Courage to speak the bitter truth on terror

THE reaction was as predictable as it was inevitable. Almost as a Pavlovian response, liberals in Britain united to condemn Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson’s comments that British-born jihadis should be hunted down and ‘eliminated’ because ‘dead terrorists can’t harm us’.

Labour said he was ‘morally wrong’ and his comments contravened the Geneva Convention. Lib Dem defence spokesman Sir Menzies Campbell claimed he was ‘endorsing a breach of humanitarian law’. But while he may have used strong language, wasn’t Mr Williamson articulating what most of the country thinks? We are a deeply tolerant nation, which has absorbed millions of hard-working decent immigrants – but we draw the line at those who reject our values and want to kill us.

By taking up arms against their country, the jihadis are traitors and have forfeited the right to live here. They have also made themselves legitimate targets.

They knew when they joined Islamic State that it was a barbaric terrorist movement which passionately hates Britain and the West. They also knew it decapitates helpless hostages, executes homosexuals and forces captive women into sexual slavery – yet still they took up its banner.

It’s only because they have now been defeated on the battlefield that they want to come crawling back. If they were allowed to return – as 300 already have – who can say they wouldn’t carry out terrorist attacks here?

They would have to be placed under surveillance but our overstretched security services only have the manpower to mount a full-time watch on 60 people at a time.

And how significant that only yesterday, police and MI5 confessed they were already arresting an average of one terrorist suspect every day. How can they be expected to keep a proper track of hundreds more?

This paper believes in the liberal values that make Britain such a civilised nation. Those who voluntarily went to join IS have rejected those civilised values – not to mention the hospitality we’ve shown them – and want to kill us.

They are a threat to our society. To avoid more atrocities such as Manchester and London Bridge, that threat must be destroyed.

Mr Williamson is to be praised for having the courage to say so.