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Thread: UK Counter-Terrorism (merged thread)

  1. #181
    Council Member davidbfpo's Avatar
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    There is ample coverage and reflection in today's media on what happened in an eighty-two second attack.

    As well as Britons, the pedestrians skittled by his car included four South Koreans, three French children, two Romanians, two Greeks and one each from Germany, Poland, Ireland, Italy, China and America.
    Link:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017...tsapp-message/

    The Met Police have stated:
    ..we will never understand why he did this....We still believe that Masood acted alone on the day and there is no information or intelligence to suggest there are further attacks planned.Even if he acted alone in the preparation, we need to establish with absolute clarity why he did these unspeakable acts to bring reassurance to Londoners, and to provide answers and closure for the families of those killed and the victims and survivors of this atrocity. We must all accept that there is a possibility we will never understand why he did this. That understanding may have died with him.
    Nevertheless, we are determined to understand if Masood was a lone actor inspired by terrorist propaganda or if others have encouraged, supported or directed him.
    Link:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-39396101

    Who was the attacker? This is one of the profiles read. Yes there is a Birmingham connection, even though he lived there for a very short time, a few months, with his wife and children. Was he radicalised in jail or when teaching in Saudi Arabia?
    Link:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017...polices-radar/

    The hero who stopped the 2011 riots in Birmingham, Tariq Jahan added:
    It’s funny how when a Muslim commits an atrocity, we’re all tarred with the same brush....the whole of Birmingham has been tarnished. Which is not true.
    I don’t think Birmingham necessarily has a problem, we just have a big population, and a big Muslim population. If there are going to be Islamic extremists they are just going to crop up in places like this.
    Link:https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/...nds-birmingham

    Nearly all those arrested in the follow-on police action have been released; the local senior CT officer for Birmingham stated the six arrested:
    As a result of their co-operation and our enquiries we are completely satisfied that they are not connected in any way to the terrorist attack in Westminster on Wednesday.
    Link:http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news...raids-12796021

    The last known photo of PC Palmer, with a US tourist:
    Last edited by davidbfpo; 03-26-2017 at 10:00 AM. Reason: 421v
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  2. #182
    Council Member davidbfpo's Avatar
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    Default Was this terrorism?

    An academic commentary that points out:
    We still don’t know why Masood drove a rental car along the pavement on Westminster Bridge in London, killing four people and injuring many more, before stabbing police officer Keith Palmer to death. Senior counter-terrorism police officer Neil Basu, has said: “We must all accept that there is a possibility we will never understand why he did this.”
    Link:https://theconversation.com/what-if-...errorism-75232

    Today's BBC News pointer to assorted themes:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-39446816
    Last edited by davidbfpo; 04-08-2017 at 09:07 PM. Reason: Posts 178-182 were a stand alone thread with 2.5k views.
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  3. #183
    Council Member davidbfpo's Avatar
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    Default Breaking encryption: the Westminster effect

    After the Westminster attack the new Home Secretary called for access to encrypted applications, notably What's App, as the suspect had sent a message or more immediately before the attack. A quite odd call given the legal powers the agencies now have and that the attacker's intention had not bene known, so how would access help?

    David Wells, a SME on CT & Sigint, has a commentary and I cite on passage:
    What this all means is that while the UK is equipped to monitor the known knowns (even though this remains very difficult), triaging new leads is a separate issue in the context of encryption. That of course doesn’t mean that ‘backdoors’ into encrypted services are the answer. But we need to be clear on the nature of the different problems facing intelligence agencies. And most importantly, have a grown-up conversation about new terrorism realities. Must we always apportion blame beyond the attacker?
    Link:https://counterterrorismmatters.word...ent/#more-1092
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  4. #184
    Council Member davidbfpo's Avatar
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    Default We will never understand why he did this: an update

    The lack of a known motivation for Khalid Masood's attack may now be challenged.

    First and controversially 'The Times' reported that his name and mobile phone number was affixed to leaflets @ Luton Islamic Centre; where Masood had lived five years before. See:https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/k...cc8e7dd190a2fc

    The Centre denied being involved and cited their public record in opposing extremism, including releasing to BBC TV a clip from Friday prayers after the attack and they have made a complaint about the story. See:http://lutonislamiccentre.com/press-release/

    Today 'The Daily Mail' had a remarkably detailed story that Masood a week before the attack contacted a family relative saying:
    You will soon hear of my death, but don’t worry, be happy, because I will be in a better place, I will be in paradise. I want you to be happy for me, I don’t want you to be sad. ‘I want it to be our secret.
    It adds at the end:
    So far, no letter, note or martyrdom video from Masood has emerged in which he explained his actions.
    Link:http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...ll-family.html
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  5. #185
    Council Member davidbfpo's Avatar
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    Default We will never understand why he did this: a 2nd update

    Somehow the police and friends have accessed the WhatsApp message and:
    In the message, sent just minutes before he began the rampage in which five people died and 50 were injured, the 52-year-old Muslim convert had declared that he was waging jihad in revenge against Western military action in Muslim countries in the Middle East.
    Plus he had doing a recce four days beforehand.
    Link:http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk...-a7706561.html
    Last edited by davidbfpo; 04-28-2017 at 08:17 PM. Reason: 123,719v
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  6. #186
    Council Member davidbfpo's Avatar
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    Default Secret Victory: The Intelligence War that beat the IRA

    Last week William Matchett, a thirty year veteran of the RUC / PSNI Special Branch spoke at a book launch @ Policy Exchange, London and in summary his argument is:
    Secret Victory shows what a successful rule of law approach looks like in an irregular war.
    There is a 35 mins podcast (yet to listen to):https://policyexchange.org.uk/event/...liam-matchett/

    The book 'Secret Victory: The Intelligence War that beat the IRA' was released in November 2016, in Ireland and has a plethora of five star reviews. Citing in part one review by Professor Michael Rainsborough, Head of War Studies, King’s College London:
    The author trenchantly, and effectively deconstructs the dirty war thesis, illustrating that much of the narrative is partial, factually flawed or often simply incoherent and contradictory. The systematic critique of this popular orthodoxy through evidence and argumentation, along with the more detailed illumination of the Special Branch’s evolution as a vital arm in the security effort, constitutes a highly original contribution to knowledge and understanding of the Northern Ireland conflict.
    Link:https://www.amazon.co.uk/Secret-Vict...secret+victory

    Link to USA Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Secret-Victor...secret+victory
    Last edited by davidbfpo; 06-07-2017 at 10:36 AM. Reason: Copied from Northern Ireland thread
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  7. #187
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    Default Manchester (UK) concert terror attack

    There's a lot of fake news and disinformation online about the Manchester explosion. We're keeping track of it here.
    https://www.buzzfeed.com/jimwaterson...ena-fake-news#
    Last edited by davidbfpo; 05-23-2017 at 09:54 AM. Reason: Unsupported sentence removed re Daily Mail.

  8. #188
    Council Member AdamG's Avatar
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    Default Manchester (UK) concert terror attack

    Children were among 22 people killed in a suicide attack after an Ariana Grande concert at Britain's Manchester Arena, police said early Tuesday.
    The bomber also died when he detonated an improvised explosive device at about 10:33 p.m. local time (5:33 p.m. ET) on Monday, Greater Manchester Police Chief Constable Ian Hopkins told reporters.
    Authorities said 59 other people were injured.
    The incident sparked a nightlong search for loved ones as frantic parents tried to locate their children, and groups of friends scattered by the explosion sought each another.
    Video shot inside the 21,000-capacity venue showed teenagers screaming as they made their way out amid a sea of pink balloons. Some fans were still wearing the star's trademark kitten ears as they fled.
    http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/am...turing-n763286
    A scrimmage in a Border Station
    A canter down some dark defile
    Two thousand pounds of education
    Drops to a ten-rupee jezail


    http://i.imgur.com/IPT1uLH.jpg

  9. #189
    Council Member davidbfpo's Avatar
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    Default Manchester (UK) concert terror attack

    Created for updates on this suicide bomber's attack @ Manchester Arena, at the end of a pop concert by an American Singer and as yet no claims of responsibility. Link to BBC News "rolling" update:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...ester-40010124

    Two earlier relevant posts will be moved here, so this will slip to being the third post.
    Last edited by davidbfpo; 06-12-2017 at 07:57 PM. Reason: Add 1st link. edited after merging.
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  10. #190
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    A useful summary from the BBC's Home Correspondent that starts with:
    The UK has not seen a bomb attack like the Manchester outrage since 2005 for three simple reasons:
    1. It takes some expertise, which is difficult to come by without help.
    2. It requires a lot of planning and preparation, both of which increase the chances that MI5 and other agencies will discover what is going on.
    3. Individuals who are sufficiently organised to put the first two together and determined enough to see the plan through to its awful conclusion are very rare.

    Link:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...ester-40012208
    Sadly it also notes yesterday was the fourth anniversary of Drummer Lee Rigby's murder.
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  11. #191
    Council Member davidbfpo's Avatar
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    Oh dear, with my emphasis:
    The UK terror threat level has been raised to the highest level of "critical", meaning further attacks may be imminent, Theresa May has said.The move came after investigators were unable to rule out Manchester bombing suspect Salman Abedi acted alone, the prime minister said.
    Military personnel would now be deployed to protect key sites. (Operation Temperer being the operational name).
    Link:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-40023488

    The suspect has been id'd as a UK national, of Libyan heritage, from Manchester; possibly radicalised and who had left university after two years. See:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017...e-bomber-know/

    Earlier today there signs of annoyance, being polite, in London over information being provided to our "cousins" and within a short time it being provided to the US media (NBC), hours before the UK media were informed. Not that has not happened before.
    Last edited by davidbfpo; 05-23-2017 at 09:58 PM. Reason: Add 2nd link
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  12. #192
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    Quote Originally Posted by davidbfpo View Post
    Oh dear, with my emphasis:Link:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-40023488

    The suspect has been id'd as a UK national, of Libyan heritage, from Manchester; possibly radicalised and who had left university after two years. See:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017...e-bomber-know/

    Earlier today there signs of annoyance, being polite, in London over information being provided to our "cousins" and within a short time it being provided to the US media (NBC), hours before the UK media were informed. Not that has not happened before.
    David, you should know if you want information leaked just give it to the Americans. The head of the French Secret Service said the same thing in his book titled the 4th World War. He would ask close Americans if he could share something with them, but he needed a guarantee it wouldn't be leaked. His U.S. friends couldn't make that promise, so the French took care of the issue repeatedly in the shadows without knowledge of the U.S. Our politicians leak intelligence to undermine one another, and now our intelligence agencies are leaking information to undermine U.S. political figures they don't like. Until there is accountability it will simply get worse.

    Back on topic, you certainly have our condolences for your country's recent losses do to this senseless event.
    Last edited by davidbfpo; 07-16-2017 at 06:21 PM. Reason: Add last link and remove it!

  13. #193
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    From UK today....

    UK decision to stop intelligence sharing with US on #manchesterattack is limited to "law enforcement to law enforcement"- police with FBI.

    BUT WAIT the same exact information is sent as well to US Homeland Security on info concerning terrorist attacks aboard....leak could have come from Homeland as well.....

    Intel sharing with NSA and CIA continues though....

    REMEMBER Trump WH has been incessantly bashing the FBI for constant "leaking" and this would give them ample opportunity to clamp down on FBI and distract from Russian investigations

    Sun Tzu explained the vital importance of attacking your enemy's alliances with his partners 2,500 years ago.

    NOTE..there are a few inside UK that now are questioning....did the leak come for UK sources concerned that the public was not being told the seriousness of the bomb attack....and potential ties to France and Brussels and the fact that the bomber had been reported to police a total of 10 times....leak is distracting from this...
    Last edited by davidbfpo; 05-25-2017 at 12:21 PM. Reason: Copied to here and edited to fit the subject

  14. #194
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    Newsweek‏
    @Newsweek

    Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones of Infowars called the victims of the horrible Manchester attack "liberal trendies"
    http://bit.ly/2rRpCS5

    Alex Jones is a proTrump alt rightist ie white nationalist and Trump often follows his comments on Infowars.....

    During his divorce trial in Houston TX several weeks ago he described himself as a "performance artist" not a journalist......

    BTW during Brexit he was a massive supporter of UKIP and Farage.....

  15. #195
    Council Member davidbfpo's Avatar
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    Default What was leaked?

    From a UK political blog site, so the links are cited:
    Here’s a rundown of the leaks so far:

    • Casualty figures and attack method. Leaked to NBC and CBS.
    • Salman Abedi’s name. Reported on US breakfast television at least six hours before British authorities released it.
    • Abedi’s brother arrested. Leaked to Politico.
    • Device spec: secret British analysis of the “sophisticated” device. Leaked to NBC.
    • Bomber ID process: via a bank card found on his body. Leaked to NBC.
    • Al Qaeda link. Leaked to NBC.
    • Crime scene pics bag / device. Leaked to New York Times.
    • Bombmaking workshop in Abedi’s home. Leaked to ABC News.

    The FT reports today that bomb site analysis is shared between a select group of allies via an encrypted portal. It is never intended to appear in public…
    Link:https://order-order.com/2017/05/25/8...sh-government/


    PS don't bother with the comments that follow.


    The bomb analysis is shared via the Bomb Data Centre network, which includes many non-NATO members and IIRC the PRC and Russia.
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  16. #196
    Council Member davidbfpo's Avatar
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    Default Three of the better commentaries today

    Three of the better commentaries today; being a very topical subject their content is wide at times.

    On information sharing, which starts:
    It’s not the first time sensitive information about an ongoing British counter-terrorism investigation has leaked out in US media but, make no mistake, the decision to stop sharing information about the Manchester attack with America is unprecedented. In July 2005, I was the Head of News at Scotland Yard and strategic communications lead for all blue light services in the aftermath of the 7/7 bombings.
    Link:http://crestadvisory.com/its-good-to-share/

    How many times did those around the bomber tell the authorities? Which starts with:
    he was repeatedly flagged to the authorities over his extremist views, but was not stopped by officers, it emerged Wednesday night.
    Link:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/05/24/security-services-missed-five-opportunities-stop-manchester/?

    Finally the always sane Richard Barrett, ex-MI6 & UN, takes a wider view and asks is our strategy really working; from near the end:
    Preventing future attacks will be as complex as preventing past ones. It gets no easier. But one thing is for sure. The answer is not more bombs and bullets. We have been trying that for almost 16 years with little or no improvement to show. In fact, it is indisputable that the terrorist threat is now more serious than it was before the 9/11 attacks.
    Link:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017...ck-inevitable/
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  17. #197
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    Quote Originally Posted by davidbfpo View Post
    From a UK political blog site, so the links are cited:
    Link:https://order-order.com/2017/05/25/8...sh-government/


    PS don't bother with the comments that follow.


    The bomb analysis is shared via the Bomb Data Centre network, which includes many non-NATO members and IIRC the PRC and Russia.
    What is interesting about this particular attack...the UK slams down an info wall and yet on the Berlin truck attack killing just ten less and having the same number of injuried the German authorities were open and forthcoming with all information...or in the Paris attacks all information was flowing as fast as the authorities would actually allow it.

    What I think is happening is that it is now forcing the current government to start acknowledging a few facts that are now coming out via social media.....

    1. French and German intel had passed on solid information concerning the bomber up to four days before the attacks
    2. bomber was on a fly watch list and Turkey correctly and speedily informed UK about his flights out of Trukey before the bombing
    3. bomber flies a IS flag in the back of his house
    4. bombers family repeatedly warned the police
    5. all indications of virtually no security in place when he simply walked into the building when the performance was over....

    Just as in the German truck attack red flags were flying literally everywhere but no one connected the dots......

    One of the lessons learned in the Canne, Paris and Berlin attacks...you leave all security in major events firmly in place until the last person is out of the event..that did not happen in Manchester....and every bag and bulky clothing is searched....a bomb vest is not a easy thing to look slim in....

    I highly suspect that the leaks are coming from UK sources fed up with the tightness and lack of info going to the public ..........

    One thing French, German and Brussels authorities have learned..open up all channels of communications to the public and ask for as much help as they can provide...videos...photos...tweets..observations etc....

    The failures around the German truck attacker are even played out in public and thus the public has no feeling that the government is not trying to coverup mistakes and is in fact learning from their own mistakes....something the UK is not doing right now....

    Example..German investigators had learned about the trucker attacker being involved in drug sales as a finance mechanism....they raided six locations inside Berlin yesterday rolling up 10 major drug dealers and 6 of them were high value jihadist targets....

    Ever since that Dec attack German authorities have been raiding and raiding and raiding and arresting along the way....after the London car attack yes you saw some activity but not to the levels seen in Brussels, Paris and Berlin....

    What is not leaked and has not been leaked is how did the UK know within virtually the first hour or so of chaos exactly who the bomber was??

    BTW...one leaked article about the making of the bomb ...highly professional was the undertone..is now being countered that the bomber made it himself and BTW no professional bomb maker kills himself......

    So in fact some leaks were not all that accurate.....
    Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 05-25-2017 at 03:41 PM.

  18. #198
    Council Member davidbfpo's Avatar
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    Citing one line by Outlaw09:
    all indications of virtually no security in place when he simply walked into the building when the performance was over....
    From my media watching that is simply wrong. The bomb went off in a public area, the venue's foyer is adjacent to and open to a train station concourse. He did not access the concert venue itself. The bomb detonated as the early concert leavers entered the public area, but the singer gave one more final son so most people stayed inside.

    Added next day, the NYT report has photos and a diagram of he location.

    Link:https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/05/24/world/europe/manchester-arena-bomb-materials-photos.html?

    That is why the British Transport Police, who cover the railway network, had initial primacy as it was in their jurisdiction. The BTP always have a uniform presence at such a station.

    On the move more maybe later.
    Last edited by davidbfpo; 05-26-2017 at 08:58 AM. Reason: Add NYT link
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    Quote Originally Posted by davidbfpo View Post
    Citing one line by Outlaw09:

    From my media watching that is simply wrong. The bomb went off in a public area, the venue's foyer is adjacent to and open to a train station concourse. He did not access the concert venue itself. The bomb detonated as the early concert leavers entered the public area, but the singer gave one more final son so most people stayed inside.

    That is why the British Transport Police, who cover the railway network, had initial primacy as it was in their jurisdiction. The BTP always have a uniform presence at such a station.

    On the move more maybe later.
    Recheck all available video footage...all large metal gates were open into this entrance area and there is a not a single security person standing around and or next to them...and no search tables were present...

    Secondly, the bomb blast flash was in fact in an enclosed area floor area as the flash literally lit up the entire roof area thus he was already in the public area just in front of the arena area......AFTER passing through the open metal security gates outside....had the event gone on longer he would have been inside the arena itself..question is why did he not wait....and was the bomb RC detonated....actually the numbers killed and or wounded are relatively small when looking as the actual blast flash.....when you think that 12 were killed and over 62 wounded in a simple truck crash here in Berlin....that covered a distance of 30 meters....

    In all stadiums here for example all security systems remain in place even if they are further away from the actual event and police and or armed private security remain there as well....and metal detectors are in fashion now
    Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 05-25-2017 at 04:16 PM.

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    BTW...highly suspect that Trump will use these leaks to deflect from his Russian investigations....
    Last edited by davidbfpo; 05-26-2017 at 08:59 AM.

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