Today’s threat ‘different to menace of 7/7’

THE rise of Islamic State (IS) and extremists’ capacity to “reach” into homes means Britain faces a “very different” threat today compared to the time of the 7 July bombings, the country’s most senior counter-terrorism officer has said.

Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley appealed to communities to “step forward” in the fight against radicalisation, saying their help is now more crucial than ever to efforts to prevent fresh attacks.

Ahead of the tenth anniversary of 7/7, Mr Rowley said officers are now faced with a “completely different profile” as IS exploits modern technology in an attempt to create a “violent cult”.

He said: “The threat we face today is very different. More than ever before, we need the help of communities. It’s absolutely essential that everyone plays their part.”

Mr Rowley described how the threat had changed since four suicide bombers attacked London’s transport network on July 7 2005, killing 52 people.

“We’ve seen another step change in terrorism in the way it works and connects across the world in the last couple of years,” he said.

“We are not simply confronting a terrorist organisation like al-qaeda or like the IRA which works in a secret way and plots and plans what it wants to do secretly. Tight organisations planning terrorist atrocities, going for complex, high-impact attacks was where we were.

“We are dealing with an organisation that uses marketing, uses the internet and is trying to create a corrupt violent cult that is going to act in its name.”

IS, also known as Isil, is creating an “enormous” list of potential targets which is “not very focused”, Mr Rowley said.

“They are not necessarily focused on massively complicated attacks. They are focused on the propaganda value.”