The United States Coast Guard is one of the country's five armed services and is the front-line agency for enforcing US laws at sea and protecting the country’s coastline and ports.

The Coast Guard was established back in 1790, when Congress approved the construction of 10 ships to be used in the enforcement of tariff and trade laws, and in the protection against smuggling. The Coast Guard is now an integral part of the Department of Homeland Security

Coast Guard soldiers are tasked with the enormous responsibility of the national defense and maritime security of the United States. As the prime protectors of America’s 361 ports and 95,000 miles of coastline, the Coast Guard evaluates vessels entering US ports, determining the security risk of all inbound ships.

Using Intel from a variety of Department of Homeland Security sources, the Coast Guard boards suspicious ships and if necessary and takes military action against any vessel that it deems to pose a risk to national security. By boarding and searching, the Coast Guard is a driving force in quelling the flow of illegal drugs, contraband, and immigrants into the US.
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Enemy Forces

Formed around 1988 by Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda helped finance, recruit, transport and train thousands of fighters from dozens of countries as part of the Afghan resistance against the Soviet Union. The resulting group turned into an international terrorist network after the war, and in February, 1998, it issued a statement declaring war on all US citizens and allies, everywhere they could be found. It’s strength further increased in June, 2001, when it merged with an Egyptian terrorist group headed by Ayman al-Zawahiri.

Al Qaeda has sophisticated tactics for assassination, bombing, hijacking, and kidnapping, with good operational security, and long-range planning. Many reports and statements from bin Laden himself indicate that the group is determined to build or steal biological, chemical and nuclear weapons. Their targets tend to be prominent symbols and public buildings, high-profile buildings. According to CIA head George Tenet, the organization has increasingly focused on developing puppet groups to carry out attacks in which bin Ladin's fingerprints are not detected.

With a global financial network, dozens of affiliated groups, and several thousand recruits, the organization has provided training and support for terrorists fighting in Afghanistan, Algeria, Bosnia, Chechnya, Eritrea, Kosovo, the Philippines, Somalia, Tajikistan, Yemen, Kosovo, as well as North and South America. Back to top