The Fight against Jihadism in Spain Special Mention to the Spanish Civil Guard
4. The Efforts of the Guardia Civil against Jihadism
A summer course celebrated in July 2015, in collaboration with the University Institute of Research in Homeland Security (IUISI) and Universidad de la Rioja, presented different levels of action of the Civil Guard against jihadism�
Currently, the Brigadier leads the Information Department, with the mission of fighting terrorism� There is a second authority, the Colonel; the technical area also managed by a Colonel and 5 Central Units, managed by the Lieutenant Colonels�
The Special Central Unit number 1 (UCE-1), is focused on internal national ter-rorism; the Special Central Unit number 2 (UCE-2) is focused on international terrorism; the Special Central Unit number 3 (UCE-3) is in charge of general information, labor and social issues, and counterintelligence� There is a Central Unit for Logistic Support (UCAL) and the Operational Support Group�
The UCE-2, within its area of responsibility in fight against global terrorism, is the Unit directly in charge of the counter-terrorism activity in the frame of Islam-ist terrorism� For that purpose, it has two groups, one for obtaining (managing
José María Blanco Navarro 188
sources of information) and one for elaborating (analysis)� It has also an economic investigation section that is focused on the research concerning everything related to the financing of terrorism� In almost forty operations of the Unit, nearly 150 people have been arrested since 2004�
The Information Department acts both at the strategic and operative levels, participating in all decision-making organs of the Ministry of the Interior, and in collaboration with the Intelligence Center against Terrorism and Organized Crime (CITCO)� The Information Department covers all intelligence analysis and investigation areas against the terrorist and violent radicalization phenomena, such as groups and individuals, activities, propaganda, communication in social media or financing�
CITCO is the result of the union, in 2014, of the former National Centre for Antiterrorist Coordination (CNCA) and the Intelligence Centre against Organ-ized Crime, created after the attacks of March 11th, 2004� The Intelligence Centre against Terrorism and Organized Crime (CITCO) has an organic level of general sub-directorate and is in charge of the reception, integration and analysis of the strategic information available in the fight against any kind of organized crime, terrorism and violent radicalization, the design of specific strategies against these threats, as well as – if needed – the creation of action and operative coordina-tion criteria of the acting bodies in cases of coincidence or concurrence in the investigations�
This growing link between criminal and terrorist activity, already known but proved with the recent Paris attacks and the flow of weapons in the EU, makes necessary the implication of other units of the Civil Guard, from their different fields of activity� The action of a criminal group can lead to the dismantling of a terrorist cell� In this sense, it must be remarked how the Civil Guard, through the Judicial Police Department, fights all types of organized crime�
Moreover, the international dimension of the Civil Guard is another factor to point out when fighting terrorism� The global world in which we live points out the importance of the external action of the state� This external action is reflected mainly in three areas: cooperation with other police forces and international or-ganizations, support the actions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Coopera-tion (MAEC), and participaCoopera-tion in crisis management operaCoopera-tions�
The Civil Guard has some features and capabilities that make it perfect to take on these responsibilities� The Civil Guard is an ideal tool to be deployed outside our borders in support of missions for crisis management, both military and civil-ian, improving post-conflict stabilization processes, in which the Civil Guard can play a key role due to their police and military capacities�
The Fight against Jihadism in Spain 189
This presence is reflected in the ongoing participation of members of Civil Guard in international organizations, where decisions are taken at the European level and within the United Nations, and where initiatives or strategies are de-signed in the field of security� It is also common to find civil guards cooperating closely with other police forces in operations against terrorism, illegal immigra-tion and organized crime�
Within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, the Civil Guard sup-ports the governmental action to strengthen the security of embassies in high-risk countries� Civil Guard has aggregates and counselors in several embassies, sup-porting the external action, while facilitating police cooperation�
Finally – and with the aim of exploiting the different open sources of informa-tion, the relations with universities and think tanks, the participation in research projects of the EU and the elaboration of future studies about the criminal phe-nomenon – the Guardia Civil has a Centre of Analysis and Foresight�
According to the US Department of State, “the National Police and the Civil Guard share responsibility for counterterrorism and cooperate well with the United States, with strong information sharing and joint threat assessments�”19
The European Commission decided to establish a new European Counter Ter-rorism Centre (ECTC), launched on January 2016� Mr� Manuel Navarrete Paniagua, a high-ranking officer of the Spanish Civil Guard with extensive practical counter terrorism experience, will lead it� He was already the head of the counter terror-ism unit at Europol� Currently, 39 staff members and 5 seconded national experts work in the ECTC� Working alongside other operational centers at Europol, such as the European Cyber Crime Centre (EC3), the ECTC will be a constituent part of Europol, under the general command of its Director, and will serve to augment the organization’s capabilities as the EU’s law enforcement agency� It is an evidence of the experience and good work done by the Civil Guard against terrorism�
5. Conclusion
After the Paris attacks, Spain has been able to show firmness and unity� No event has been cancelled and the lives of the citizens have not suffered any changes� In a calmness framework, different measures have been adopted and the level of ter-rorist alert has been maintained (or only “reinforced”, according to the Minister of the Interior)� At the same time, measures have been adopted in every sphere as a way of adaptation to this new phenomenon, that is not new, but that evolves
19 US Government, Country Report on Terrorism 2014, available at http://www�state�gov/j/
ct/rls/crt/2014/index�htm, accessed 20 January 2016�
José María Blanco Navarro 190
and adapts to a complex and changing environment at the political, social and technological levels, in an asymmetrical confrontation�
Firmness and unity are the pillars for the counter-terrorism action� Before that action, we need to have the best knowledge and intelligence that allow a better analysis to support the decision-making process� This process must include long-term views, so that, step by step, the counter-terrorism activity will stop being so reactive and will become much more preventive and anticipatory�
The road will be long� More attacks will occur� It requires an exercise in crea-tivity and imagination to exploit all the tools that are allowed by the rule of law, bearing in mind that the role of a law enforcement agency is, first of all, to guar-antee the exercise of the rights and freedoms of citizens�
References
J� M� Blanco, J� Cohen, The future of counter-terrorism in Europe. The need to be lost in the correct direction, “European Journal of Future Research”, no� 1 (2), 2014, available at http://link�springer�com/article/10�1007%2Fs40309-014-0050-9, accessed 20 December 2015�
J� M� Blanco, J� Cohen, Reseña obra de Frank Foley, “Cuadernos de la Guardia Ci-vil”, no� 5, 2015, available at http://bibliotecasgc�bage�es/cgi-bin/koha/opac-de-tail�pl?biblionumber=16976, accessed 20 December 2015�
J� M� Blanco, J� Cohen, Entornos urbanos frágiles, Diario BEZ 2015, available at http://www�bez�es/617991634/Tras-los-atentados-de-Paris-III�-Entornos-ur-banos-fragiles�html, accessed 20 December 2015�
C� T� Call, Beyond the failed state: Toward conceptual alternatives, “European Jour-nal of InternatioJour-nal Relations” 2010, US Institute for Peace, Washington 2010�
J� Cohen, J�M� Blanco, El crimen organizado y la estabilidad estatal en México, I Congreso de Estudios Militares, Granada 2014, available at http://estudios-militares�es/comunicaciones/J%C3%A9ssica%20Cohen%20Villaverde%20 y%20Jos%C3%A9%20M%C2%AA%20Blanco%20Navarro�pdf, accessed 20 December 2015�
L� de la Corte, ¿Enclaves yihadistas? Un estudio sobre la presencia y el riesgo extremistas en Ceuta y Melilla, “Revista de Estudios en Seguridad Internacional”, no� 2(1), 2015, pp� 1–34, available at http://www�seguridadinternacional�es/rev ista/?q=content/%C2%BFenclaves-yihadistas-un-estudio-sobre-la-presencia-y-el-riesgo-extremistas-en-ceuta-y, accessed 20 December 2015�
L� de la Corte, Actividad yihadista en Ceuta: antecedentes y vulnerabilidades, Real Instituto Elcano 2015, available at http://www�realinstitutoelcano�org/
documentos/DT2007/DT28-2007_de_la_Corte_actividades_yihadistas_
Ceuta�pdf, accessed 20 December 2015�
The Fight against Jihadism in Spain 191
F� Foley, Countering Terrorism in Britain and France. Institutions, Norms and the Shadow of the Past, University Printing House, Cambridge 2013�
J� Jordan, The evolution of the structure of jihadist terrorism in Western Europe: the case of Spain, “Studies in Conflict and Terrorism” no� 37 (8), 2015�
Observatorio Andalusí, Estudio demográfico de la población musulmana, 2015, available at http://observatorio.hispanomuslim.es/estademograf.pdf, accessed 20 January 2016�
Pew Research Center, Faith in European Project Reviving, 2015, available at http://
www�pewglobal�org/files/2015/06/Pew-Research-Center-European-Union-Report-FINAL-June-2-20151�pdf, accessed 20 December 2015�
F� Reinares, ¿Por qué el terrorismo yihadista afectará más a unos países europeos que a otros?, Real Instituto Elcano 2011, available at http://www.realinstitutoelcano.
org/wps/portal/rielcano/contenido?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/elcano/
elcano_es/zonas_es/ari82-2011, accessed 20 December 2015�
F� Reinares, C� García-Calvo, Terroristas, redes y organizaciones: facetas de la actual movilización yihadista en España, Real Instituto Elcano 2015, available at http://
www.realinstitutoelcano.org/wps/portal/web/rielcano_es/contenido?WCM_
GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/elcano/elcano_es/zonas_es/terrorismo+internacional/
dt17-2015-reinares-garciacalvo-terroristas-redes-organizaciones-facetas-actual-movilizacion-yihadista-espana, accessed 20 December 2015�
Spanish Government, Antiterrorism Agreement, available at http://www�lamoncloa�
gob�es/espana/eh15/seguridad/Documents/Acuerdo%20para%20afianzar%20 la%20unidad%20en%20defensa%20de%20las%20libertades%20y%20en%20 la%20lucha%20contra%20el%20terrorismo%202015�pdf, accessed 20 January 2016�
Spanish Government, Hate crimes in Spain 2014, available at http://www�interior�
gob�es/documents/10180/1643559/Estudio+Incidentes+Delitos+de+Od io+2014�pdf/70073437-795d-4ce1-acfc-ed92b02cf1a6, accessed 20 January 2016�
Spanish Government, Operations developed and people arrested, available at http://
www�interior�gob�es/documents/10180/1210364/TABLA+DETENIDOS+TE RRORISMO+INTERNACIONAL+%2814-12-2015%29�pdf/026336fc-f9c7-4e7f-9c71-28750538310e, accessed 20 January 2016�
Spanish Government, Stop Radicalisms, available at https://stop-radicalismos�ses�
mir�es/, accessed 20 January 2016�
Spanish Government, Strategic National Plan Against Violent Radicalisation, available at http://www�lamoncloa�gob�es/consejodeministros/referencias/
documents/2015/refc20150130e_1�pdf, accessed 20 January 2016�
José María Blanco Navarro 192
The Soufan Group, Foreign Fighters. An Updated Assessment of the Flow of Foreign Fighters into Syria and Iraq, 2015, available at http://soufangroup�
com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/TSG_ForeignFightersUpdate3�pdf, accessed 20 January 2016�
J� P� Sullivan, Narco-Cities: Mexico and Beyond, “Small Wars Journal” 2014, avail-able at www�smallwarsjournal�com, accessed 20 January 2016�
M� Torres, Referencias a España en la propaganda yihadista, 2015, available at http://
www�seguridadinternacional�es/?q=es/content/referencias-espa%C3%B1-en- la-propaganda-yihadista#overlay-context=es/content/operaciones-policiales-contra-el-terrorismo-yihadista-en-espa%25C3%25B1%3Fq%3Des/content/
operaciones-policiales-contra-el-terrorismo-yihadista-en-espa%25C3%25B1, accessed 20 January 2016�
M� Torres, La lucha por liderar el yihadismo magrebí aumenta la amenaza sobre España, Observatorio Internacional de Estudios sobre Terrorismo (OIET), 2015, available at http://observatorioterrorismo�com/terrorismo-internacional/
la-lucha-por-liderar-el-yihadismo-magrebi-aumenta-la-amenaza-sobre-espana/d, accessed 20 January 2016
US Government, Country Report on Terrorism 2014, available at http://www�state�
gov/j/ct/rls/crt/2014/index�htm, accessed 20 January 2016�