The new head of British security service MI5 Jonathan Evans said
on Monday that there are at least 2,000 people in Britain who pose
a threat to national security because of their support for
terrorism.
In his first public speech, made in Manchester, since taking the
job in April, Evans said there had been a rise of 400 since
November 2006 and some are as young as 15.
Calling Islamic extremism the "most immediate and acute
peacetime threat" in the 98-year history of MI5, he said "The more
that this ideology spreads in our communities, the harder it will
be to maintain the kind of society that the vast majority of us
wish to live in."
"As I speak terrorists are targeting young people and children
in this country," he said, "They are radicalizing, indoctrinating
and grooming young, vulnerable people to carry out acts of
terrorism."
"This year, we have seen individuals as young as 15 and 16
implicated in terrorist-related activity," he said.
"Al-Qaida has a clear determination to mount terrorist attacks
against the United Kingdom," he said. "This remains the case today,
and there is no sign of it reducing."
In Iraq, Algeria and parts of East Africa, especially Somalia,
he said, the "al-Qaida brand" had expanded and now posed a threat
to Britain.
Evans also warned about the number of Russian spies in Britain.
"Since the end of the Cold War we have seen no decrease in the
numbers of undeclared Russian intelligence officers in UK -- at the
Russian Embassy and associated organizations -- conducting covert
activity in this country," he added.
(Xinhua News Agency November 6, 2007)
