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Proposition 1: Covert networks like overt networks come in all forms and shapes.
Dark networks must have a very flexible structure that enables them to react quickly to
changing pressures from nation states and other opponents in order to survive.
Question 2) Is there a point where dark networks come together? Do they
have to have unfettered access to territory to be effective? Is it possible to maintain
effectiveness without a safe haven like Liberia or Afghanistan?
We believe we have shown that dark networks from different areas are connected
through actors who function as brokers between these different networks. Very often
these brokers are dictators, rebel chiefs, warlords or presidents of failed states with
private armies. They facilitate the operation of all types of covert networks and in that
process achieve enormous material gains. In our West African case, we have
documented the connections between failed states (with warlords and rebel armies),
terrorism, diamond smuggling, and arms trafficking. Covert networks of all kinds do not
operate in a vacuum despite the fact that they now frequently use modern communication
technology for their activities. They need a territorial base of some sort either for the
production or brokering of their illegal goods or as refuge for planning, training and
recovering. If Al Qaeda does not control a territorial base, even in a failed state, terrorist
training camps are impossible. Likewise, if Al Qaeda decides to refrain from all but the
most critical electronic communication and uses trusted messengers for face to face
communication instead, communications intercepts become very difficult for Western
intelligence agencies. At the same time, while Al Qaeda has decreased the probability of
detection, it has increased the difficulty of communication among its members all over
Convention