Too many jihadists to cope with

COBRA will have quickly realised this terrorist does not fit the usual profile for jihadists active in this country.

The government’s emergency intelligence committee will be looking at the known associates of 52-year-old Khalid Masood and whether he was working alone.

The average age of radicals is just 22 – often impressionable hotheads who were easy prey for preachers.

When Britain sustained its first Islamic terrorist attack in July 2005, I was coordinating the national intelligence agencies in support of COBRA.

The reality is MI5 and the police cannot monitor everyone they believe to be involved in Islamic terrorist activity.

There are just too many for them to cope with.

The Head of MI5 says his service knows of 3,000 jihadists in the UK – and it seems likely Masood wasn’t even on that list.

Such a huge number cannot possibly be monitored.

On top of these, with the Islamic State under pressure in Syria and Iraq, hundreds of British citizens who have fought with this murder gang will return home.

Masood seems to come from a relatively well-to-do background. This is not uncommon, contrary to the popular misconception that most jihadists are from poor families, marginalised and cast aside by society.

He had been in several prisons, and it is very likely that the Christian convert was radicalised while inside.

Disgracefully, our prisons remain a breeding ground for Islamic extremism.

His crimes, over 20 years, had involved violent assault, public order and possession of offensive weapons.

He had no terrorist convictions. But like many others who have launched attacks in Europe, Masood had previously come to the intelligence services’ attention on the margins of a terrorist investigation.

But he was no longer a suspect and he was not under surveillance.