Has the FBI Exaggerated the Threat of Islamic Terrorism While Missing Real Dangerous People?

Watch the full interview with Trevor Aaronson on Democracy Now! at Reporter Trevor Aaronson is author of the book, "The Terror FactoryInside the FBI's Manufactured War on Terrorism," and recently wrote an article for "Mother Jones," titled "How the FBI in Boston May Have Pursued the Wrong 'Terrorist.'" He tells Democracy Now! host, Amy Goodman, "I think the real question we need to ask isThrough these sting operations, have we exaggerated the threat of Islamic terrorism in the United States, while at the same time, missing the real threats?"

TREVOR AARONSON: It's important to realize that since 9/11 we've had an explosion of informants. You know, in the COINTEL days of the '60s, there were 1,500 informants. Today there are 15,000. And most of them are targeting Muslim communities, and many of them are acting as agent provocateurs. Their mission is to go into Muslim communities, find people who are espousing violence or say they want to commit some sort of act of terrorism, even if they have no means, even if they have no capability of committing that crime, and then putting everything together — you know, getting the idea, then saying to them, "Well, I can provide the bombs, I can provide the weapons," and then the FBI, in an elaborate sting, provides the transportation, provides the weapons and everything that they need to move forward in a terrorism sting operation. And then, when they arrest them, they announce to the public: "Another terrorism plot foiled. Here's the FBI. Here's us keeping you safe. Here's us doing our jobs." But I think the real question we need to ask is, you know: Through these sting operations, have we exaggerated the threat of Islamic terrorism in the United States, while at the same time missing the real threats, missing the Tamerlan Tsarnaevs, missing the Faisal Shahzads, missing the Nidal Hasans? Because the FBI has a clear record of being able to set up in sting operations people who want to commit violence but don't have the means, while at the same time it misses the really dangerous threats, like what we saw in Boston.

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