Amid widespread fears over the influence of Islamic State terrorists, he revealed police have been taking down more than 1,000 pieces of extremist material from the internet each week, including videos of beheadings, torture and suicides.
Britons travelling to the
Middle East had "sworn personal allegiance" to Islamic State (IS) and
could potentially have committed treason, Mr Hammond told MPs on Thursday.
"There are a number of
offences under English law with which returning foreign fighters can be
charged," Mr Hammond said.
Scotland Yard Assistant
Commissioner Rowley said: "So far this year we have made 218 arrests and
are running exceptionally high numbers of counter-terrorism investigations, the
likes of which we have not seen for several years.
"Against an increasing
operational tempo we are disrupting several attack plots a year.
"These plots are of
varied sophistication, from individuals planning to carry out spontaneous yet
deadly attacks to more complex conspiracies, almost all seemingly are either
directed by or inspired by terrorism overseas."
More than 80% of the
material removed from the internet was related to Iraq and Syria, where the
success of Islamic State has prompted fears the group's influence may be
growing abroad.
Asst Comm Rowley said 66
people who have been reported missing to police are feared to have travelled to
Syria.
"The growing problem
of young, impressionable, and in some cases vulnerable individuals being
radicalised online is an increasing risk," he said. "Extremist groups are
using social media in highly sophisticated ways in order to recruit or persuade
individuals towards their violent and warped ideologies.
Sky news
No comments:
Post a Comment