UK Counter-Terrorism (merged thread)

[davidbfpo]

An in depth article on the investigation that led to this aspiring Muslim convert conviction for plotting an attack in one of London's main shopping streets; known in the CT arena as an 'iconic' site.

A couple of interesting aspects:

For 10 years, there were attempts to enrol Ludlow in the (voluntary) government's de-radicalisation programme Prevent, but he resisted until October 2017 when he began a series of 17 meetings with an assigned mentor. Ludlow sought to create the impression he was positively engaging with the scheme, which appears to have been accepted by those managing his involvement, but in fact his terrorist activity was only increasing.

His jihadist mentor being from the Phillipines:

The device (mobile phone) revealed he had been using encrypted messaging applications to communicate with a Philippines-based IS militant and was planning to move there permanently.A subsequent official decision to revoke his passport angered Ludlow and he then switched his attention to planning an attack in the UK, encouraged and directed by a radicalised medic called Eyadzhemar Abdusalam who used the epithet Abu Yaqeen.

Link:https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-47458354