Abstract
Health care organizations have been challenged by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic for some time, while in January 2020, it was not immediately suspected that it would take such a global expansion. In the past, other studies have already pointed out that health care systems, and more specifically hospitals, can be a so-called "soft target" for terrorist attacks. This report has now examined whether this is also the case in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.During the lockdown, hospitals turned out to be the only remaining soft targets for attacks, given that the other classic targets were closed during the lockdown. On the other hand, other important factors have limited the risk of such attacks in hospitals. The main delaying and relative risk-reducing factors were the access control on temperature and wearing a mask, no visits allowed, limited consultations, and investigations.But even then, health care systems and hospitals were prone to (cyber)terrorism, as shown by other COVID-19-related institutions, such as pharmaceuticals involved in developing vaccines and health care facilities involved in swab testing and contact tracing. Counter-terrorism medicine (CTM) and social behavioral science can reduce the likelihood and impact of terrorism, but cannot prevent (state-driven) cyberterrorism and actions of lone wolves and extremist factions.
Highlights
During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, terrorism certainly did not disappear
Mostly right-wing, extremist groups see an omen in the current pandemic to spread their ideas and recruit more allies, taking advantage of the dissatisfaction with the approach to the pandemic, the lockdown, poverty, loss of work, and closure of schools.[6]. It is described how popular protest and civil unrest can feed extremism and how those, as well as terrorist factions, aim at health care workers involved in COVID-19 response, and at health care workers treating patients
The COVID-19 pandemic feeds the extremism of the extreme right and extreme left and allows the Islamic State and other militants to exploit the situation because the local governments have been weakened by the pandemic.[6]
Summary
During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, terrorism certainly did not disappear. Mostly right-wing, extremist groups see an omen in the current pandemic to spread their ideas and recruit more allies, taking advantage of the dissatisfaction with the approach to the pandemic, the lockdown, poverty, loss of work, and closure of schools.[6] In this special report, it is described how popular protest and civil unrest can feed extremism (both right- and left-wing) and how those, as well as terrorist factions, aim at health care workers involved in COVID-19 response (swab testing sites and contact tracing [and in near future in vaccination], epidemiologists, and governors), and at health care workers treating patients (hospitals and pharmaceuticals involved in developing drugs and vaccines). Women governors cultivated empathy and confidence more in their COVID-19 briefings than did men governors, probably related to more adherence of recommendations and less COVID-19 deaths.[34]
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