As fans from around the globe pour into Germany for the World
Cup soccer tournament, which begins today, security experts from
German government agencies and international police groups will be
glued to their computer screens.
Tucked away in the Interior Ministry in Berlin is the National
Information and Cooperation Center (NICC), which this reporter
visited on Wednesday. For the duration of the month-long event, the
center will be manned around the clock by security experts from
around 20 government agencies, including the Federal Office of
Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance, the Federal Intelligence
Service and the Federal Office for Information Security, in
addition to Europol and Interpol.
The NICC was tested successfully during the Federation
Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Confederation Cup
games held last year in Germany. The games, which allowed several
teams to check their skills in an international competition, also
gave the center an opportunity to test its information coordination
service ahead of the World Cup games.
Each of the 22 groups participating in the center operates its
own communications network and, in some cases, has established a
special unit to monitor activities during the games. The Federal
Office of Criminal Investigation, for instance, has a special unit
monitoring possible terrorist attacks, while the Federal Police
Office has one focused on hooligans.
Although a substantial amount of IT is involved in gathering,
processing and delivering the information that feeds into the
services of the various government agencies and international
police groups organized under the NICC umbrella, the control room
itself is relatively low-tech.
Each of the 22 represented agencies has its own terminal located
in the control room with its own expert who can turn quickly to an
expert from another agency to consult on a situation and react
swiftly if necessary. Large displays on the wall facing them show
various information, such as stadium floor plans and video
footage.
"Interpersonal contact is key," said Christian Sachs, a
spokesman for the Interior Ministry "No one is slowed down by
having to wait for an e-mail or a phone call from another unit.
Here it's all about immediate consultation."
Each group is staffed with four experts working in shifts 24
hours a day for the duration of the 64 games, scheduled to end July
9.
NICC has no operational powers itself due to the complex
structure of Germany's federal government system. But for the first
time in the country, numerous federal government agencies concerned
with security are under one roof working together to coordinate the
flow of information from a big event and to help expedite swift
decision-making.
"We came up with the idea for NICC after reviewing terrorist
situations such as Sept. 11 in the U.S. and outbreaks of violence
at previous international soccer matches where hooligans got out of
control," Sachs said. "We saw a need for super swift lines of
communication for experts evaluating and coordinating
information."
The NICC has created a portal, which consolidates key
information generated by the various agencies.
"We have no indication of international terrorist groups
planning to disrupt the World Cup games," Sachs said. "But, of
course, we also have no guarantees they won't do something."
The situation is different with hooligans and neo-nazis. Polish
hooligans have already indicated their intention to cause trouble,
while neo-nazi groups are planning demonstrations, according to
Sachs.
Should a situation reach a certain "critical" level, such as an
unauthorized airplane heading in the direction of a stadium (all
planes are banned from flying within 5.4 kilometers of a stadium
three hours before and three hours after a game), an Interior
Ministry emergency unit would move swiftly to make critical
decisions, Sachs said.
For sure, shooting down an airplane could be one of toughest
decision the ministry would have to make, given that German law
forbids such action against civilian aircraft.
In a recent television interview, however, German Interior
Minister Wolfgang Schauble indicated that if necessary, he would
consider bending the law to save lives.
icon.
