Scotland Yard Warned Yesterday That London Was Facing A “Disturbing” New Threat…

[naomi24]

….. with jihadists as young as 16 travelling to take up arms in the Syrian conflict. Richard Walton, the head of counter-terrorism command, warned there were signs of returnees being ordered by militants associated with al-Qaeda to carry out attacks in Britain.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/10491523/The-Syrian-civil-war-is-breeding-a-new-generation-of-terrorist.html

Should the British public take this more seriously than it appears to at present?

[ChillDoubt]

Should the British public take this more seriously than it appears to at present?
-----------------------
We should, but invariably won't.
Expect a tale of 'XYZ was known to have returned to the UK from Syria in 2014 but subsequently fell off the MI5/Security Services radar until he suddenly re-appeared as one of the suspects in the successful plot to bomb (iinsert name here)......'.

[mikey4444]

What I want to know is.....where were all these brave British jihadists, when Saddam Hussein was murdering thousands of his own Muslims in Iraq a few years ago, like the Marsh Arabs for instance ? He also killed thousands of innocent Kurds...why didn't they go a fight for them ? Also, if these people like repressive and backward Muslim regimes so much, why don't they go and live in some place like Saudi Arabia, instead of here in Britain ?

I remember the Question Time program, just a few days after 9/11, when the ex American ambassador to Britain was almost reduced to tears by some hot-headed Muslims idiots in the studio audience, who said that the atrocities committed in New York was "all Americas own fault"

I am a liberal at heart but I am fast running out of patience with these extremists using Britain as a base and inflicting their twisted religious nonsense on us.

[grumpy01]

I know I have not always agreed with your point of view Mikey but on this one your spot on.

[mikey4444]

Thanks grumps !

[grumpy01]

Pleasure,now I am off to work.

[naomi24]

Mikey, these people aren't using Britain as a base - they are British Muslims, and that's what's so worrying.

[douglas9401]

Seems like martydom may have lost its appeal when the screaming started and body parts flew, what with them returning and all.
Maybe we need a version of Guantanamo Bay to hold and interrogate these 'heroes'.

[ChillDoubt]

I have just the place, douglas:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_Gruney

Give them the materials to build their own stockade and accomodation and let them get on with it.

[jake-the-peg]

//Richard Walton, the head of counter-terrorism command, warned there were signs of returnees being ordered by militants associated with al-Qaeda to carry out attacks in Britain. //

What are these signs? are we allowed to know?

Or is it a case of 'You're in danger but I can't tell you why - give me lots of new powers and lots of money and I'll make you safe' ?

We cannot just allow security forces to dangle a bogey-man out there and make demands without proper evidence

'Trust me I'm a spook'

There are methods for getting needed extra powers - commons comittees sitting in private for example

Scare story articles in the national press to try to pressurise politicians are not part of those methods

[bazwillrun]

The more of them that go the better.

As long as any that do unfortunately make it back we dont let them back in, rescind their passports/citizenship keep them out one way or another as a security risk

[237SJ]

It`s not a new threat. They`re just going to a different country to learn their skills in terrorism.

[keyplus90]

I am sure all those "as young as 16" were taken there by our own people behind the curtains as involvement of the agencies (and the govt) in all these conflict is known to all of us.

[boxtops]

keyplus, that doesn't make sense. The security services don't take young people (who are not in the armed forces) out of this country to fight in causes like this. IMO these are youngsters who've been fired up by the various sabre-rattlers in the mosques and other similar locations, who see it as their duty (and a bit of excitement, no doubt) to go. You may know differently.

[keyplus90]

Are you saying that British govt and agencies had no role to play in all these conflicts?

[boxtops]

I'm not saying that at all, I wouldn't know, but it's very unlikely they'd lift 16-year-olds off the streets (surely?).

[naomi24]

Keyplus, //I am sure all those "as young as 16" were taken there by our own people behind the curtains as involvement of the agencies (and the govt) in all these conflict is known to all of us. //

Another of your bizarre conspiracy theories? Why would they do that?

[tonyav]

You can join the British army at 16 years old, however no combat until 18 years old.
http://www.army.mod.uk/join/20068.aspx

[LazyGun]

Keyplus'es answer seems to be the usual conspiracy theorising we have come to know and expect from him. Tall on sensationalism, short on facts to support the theorising.

I would agree to a large extent with JtP - These warnings of domestic terror but again little to support the claim - we are expected to take such warnings on trust, it appears, and I for one do not trust the security services enough just to accept such warnings at face value.

But the implied threat is at least plausible - young, almost exclusively male faithheads go out to fight, are further radicalised by teaching and the experiences they have over there, then bring that radicalism back to be used at home. The question I would ask is - what do you think we should be doing about it? What measures do you think the authorities should introduce or police better? What do you want the British public to do?

When we start to jump at shadows, to treat all we meet from certain ethnic/cultural minorities as potential threats, thats when the terrorists have won. The greatest victory against terrorism is to keep calm and carry on.

[emmie]

we should, and quite frankly anyone who does it should never be allowed to set foot back in UK. If they want to go and fight for some people, country they have never set foot in before, their allegiance is not with UK.

[emmie]

they pose a threat same way as those bstards who called Lee Rigby, they can have their heads turned, i couldn't give a hoot who by, but they should have no part of a this country. London has taken a battering before, and i wonder when the next one will be, and the thought it could be yet again my so called countrymen makes me feel sick.