Tuesday, March 7, 2017

Report: Homegrown Terrorism is Top Threat to UK

by Soeren Kern • March 7, 2017 at 5:00 am

"The threat to the UK remains from homegrown terrorism, and is heavily youth- and male-oriented with British nationals prevalent among offenders." — Islamist Terrorism: Analysis of Offenses and Attacks in the UK (1998–2015).
"The increased prevalence of smaller cells and individualistic offending, suggests a rise in terrorism cases that feature shorter lead times to offending and fewer opportunities for identification." — Islamist Terrorism: Analysis of Offenses and Attacks in the UK (1998–2015).
"While analysis of pre-offense behaviors shows that there is no one profile for engagement with Islamism-inspired terrorism, some trends can be identified. Offenders commonly consumed extremist and/or instructional material prior to, or as part of, their offending. Much of the pro-jihadist material accessed promotes 'them and us' thinking, dehumanization of the enemy, and attitudes that justify offending." — Islamist Terrorism: Analysis of Offenses and Attacks in the UK (1998–2015).
"Analysis of common sites of inspiration and facilitation appears to corroborate current counter-radicalization policy priorities such as restricting terrorist and violent extremist material on the internet, supporting at-risk sectors and empowering families to safeguard against extremism." — Islamist Terrorism: Analysis of Offenses and Attacks in the UK (1998–2015).

On May 22, 2013, British soldier Lee Rigby (right, holding his son) was murdered outside London's Woolwich Barracks by Islamists Michael Adebolajo (left) and Michael Adebowale, who are converts to Islam. Speaking into a camera just after the murder, Adebolajo said: "we swear by the almighty Allah, that we will never stop fighting you until you leave us alone... You people will never be safe."

Homegrown terrorism inspired by the Islamic State poses the dominant threat to the national security of the United Kingdom, according to a comprehensive new report on violent Islamism in Britain.

The 1,000-page report — "Islamist Terrorism: Analysis of Offenses and Attacks in the UK (1998–2015)" — was published on March 5 by the Henry Jackson Society, a foreign policy think tank based in London.

The report, authored by terrorism researcher Hanna Stuart, identifies, profiles and analyzes all 269 Islamism-inspired terrorism convictions and suicide attacks in the United Kingdom between 1998 and 2015.

The report also compares data between 1998 and 2010, a period when al-Qaeda reached its zenith, and 2011 and 2015, the period following the death of Osama bin Laden in May 2011, the uprisings known as the Arab Spring, and the rise of the Islamic State in 2014.