Allies must win online war with evil Islamic State

Even in a world hardened to the brutality of terrorists, bombing a pop concert packed with children is a new level of savagery. It is difficult to imagine how far a person must have drifted from any basic system of moral values to want to rob such innocent young people of the opportunity to grow old. It is also impossible for any decent human being to make sense of the motives of another who would commit such a despicable act. In targeting a concert of Ariana Grande, a US pop star immensely popular with primary school and teenage girls, cowardly scum Salman Abedi knew the toll his actions would take. He knew he would maim and murder children out for, what for some, was their first time at a gig . He knew for the 20,000 gathered in the Manchester Arena he would psychologically scar them for life. And he knew the massacre would terrorise mothers and fathers around the world who believed there were some places still left that were safe for their son and daughters. Now, more than ever, Britain needs its allies and an America which, given its resources, will tirelessly dedicate itself to the eradication of the Islamic State. However, the fight must be led on other fronts than just militarily. No doubt Abedi, 22, formed his hatred of the West from the comforts of his Manchester home as he plotted just how his jihad would earn him his 72 virgins in paradise. As his ISIS comrades fought their war in the deserts of the Middle East his evil thrived, after trips to his parents’ Libyan homeland, in the safety of his bedroom – free to surf the internet to learn how to carry out his heinous act. And it is here, online, where as much needs to be done as it does on any battlefield. Radical Islam may be losing ground in Syria and Iraq, but the fight against it in the cities of Britain, Europe and America is far from over. If the attacks by cowards such as Abedi are to be stopped, it is vital the US military’s Cyber Command destroys the group’s internet connections to leave the jihadists in a state of virtual isolation. The objectives should not only be to interrupt its chain of command but possibly, and more importantly, to prevent its ability to tyrannise, radicalise and recruit externally. America, the UK and its coalition have delayed long enough. Containment, as we have seen, is no longer an option. But the military cannot win the fight alone. US technology giants such as Google, Facebook, Whats App, Snapchat and the like all have an equal part to play. For too long they have allowed such terrorists to use their sites to generate fear, gain support and teach deadly skills into the minds of people throughout the free world. And while dozens of planned attacks have been disrupted, it is impossible, as Manchester has shown, to neutralise every potential threat from every deranged mind. As US counterterrorism experts claim ISIS is now under siege in the Middle East, their devastating attacks abroad will grow. But at what point do these disciples of ISIS’S bloodlust realise such attacks, whether co-ordinated by groups or conducted by lone wolves, do not advance their sickening cause? Whatever terror is unleashed it is promptly followed by the resolve, the will, of civilised nations to root out the agents of their war and bring them to justice. In the grim aftermath of the Manchester bombing, the courage and determination that unites so many will again become clear.

Terrorists use sites to generate fear & teach deadly skills