Law & Paneir

IN the final part of this article, I would like to dwell more on lone wolf attacks by extremist groups. Lone wolves will become the “new norm” for current and future terrorist attacks. As proven in Auckland, New Zealand, terrorist Ahamed Aathil Mohamed entered a supermarket, snatched a knife from the shelf and stabbed seven individuals, critically injuring three of them. With a simple plan and no expenses, the terrorist completed his “mission” even though he knew he would die as a result of his crime. Despite the fact that security and intelligence officials knew Aathil was capable of committing a crime, they were powerless to stop him on this occasion. That demonstrates how dangerous the extremists are to the society. In most circumstances, they will act as a sleeper cell, and security agencies could only act once the attacks have been carried out. Lone wolves Lone wolves are the term for these terrorists. They are regarded a low-risk terrorist, supporter or sympathiser beca...

ACCORDING to MI5 director general Ken McCallum, 31 late-stage attack plots have been thwarted in the UK in the last four years alone, including six in the pandemic period, involving Islamic-based terrorist plots as well as a considerable number involving extreme right-wing groups. He had emphasised that terrorist threat to the UK is grave and persistent. His assessment applies to the entire world, not just the UK. The current geopolitical predicament, which includes the continuous “conflict” between China and the US, as well as territorial issues in the South China Sea, will exacerbate the current situation, which includes the Taliban’s rise in Afghanistan. The influx of refugees from conflict zones such as Afghanistan, Yemen and Syria into Europe and North America adds to the intelligence and security challenges. Terrorists pretending to be refugees in Brussels and Paris have carried out effective attacks. This infuriated far-right extremists in those countries, prompting them t...

THE landscape of international security has changed dramatically since Sept 11 attack in the US, exactly 20 years ago. Terrorism and terror acts are not limited to a single country or region. Terrorism is now becoming a global crisis. It has grown from the north to the south and from west to the east. After al-Qaeda was vanquished, Islamic State (ISIS) went on to commit more atrocities around the world. This organisation, likewise, had been defeated a few years ago. The emergence of the Taliban in Afghanistan is likely to have invigorated UK terrorists, according to UK MI5 Director General Ken McCallum, who indicated yesterday that it might be a morale boost for them. According to mi5.gov.uk, MI5 stands for Military Intelligence, Section Five, the British Government’s counterintelligence, and its duty is outlined under the Security Service Act 1989, which is to preserve national security, notably against threats such as terrorism and espionage. Furthermore, he added that terror...