Terrorism database open for public to see

WASHINGTON (Map, News) - A terrorism database used to track and predict terrorist activity is now available online to researchers, local authorities and the general public, said Gary LaFree, the director of the project at the University of Maryland.

The Global Terrorism Database, which contains 80,000 domestic and international terrorist incidents since the 1970s, was previously only available to researchers and government agencies upon request, said LaFree, the director of the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terror.

About 10 University of Maryland graduate students are working on the database at any given time and about 50 have contributed since the project began in 2001. The project receives the majority of its funding from the Department of Homeland Security.

The database is a powerful tool for public officials because it can track long-term terrorism trends and measure the success of counter-terrorism tactics, LaFree said.

Tackling terrorism one case at a time, like manila files in a drawer, limits government officials at every level, he said.

"I don't care whether you go to an individual police officer or you go to Interpol, they handle data exactly the same way," LaFree said. "If you want Smith, you go to Smith in the file drawer, just like a detective would do," he said.

Local authorities could use the database to determine which groups are active, where they have struck before, the type of weapons they use and the number of fatalities they hope to inflict, LaFree said.

D.C. Emergency Management Agency Director Darrell Darnell is familiar with the database.

"We use many different methods to track and monitor terrorist activity," he said.

Databases are more reliable than other sources of information, LaFree said.

"I have always liked archives," he said. "I don't trust people to tell the truth in interviews."

The database, which can be viewed at www.start.umd.edu/data/gtd/ was compiled from news stories and public records, and when possible, links to the original document, project Research Director Gary Ackerman said.

"There's nothing in our database that you couldn't go and figure out yourself," he said.