Terrorism, Hezbollah, Drugs and the Tri-Border Area

[JeffC]

I wrote this essay for ThreatsWatch a few weeks ago, but thought some of you may enjoy it as well.

....The Tri-border area (TBA) of Ciudad de Este, Paraguay, Foz do Iguacu, Brazil, and Puerto Iguazu, Argentina is a lawless region that operates as the hub of a multi-billion dollar business in money laundering, arms sales, drug trafficking, and other criminal enterprises according to a 2006 report issued by the U.S. State Dept.

Fortunately, the governments of Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay are cooperating with U.S. agencies like ICE (Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement/DHS) to set up Trade Transparency Units, which consist of highly-trained financial intelligence specialists to track the “gray” money moving through the region. As of 2006, these units were operating in Argentina and Brazil. The Paraguay unit was planned for but not yet operational. A proprietary software tool called The Data Analysis and Research for Trade Transparency System (DARTTS) analyzes foreign exchange transactions and other secret bank data and forwards the leads to field agents for follow-up......

[Jedburgh]

The Jamestown Foundation's Terrorism Monitor, 22 Sep 08:

Reassessing the Transnational Terrorism-Criminal Link in South America's Tri-Border Area

....although reports regarding al-Qaeda activities in the area are tenuous, the later episodes referring to ongoing Hezbollah operations show that in the aftermath of 9/11 the extent and nature of Hezbollah activities in the area has diminished considerably due to increased law enforcement efforts. However, logistical operations and fundraising are still taking place in the triple frontier. It remains possible that individuals involved in support activities might become operational if ordered to do so. In this sense, the ongoing cooperation between the tri-border countries and the United States has been crucial in keeping illicit activities under tight control in the area, while the push for changes at the legislative level to better regulate terrorism-financing and money laundering-related crimes can also contribute to increasing the effectiveness of law-enforcement operations in the area.