Lone wolf, low-tech attacks a last resort for ‘weak’ jihadists
Experts say terrorists are scaling down operations in desperate bid for publicity
THE terror attack on Parliament came a year to the day after the Isil suicide bombers killed more than 30 people in Brussels and bore striking similarities to atrocities in France and Germany.
The scenes on Westminster Bridge, with a vehicle used as a deadly weapon, was chillingly reminiscent to the attack on Nice in July last year when dozens of people were killed as a lorry ploughed into a large crowd watching a fireworks display to mark the Bastille Day holiday. Months later an attacker drove a lorry into a crowded Christmas market in central Berlin, killing several people and injuring dozens more.
It comes amid concerns that terrorists are increasingly resorting to “lowtech” attacks to inflict maximum damage because of the difficulty of obtaining guns and bombs. Both Isil and al-Qaeda have previously urged followers to use vehicles to carry out attacks.
In September 2014, then-spokesman Abu Mohammed al-Adnani referred to “the filthy French” in a statement telling Muslims within the country to attack them in any way they could, including “crush them with your car”.
A report in December by Europol, the EU’s law enforcement agency, said the bloc was facing a range of terrorist threats and attacks, including the use of bladed weapons and vehicles. In January the former terror laws watchdog David Anderson spoke of a “realisation on the part of the terrorists that they don’t need sophisticated explosives plots to take great numbers of lives”. He added: “People are using automatic weapons, heavy goods vehicles, even knives, machetes, and securing all the publicity they could possibly want from deploying relatively simple weapons such as that.”
Earlier this month it was revealed that 13 potential attacks had been foiled since the murder of Lee Rigby in 2013, while counter-terrorism units are run-
‘Terrorists realised that they don’t need sophisticated explosives plots to take great numbers of lives’
ning more than 500 live investigations at any time. The official threat level for international terrorism has been at severe – meaning an attack is “highly likely” – for two years.
The events at Westminster appear to tally with warnings about more rudimentary tactics, such as lone or small numbers of assailants carrying out knife attacks or using vehicles as weapons. Scotland Yard counter-terror chief Mark Rowley said this month that police were concerned about “everything from fairly simple attacks with knives or using vehicles all the way through to the more complex firearms attacks”.
Security services and police will be starting to piece together the possible motivations behind the attack, but the location – the heart of British democracy – will be seen as highly significant.
Will Geddes, chief executive of International Corporate Protection, said: “Obviously the method of attack – a low-tech attack which uses a gun or knife and a car – [means] it is highly likely this attacker knew they were going to die. There is every chance it will be an Isil lone wolf.”
Mr Geddes suggested that the attacks show Isil’s influence is waning.
He said: “Their propaganda machine is failing, their numbers are falling and they are unable to get as much air time as they used to. They have got to do something which is going to make the whole world turn round. Parliament is a target that they know will draw the attention of the international media. It’s a symbolic attack to draw as much attention as possible to themselves.”