be used, or the delivery system that may be adopted by a terrorist group is likely to be somewhat less sophisticated than military options. However, an attack on an unprotected population is also likely to produce many casualties, lead to much more severe exposure across a wider range of age groups, create more panic and result in operating conditions that are likely to be more chaotic than those encountered in a military setting. For all those reasons, the applicability of military assumptions, doctrines and procedures needs critical examination and careful adaptation before adoption in civilian operations. 

Large numbers of civilian casualties could result should terrorists employ chemical or biological agents at densely populated and especially enclosed locales, such as commuter trains, indoor arenas, theaters, malls, and even in tunnels. In 2000, tests were performed by various US government agencies to examine how aerosols or vapors from toxic compounds would behave in US commuter subways. Not surprisingly, the tests concluded that the effects of a CBW attack in an enclosed or semi-enclosed space are likely to be more serious than the effects in an outdoor attack. That s not to say, however, that an enclosed space is always a bad place to be. 

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