1463-AA. Date: September 13, 2008
Target: Governor Abdullah Wardak
Location: Kabul, Afghanistan
Details: Wardak's vehicle had departed his residence when a remotely-detonated mine buried in the road destroyed his car, killing him and three bodyguards. Police found wires leading from the bombsite up a nearby hill.
1464-AA. Date: October 7, 2008
Target: Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte
Location: Baghdad, Iraq
Details: Two mortar rounds struck near the Foreign Ministry Building in the Green Zone, as Negroponte prepared to hold a news conference inside. Five civilians were wounded, and vehicles were damaged. Negroponte was not injured.
1465-AA. Date: October 21, 2008
Target: Former President Bush Aide Karl Rove
Location: San Francisco, California
Details: A Code Pink anti-war protester confronted Rove on stage as he was speaking to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The female protester unsuccessfully attempted to handcuff Rove for what she called a "citizen's arrest." She and four other protesters were removed.
1466-AA. Date: October 22, 2008
Target: Presidential Candidate (Senator) Barack Obama
Location: Alamo, Tennessee
Details: White Power Skinheads Paul Schlesselman and Daniel Cowart were arrested after making numerous threats to kill Obama. They reportedly planned to "drive their vehicle at Obama while shooting out of their windows." The attack was to follow a murder spree in which they were to "kill 88 African Americans by gunfire at a black school, then behead 14 of them." They decorated their car with a swastika and the numbers "88" and "14" (numbers important in the white supremacist movement). They shot out a window at a black church in Tennessee and were subsequently arrested by police. Police seized a sawed-off shotgun and three pistols.
1467-AA. Date: October 24, 2008
Target: Government Minister Phil Woolas
Location: Manchester, England
Details: Woolas was speaking at Manchester University when a protester charged on stage and smashed a cream pie into his face. Woolas was taken off stage and cleaned up, and returned to finish the debate. Members of Manchester's No Borders group claimed credit for the attack.
1468-AA. Date: November 4, 2008
Target: Interior Minister Juan Camilo Mourino
Location: Mexico City, Mexico
Details: Mourino was in a Learjet 45 that crashed into rush hour traffic, killing all eight people on board. The plane had just left the state capital's international airport. The cause of the crash was not immediately known.
1469-A. Date: November 11, 2008
Target: Former Prime Minister Tony Blair
Location: Tel Aviv, Israel
Details: One of Blair's bodyguards accidentally fired his handgun outside the terminal building at Ben-Gurion International Airport. No one was injured.
1470-AA. Date: November 11, 2008
Target: Governor Charlie Crist
Location: Sarasota, Florida
Details: A plane carrying Crist made an emergency landing after experiencing a mechanical problem. No one was injured.
1471-AA. Date: November 26, 2008
Target: Mayor Vitaly Karayev
Location: Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia
Details: A single shot reportedly fired by a sniper hit Karayev as he was getting into his car at his residence. He died at the hospital.
1472-AA. Date: December 9, 2008
Target: President-elect Barack Obama
Location: Belfast, Maine
Details: Responding to a report of a shooting, police found James Cummings dead, allegedly killed by his wife. Also found was a cache of radioactive materials, with which Cummings was apparently trying to build a "dirty bomb." Police also discovered a membership application for the neo-Nazi National Socialist Movement. Authorities reported Cummings was "very upset" by the election of Obama.
1473-AA. Date: December 14, 2008
Target: President George Bush
Location: Baghdad, Iraq
Details: During a press conference an Iraqi reporter threw both of his shoes at Bush, who ducked and was not struck. Secret Service agents arrested and removed the man.
1474-AA. Date: December 16, 2008
Target: President-elect Barack Obama
Location: Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
Details: Kody Brittingham, a lance corporal in the U.S. Marine Corps, was arrested with four others on attempted robbery charges. A search of his barracks at Camp Lejeune reportedly turned up white supremacist materials and a journal written by Brittingham, containing plans to kill Obama. Brittingham was indicted for threatening the president-elect.
1475-AA. Date: January 16, 2009
Target: President-elect Barack Obama
Location: Brookhaven, Mississippi
Details: Secret Service agents arrested Steven Joseph Christopher after he posted statements on a website about his plans to assassinate Obama in Washington "as a sacrificial lamb." He wrote, "It's not because I'm racist that I will kill Barack, it's because I can no longer allow the Jewish parasites to bully their way into making the American people submit to their evil ways."
1476-AA. Date: March 6, 2009
Target: UK Business Secretary Lord Mendelson
Location: London, England
Details: As Mendelson got out of his car, a female "anti-Heathrow-Expansion" protester threw a cup of green custard in his face. Mendelson immediately moved into the building, and no arrest was made.
1477-AA. Date: March 10, 2009
Target: U.S. Capitol
Location: Washington, DC
Details: A man named Timothy Whitfield asked a Capitol Police officer for directions. The officer became suspicious and a search of the car revealed two rifles, three handguns, a sword, and several other "items of concern." Whitfield was arrested and charged with several firearms violations.
1478-AA. Date: March 23, 2009
Target: Mayoral Candidate Boris Nemtsov
Location: Sochi, Russia
Details: Nemstov was attacked outside his campaign headquarters by 3 men who reportedly sprayed ammonium chloride in his face and then fled.
1479-AA. Date: April 25, 2009
Target: President Barack Obama
Location: Walton County, Florida
Details: Joshua Cartwright, a Florida National Guardsman, allegedly shot to death two Okaloosa County sheriff's deputies as the officers attempted to arrest him on domestic violence charges. After fleeing the scene, Cartwright was fatally shot during a gun battle with pursuing officers. Cartwright's wife later told investigators her husband was "severely disturbed" that Obama had been elected president.
1480-AA. Date: April 30, 2009
Target: Dutch Royal Family
Location: Apeldoorn, The Netherlands
Details: Members of the Royal Family were riding in an open-top bus in a parade. A man drove his car through people lining the street, leaving 8 dead and 10 injured before crashing into a monument.
1481-AA. Date: June 9, 2009
Target: BNP Leader Nick Griffin
Location: London, England
Details: Griffin was holding a press conference outside Parliament when protesters charged them, screaming and waving signs. Bodyguards evacuated Griffin to his car and drove him away. Griffin was struck with at least one egg, and one of Griffin's cars allegedly struck a protester.
1482-AA. Date: June 10, 2009
Target: Jews and President Barack Obama
Location: Washington, DC
Details: Eighty-eight-year-old James von Brunn, a longtime neo-Nazi, walked into the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum (a few blocks from the White House) and reportedly shot to death a security guard before he was himself shot and wounded by officers. Von Brunn, had previously served six years in connection with a 1981 attempt to kidnap members of the Federal Reserve Board at gunpoint. A search of von Brunn's car after the museum
attack turned up a list of other apparent targets, including the White House, the Capitol, the National Cathedral and The Washington Post. A note reportedly left by von Brunn in his car read: "You want my weapons; this is how you'll get them ... the Holocaust is a lie ... Obama was created by Jews. Obama does what his Jew owners tell him to do. Jews captured America's money. Jews control the mass media." Von Brunn was charged with murder.
1483-AA. Date: June 9, 2009
Target: Greek Tycoon Giorgos Mylonas
Location: Thessaloniki, Greece
Details: Mylonas was kidnapped at gunpoint from his car outside his home. He was released unharmed after 13 days, reportedly for a ransom of 12 million Euros. Five people were reportedly involved in the abduction: three gunmen, a driver, and the mastermind.
1484-A. Date: June 12, 2009
Target: Lawmaker Harith al-Obaidi
Location: Baghdad, Iraq
Details: After delivering a sermon at a mosque, Obaidi, an aide, and three bodyguards were shot and killed.
1485-AA. Date: June 22, 2009
Target: President Yunus-Bek Yevkurov
Location: Nazran, Ingushetia
Details: Yevkurov was being driven to work when a suicide bomber in a car packed with explosives swerved into his motorcade and detonated. Yevkurov was seriously wounded, as was his brother. His driver and one or more of his bodyguards were killed.
1486-A. Date: July 12, 2009
Target: U.S. Ambassador Christopher Hill
Location: Dhi Qar, Iraq
Details: A small roadside bomb exploded as Hill's convoy drove past, narrowly missing his vehicle. No one was injured.
1487-AA. Date: July 14, 2009
Target: Mayor Hector Meixueiro
Location: Namiquipa, Mexico
Details: Gunmen shot and killed Meixueiro as he drove to work in his SUV. The attack was believed to be revenge for a mass arrest of cartel hit-men.
1488-AA. Date: July 15, 2009
Target: U.S. Capitol
Location: Washington, DC
Details: A man refused to stop his car at a checkpoint about two blocks north of the Capitol complex. The man drove the wrong way down a street and struck two police officers with his car. He then crashed his car into a barricade and jumped out with a pistol. He was shot and killed by officers after refusing to drop his weapon.
1489-AA. Date: July 16, 2009
Victim: President Nicolas Sarkozy
Location: Paris, France
Details: Sarkozy became sick after his morning jog and was hospitalized for tests.
1490-AA. Date: August 4, 2009
Target: Actress/Singer Miley Cyrus
Location: Tybee Island, Georgia
Details: A man reportedly stalking Miley Cyrus was arrested by police after traveling to Cyrus' movie location twice attempting to find her. He assaulted police officers who removed him, and was ordered by the court to undergo a mental evaluation.
1491-AA. Date: August 15, 2009
Target: Mayor Tom Barrett
Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Details: Barrett was attending the Wisconsin State Fair with his family when he observed a man threatening a woman with a metal pipe. As Barrett called 911 on his cell phone, the man began striking him with the pipe. The assailant then fled. Barrett was hospitalized with injuries.
1492-AA. Date: August 27, 2009
Target: Prince Mohammed bin Nayef
Location: Jiddah, Saudi Arabia
Details: Al-Qaeda terrorist Abdullah Hassan Talea Asiri contacted Nayef and offered to surrender. The Prince sent his bodyguards to escort Asiri to the palace. During the meeting, Asiri handed his cell phone to Nayef. Explosives reportedly hidden in Asiri's rectum were detonated by the cell phone, blowing Asiri in half. Nayef suffered only minor injuries.
1493-AA. Date: September 2, 2009
Target: Religious Affairs Minister Hamid Saeed Kazmi
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan
Details: Three men reportedly opened fire on Kazmi's unarmored vehicle as it drove past. Two men on bicycles were armed with pistols, and one man on foot was armed with an AK-47. Kazmi's driver was killed, his bodyguard was critically injured, and Kazmi was wounded. One of the gunmen was reportedly seen before the attack asking questions near Kazmi's office. An official spokesman said the government would provide armored vehicles and more bodyguards to federal ministers in the future.
1494-AA. Date: September 15, 2009
Target: TV Host Ryan Seacrest
Location: Orange, California
Details: Seacrest was getting into his car after attending a charity event when he was assaulted. The man also reportedly assaulted a security guard who intervened. The man was arrested for assault, battery, and possession of a switchblade knife. Seacrest later obtained a restraining order against him.
1495-AA. Date: October 1, 2009
Target: IMF Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn
Location: Istanbul, Turkey
Details: Strauss-Kahn was giving a presentation at a university when coordinated protestors in the audience stood up, yelled, threw a shoe, and one charged the stage. Bodyguards for the IMF Director intercepted the man charging the stage, and evacuated the protectee. After order was reestablished, Strauss-Kahn returned to the stage and joked, "Turkish students are polite. They waited until the end to complain."
1496-AA. Date: October 5, 2009
Target: CNN Commentator Lou Dobbs
Location: New Jersey
Details: Dobb's wife was standing outside their home with a driver when a bullet was reportedly fired at the house, striking the vinyl siding near the roof. No one was injured. Dobbs said the incident followed "weeks and weeks of threatening phone calls."
1497-AA. Date: October 14, 2009
Target: Singer Leona Lewis
Location: London, England
Details: Lewis was signing books in a store when a man punched her in the side of the head, knocking her down. He was overpowered by security agents and arrested. Lewis immediately left the event, suffering from a bruised face. The man had reportedly been rejected by producers of the X-Factor contest, which Lewis won.
1498-AA. Date: November 8, 2009
Target: Singer Morrissey
Location: Liverpool, England
Details: Morrissey was performing when he was struck in the head with a plastic beer bottle. He left the stage and didn't return to complete the show.
1499-AA. Date: November 17, 2009
Target: Authors Robert Spencer and Elan Journo
Location: New York, New York
Details: NYU students disrupted a presentation by Spencer and Journo entitled, "The Jihad Still Threatens America." During Spencer's remarks, a protester in the crowd began yelling as a diversion. As Security guards escorted him out, two other protesters rushed forward and threw pies at the two speakers. Journo was struck in the shoulder; Spencer was not hit.
1500-AA. Date: November 20, 2009
Target: Lawmaker Abdul Rab Rasoul Sayyaf
Location: Kabul, Afghanistan
Details: Sayyaf was riding in his convoy outside the capital when a remote-controlled bomb exploded, killing five bodyguards. Sayyaf was not injured. He had survived previous assassination attempts.
1501-AA. Date: November 24, 2009
Target: President Barack Obama
Location: Washington, DC
Details: Michaele and Tareq Salahi, a married couple from Virginia, gained access to the White House state dinner to which they were not invited. After photos of the Salahis attending the dinner surfaced on Michaele's Facebook page, the Secret Service began a criminal investigation. Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan later testified before Congress that proper procedures were not followed and three agents had been suspended.
1502-AA. Date: December 3, 2009
Target: Government Ministers
Location: Mogadishu, Somalia
Details: A man disguised as a woman, including a veil and woman
's shoes, committed a suicide bombing at a crowded graduation ceremony. The blast killed 19 people, including four government ministers seated at the front of the room. 60 people were wounded. The ministers' bodyguards were reportedly all waiting outside the meeting hall.
Note: This Compendium is kept up-to-date. The Gavin de Becker Center for the Study and Reduction of Violence, a not for-profit foundation, collects and organizes information on assassinations, attacks, and incidents involving at-risk persons. Qualified requesters can obtain information on the Compendium at www.gavindebecker.org
Appendix 1
A letter and text that can be provided to your protectee along with a copy of this book
Dear Protectee:
No doubt you've seen bodyguards apply strategies that you wondered about or maybe even felt were unimportant. Many of the questions you might have had about protective security are answered in this book, and we encourage you to read it. Your being better informed will benefit you and also others in your environment who could be affected by the risk surrounding you -- whatever level of risk you might perceive it to be.
Aside from the reference material, this book is only five chapters long, 140 pages. In case you don't read it now, we're briefly noting eleven precepts that will enhance your safety, well-being, and convenience:
The extensive study undertaken for this book produced many insights, the most striking of which is also the simplest:
The overwhelming majority of public figure attacks are over in less than five seconds. Within just those few seconds, all the damage that will be done has been done.
The five-second statistic could be discouraging, because it grants very little time for protectors to respond effectively. However, embedded within that five-second statistic is one of the most encouraging lessons we learned: Attackers are even more handicapped by the speeding clock than are protectors, and when protectors have the position and readiness to respond, they will prevail, almost always. This means it is in your best interest to allow your protectors to occupy the positions they feel are best.
Public figure attackers who fired handguns at targets within 25 feet usually hit their targets, while attackers who fired handguns from farther away than 25 feet almost never hit their targets. This means that your safety is nearly assured when the set-up provides 25 or more feet between you and the nearest members of the general public. All types of attack are less effective from farther away than they are from close. 25 feet emerges as a magic number in three critical ways, and effective protectors will strive for having that much distance between you and the public, much less than 25 feet between you and your protectors, and much less than 25 feet between your protectors and the public. Effective protectors spend a lot of time preparing for every public appearance, and much of their energy is applied to influencing space -- negotiating for more space between the stage and the seats, more space between the red carpet and stanchions, in short, more space between you and those who might try to harm you. Every foot counts, and your support will be important.
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