When British parliamentarians return to work at the House of Commons today after the summer recess, they will be presented with a package of anti-terrorism measures being proposed by Prime Minister David Cameron and his government and coalition partners in an attempt to stem the threat poised by UK born-and-raised jihadists who have joined the radical ranks of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil). Late Friday, British authorities raised their national security threat index to severe — in effect acknowledging publicly that the threat of a terrorist attack is highly likely. While the intelligence reports that prompted the rise in threat awareness obviously hasn’t been made public, the very fact that the government is acting in raising awareness of the threat and introducing the anti-Isil measures are significant.
It’s estimated that there are some 500 Britons who have left their homes in communities across the UK to travel to Syria and join Isil’s ranks. Indeed, intelligence analysis suggests that disgruntled youths from Denmark, France and the Netherlands have also joined the radical and murderous organisation, but the UK’s painful history of radicalised Islamists bringing terror to the buses and tube trains of London add a stark dimension to the urgent need for Britain to act. Among the measures being debated will be declaring travel to Syria and Iraq for the purpose of joining a radical organisation illegal, imposing jail terms on those who do so and withdrawing the passports of those suspected of wanting to join the radicals.
Britain has a long history of dealing with terrorist threats and its Prevention of Terrorism Act as amended gives widespread powers of arrest and detention to police in acting against those suspected of plotting terrorist offences, or to those who would aid and abet the committing of a terrorist offence. But there is a caveat that needs to be remembered by lawmakers in Britain: It’s all very fine to tighten laws where there is a clear and present danger. But inability to address the cultural, social and economic problems that radicalised youth in the first place is a serious failing.
