Militant Islam Monitor > Articles > New Report Reveals that Britain is the Hub of Violent Islamism Worldwide
New Report Reveals that Britain is the Hub of Violent Islamism Worldwide
July 5, 2010
Islamist Terrorism: The British Connections
"Islamist Terrorism: The British Connections will become the indispensable reference for any future inquiry into British neo-Jihadi terrorism."
- Marc Sageman, M.D., Ph.D., author of Leaderless Jihad
"It should inform the policies of any future British government with the resolve to tackle issues which concern most British people."
- Michael Burleigh, author of Blood and Rage: A Cultural History of Terrorism
Five years after the 7/7 London bombings, al-Qaeda inspired terrorism remains the UK's greatest national security threat. Islamist Terrorism: The British Connections, a seminal new report by the Centre for Social Cohesion (CSC), presents the first comprehensive overview of the UK's connections to violent Islamism worldwide.
Islamist Terrorism profiles 127 Islamism-inspired terrorist convictions and attacks in the UK, spanning the decade 1999 to 2009. It outlines the links the individuals had to terrorist groups; their nationality and ethnic origin; their age, hometown, occupation and education; which other radical Islamists they were connected to; what legislation the government used to jail them; and much more. The data is statistically analysed to show which trends exist among those involved in Islamism-inspired terrorism.
The report also shows how Britain's links to violent Islamism are almost two decades old � profiling almost 100 other offences committed abroad since 1993 connected to Britain, including terrorist convictions, terrorist training, suicide attacks, and extraditions.
Executive summary and preview
http://www.socialcohesion.co.uk/uploads/1278089320islamist_terrorism_preview.pdf
KEY TRENDS
Between 1999 and 2009, 124 individuals were convicted for Islamism-related terrorism offences or committed suicide attacks in the UK. Analysis of the combined total of 127 convictions or attacks � collectively referred to as Islamism related offences (IROs) � shows:
PROSCRIBED ORGANISATIONS:
� 32% linked to proscribed organisations � 40 individuals (32%) who committed IROs had a direct link to one or more proscribed organisations; the two most prevalent being al-Muhajiroun (15%) and al-Qaeda (14.5%).
� 7/8 major bomb plots linked to al-Qaeda � Seven of the UK's eight major bomb plot cells contained individual members with direct links to al-Qaeda: 7/7; the �fertiliser bomb' cell; the �dirty bomb' cell; the �ricin bomb' cell; the �shoe bomb' cell; Bilal Abdulla's Glasgow airport cell; and the transatlantic �liquid bomb' cell. (Only the 21/7 cell lacked undisputed evidence of direct contact with any proscribed organisation).
� Bomb plot cell members twice as likely to have links to al-Qaeda � Just under a third (30%, n=11) of the 37 total cell members involved in the major plots had direct links to al-Qaeda, compared to 14.5% of all individuals who committed IROs.
TERRORIST TRAINING:
� 31% attended terrorist training camps � Just under a third (31%) of all individuals who committed IROs had attended one or more terrorist training camps, the most common location being Pakistan. The majority (68%, n=26) of those who attended camps are British nationals.
� 7/8 major bomb plot cells received terrorist training � Seven of the eight contained members who had attended terrorist training camps.
� Bomb plot cell members more likely to have received terrorist training � Half (51%, n=19) of the 37 cell members had attended camps, compared to 31% of all individuals who committed IROs.
� Most likely to be involved in bomb plots � 19 individuals (15%, all IROs) both attended training camps and had direct links to one or more proscribed organisations. Of these, over two thirds (68%, n=13) were involved in the major bomb plots.
PAKISTANI LINKS:
� Pakistani links to 75% of major UK bomb plots � Six of the eight plots contained individual members who had trained in Pakistan.
�.Pakistani terrorist groups linked to UK bomb plots � Four senior members � 7/7, the �fertiliser' and the �dirty bomb' plots � were directly linked to one or more Pakistani based terrorist groups.
� Most common location for terrorist training camps � 55% (n=21) of those who attended terrorist training camps trained in Pakistan.
� Pakistani heritage � 28% of those who committed IROs have some Pakistani heritage, of whom at least 80% (n=29) were British nationals with Pakistani origins.
AGE & GENDER:
� 96% of IROs carried out by men � Only five women have been convicted, but none for violent acts.
� 68% of IROs committed by those aged below 30 � Many of the remaining third were ideologues.
EDUCATION & EMPLOYMENT:
� The most common level of education achieved was study for a higher education qualification (15%) � Including graduates and postgraduates, a minimum of 31% of those who committed IROs had at some point attended university or a higher education institute.
� The most common status was unemployed (35%) � However, a total of 42% of IROs were perpetrated by individuals either in employment (32%, n=41) or full-time education (10%, n=13).
NATIONALITY, ORIGIN & PLACE OF RESIDENCE:
� �Home-grown' terrorism threat � 69% of IROs were perpetrated by British citizens.
� South-central Asia � Almost half (46%) of IROs were perpetrated by individuals of a South-central Asian origin of ancestry. The second and third most frequent regions of origin are Eastern Africa (16%) and Northern Africa (13%).
� London was most common place of residence � 48% (n=61) of IROs were committed by individuals living in London. The next two most common regions were the West Midlands (13%) and Yorkshire and the Humber (9%).
SENTENCES & LEGISLATION:
� 60% of convictions were secured under anti-terrorism legislation � Three quarters of which were under the Terrorism Act 2000.
� The most common sentence was between 13 months and four years � Given 39 times (32%). Sentences totalling ten years or longer were given 25 times (20%) and a life or indefinite sentence was given on 23 occasions (19%).
� A minimum of 25 individuals successfully appealed their sentences; three had their sentences increased by the Court of Appeal; and a minimum of 29 were either refused leave to appeal or unsuccessfully appealed their conviction or sentence.
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Notes
1. South-central Asia region includes Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Iran according to the UN world region classification.
2. To obtain the full report please contact the CSC
Enquiries: 0207 222 8909 / 07538 248610
The Centre for Social Cohesion is an independent think tank
* The Centre for Social Cohesion * Clutha House * 10 Storey's Gate * London * SW1P 3AY *
* 0207 222 8909 * mailatsocialcohesion.co.uk*
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