Cyber Crime and Cyber Terrorism

CHAPTER
259
18
Evolution of TETRA 
through the integration 
with a number of 
communication platforms to 
support public protection and 
disaster relief (PPDR)
Hamid Jahankhani, Sufian Yousef
INTRODUCTION
Public Protection and Disaster Relief (PPDR) organizations such as law enforcement, 
ambulance services, civil emergency management/disaster recovery, fire services, 
coast guards services, search and rescue services, government administration, etc., 
are tasked with providing public safety and security service. Public safety services 
bring value to society by creating a stable and secure environment; and PPDR orga-
nizations address situations where human life, rescue operations and law enforce-
ment are at stake. And due to the nature of these situations, mobile communication 
is a main requirement. PPDR organizations rely extensively on Professional Mobile 
Radio (PMR) communication systems to conduct their daily operations. Many of 
these communication networks are based on TETRA, TETRAPOL, GSM, Project 
25 specification, etc., however, TETRA has become the widely accepted choice in 
Europe with TETRAPOL being used in some countries.
PPDR is a priority subject for the citizens, the National Governments and the 
European Union. Especially since events such as the September 11th world trade cen-
tre attacks, the Atocha (Madrid) bombings, the London underground attacks, and the 
recent major earthquake in Van, Turkey; security, counter-terrorism, and disaster relief 
have been on top of the agenda of the European decision-makers, at national as well 
as at EU level. Evidence from these recent disasters shows that public cellular sys-
tems are not designed to cope with major incidents and have failed at the time when 
good communications are needed most, hence, the importance of dedicated PPDR 
communication network. However, due to the nature of some of these events and the 
increasing globalization of terrorism (and other security and safety threats), it is very 
important for future PPDR organizations to work across national borders, which is 

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