Amateur hour
Best thing I've read on the episode:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/07...iocy_outbreak/
Don't know if any of you have read his book, I doubt it was published in the U.S., but it's a heck of a polemic, well worth a weekend read:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lions-Donkey...3936286&sr=8-1
Iraq cell may be tied to British plots
LA Times Staff Writer Sebastian Rotella reports
LONDON — If the past is any guide, the investigation of the attempted car bombings in Britain will lead overseas to an Islamic network affiliated with Al Qaeda.
The question, investigators and experts say, is whether the trail of the would-be bombers will confirm fears that the threat from the war-torn Iraq region is escalating.
But the background of the apparent chief suspect, Iraqi doctor Bilal Abdullah, suggests a more direct connection: networks in the Iraq region that are linked to Al Qaeda and that select and dispatch operatives on a mission to Britain, experts say. Abdullah's medical credentials, British passport and suspected ties to Sunni fundamentalists in Iraq could make him an ideal leader for a plan to hit London with a taste of Baghdad-style carnage, experts say.
"This is exactly what a number of us in the intelligence world had been predicting," said David Omand, who served as Britain's security and intelligence coordinator until April 2005. "The concern was that Al Qaeda in Iraq would turn their minds to attacks outside Iraq. It's not really a strategic surprise. It looks like there's that connection to Iraq."
- Additional Complications
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,288623,00.html
"Britain Not Sharing Terror Probe Intel, Interpol Chief Says
Monday, July 09, 2007
LONDON — The head of Interpol said Monday that Britain has not shared any information gleaned from the investigation of three failed car bomb attacks, which he said is symptomatic of London's reluctance to join in global efforts to combat terrorism."
Interesting, the MET's SO13 and SO15 branches are openly sharing with our LEs and EOD Techs.Originally Posted by goesh
We've attended their courses over the last 3 years, but I doubt that would be a reason to share with us.
-they might be too preoccupied at present to do much sharing, but then I don't believe everything on the net.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/ar...TICLE_ID=56503
"Muslims declare sovereignty over U.S., UK
Hear Islamic leaders in London: 'Queen Elizabeth, go to hell!'
Posted: July 9, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern
By Art Moore
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com
Across town from the site of the recent attempted car-bomb attacks, several thousand Muslims gathered in front of the London Central Mosque to applaud fiery preachers prophesying the overthrow of the British government – a future vision that encompasses an Islamic takeover of the White House and the rule of the Quran over America.
"One day my dear Muslims," shouted Anjem Choudary, "Islam will govern Britain!"
Choudary was a co-founder of Al Muhajiroun, the now-banned group tied to suspects in the July 7, 2005, London transport bombings and a cheerleader of the 9/11 attacks.
"Democracy, hypocrisy," Choudary chanted as the crowd echoed him. "Tony Blair, terrorist! Tony Blair, murderer! Queen Elizabeth, go to hell!"
Britain's new anti-terrorism tool
The whole thing's got me wondering just a tad more these days.
From the LA Times
LONDON — Britain's new security chief warned Sunday that the domestic battle against Islamic militancy could take up to 15 years, and said Britons must start sharing information about neighbors they suspect of involvement in terrorism.
Adm. Alan West, the former navy chief whom Prime Minister Gordon Brown recently named security minister, said a new approach was critical.
"Britishness does not normally involve snitching or talking about someone," he told the Sunday Telegraph. "I'm afraid, in this situation, anyone who's got any information should say something because the people we are talking about are trying to destroy our entire way of life."
He said preventing the radicalization of young British Muslims was his top priority.
"I believe it will take 10 to 15 years," he said. "But I think it can be done as long as we as a nation apply ourselves to it and it's done across the board."
Chatham House, Oct 07: Islam, Politics and Security in the UK
....Through examining the anti-war movement in Britain, this paper
explores the complexity and potential of Muslim activism and identifies several areas where further work needs to be done and actions taken. We can use this example to understand better how improved dialogue and interaction through activism may strengthen cross-cultural ties. Muslim identity is diffuse, complex, and fractious. There are multiple national origins, Islamic sects, languages, practices and beliefs. Muslim identity in Britain has been conceived as a singular and static primary identifier, being what social scientists term essentialized as an unchangeable and fixed category. This results in a stereotype of what a Muslim is and should be, and hinders others in society who struggle to understand this complexity (but who have little difficulty distinguishing vastly different segments within Christianity).
As many Muslims in Britain have found, ‘the intersection of religion and identity is complex’, where they have had to contend with what it is to be British while simultaneously being influenced by their ancestors’ homeland, their local community, and their faith, with many constructing multiple identities such as being British/Pakistani/Muslim.5 For many Muslim anti-war activists their politicization afforded an opportunity (and even a necessity) to create identities and to challenge the hierarchies established by their elders. Thus ‘the making of a British Islam is an ongoing, unfinished process of experimentation, diversity and debate’. It is this conflict over how to be British and Muslim that is exacerbating the alienation felt by some Muslim youth and creating a space for ‘fundamentalism’.....
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