Bioterrorism poses obvious challenges for civilian authorities. Such a situation calls for close local co-operation between civilian authorities from different sectors (public health, law enforcement, prosecution and customs), national leadership to hold all sectors together, and international co-operation within the areas concerned. These could include intelligence services, medicine, the fight against terrorism and implementation of international conventions.  The health sector should be adequately prepared, that is, not only stocked with necessary supplies for treatment (vaccines, antibiotics) but also aware of existing dangers so as to be able to detect a covert biological attack.

The role of law enforcement and INTERPOL in countering bioterrorism is based on four pillars:

Prevention
Protection
Pursuit
Response

Prevention means first and foremost a comprehensive effort whereby appropriate bio-safety and bio-security legislation is put into place and followed. Such legislation should aim at preventing and prohibiting the misuse of biological agents and criminalizing such behavior. The Biocriminalization Project was set up to centralize information on such legislation.

A wider definition of prevention could also include the detection of suspicious activities and possible threats by law enforcement officers.

Another preventive measure that should be undertaken is monitoring the usage of dual-use goods. A biological agent may be created for legitimate reasons, such as research to develop a vaccine, but this agent may also serve a second use as a bioweapon. A case in point: the US anthrax letters. The particular strain of Bacillus anthracis mailed to recipients in 2001 had been developed in a US governmental laboratory as part of an effort to find an anthrax vaccine. Thus, it is obvious that vigilant control should be exercised over biological agents at all stages of research in order to prevent their distribution. International conventions and regulations should be followed to the letter.

Protection is done to reduce the probability of an attack through improved security of vials, labs and critical infrastructure. Laboratories where dangerous matter is treated must be bound by adequate security measures and scientists working with such substances should be under appropriate supervision. Protective measures to reduce the vulnerability of populations to attack include ensuring adequate supplies of vaccines on hand as well as stocking up on protective gear (and being trained so as to know how to use it).

Pursuit and investigation is another essential aspect of the fight against bioterrorists. It is crucial to impede terrorists’ plans and their capabilities to launch a biological attack. Law enforcement can contribute to this by intelligence work, forensics and investigating suspicious occurrences. Once more, the importance of legislation covering this area cannot be overemphasized. Officers must be given the right to investigate and suspects should be prosecuted.

Response should concentrate on managing and minimizing the consequences of a bioterrorist attack.  This is made possible by improving various organizations’ capabilities of dealing with the aftermath of a biological attack. To this end, a co-ordinated response is called for between law enforcement agencies, health sector representatives, and customs officials. The response should encompass not only joint investigations, evidence collection and logistics, but also a clear communications and media management policy in order to forestall and prevent mass panic. For this reason, a command centre responsible for comprehensive consequence management should be envisaged.

Partnerships between all actors involved, from local to international level, are essential if the four points of Prevention, Protection, Pursuit and Response are to succeed. Presenting a comprehensive and coherent front to the bioterrorist threat is only possible if there are strong, close-knit partnerships already in place. Exchange of information and best practices, as well as a track record of working together, is essential to countering a threat as comprehensive in its scope as bioterrorism. INTERPOL has forged partnerships with national law enforcement agencies and international organizations such as the WHO.

Read more detailed information on INTERPOL's response to bioterrorism