Terrorism

Dr Rod Thornton, a lecturer in counter-terrorism at the university of Nottingham, was suspended on 4 May for documening serious misconduct by senior university management over the arrest of two university members under the Terrorism Act 2000 in May 2008. Using documents obtained under the Freedom of Information and Data Protection Acts, Thornton demonstrates that university management and senior academics colluded to paint Rizwaan Sabir and Hicham Yezza in a negative light despite no…

The killing of terrorist leader Osama bin Laden in Abottabad, Pakistan, on 1 May, brought an end to an extraordinary life, and a humiliating search by the US. It did not bring an end, however, to the all-pervasive western propaganda surrounding the al-Qa’eda phenomenon. There were immediate questions about the legality of the US attack on bin Laden’s compound on 1 May but there are also larger and more important questions.

Legality

Concern about the raid by US special…

Yet another war in the Middle East is materialising in front of our very eyes. In Libya, as in Afghanistan, Vietnam or Iraq, our politicians start off shedding floods of crocodile tears for the innocent civilians/protestors. Then we persuade the UN to create a “no fly” zone; and under the umbrella of that resolution we agree to bomb Gaddafi’s forces.

Then our “military advisors” are sent in to assist the rebels. All of these steps have now been taken in Libya. We start off under the…

In the counter-terrorism review announced on 25 January, the British government proposes replacing “control orders”, found by the courts to contravene human rights legislation, with a modified system.

This system will still allow electronic tagging, enforced overnight residence and restrictions on freedom of association and movement, including foreign travel bans. It will limit control orders, presently unlimited, to two years. But if it is possible to make a new order as soon…

The basic argument of this book, originally written 18 months before 9/11, was that the “traditional” method of political control through the projection of military power, which Rogers dubbed “the control paradigm” would not work in an increasingly fragile and unpredictable world. He argued that a model of security based on a military security would simply fail as it did not address the growing socio-economic divide nor the rising environmental crisis, but merely attempted to keep a lid on…

The US raids inside Pakistan (see p1) raise the risk of terrorist attacks in London, said Wajid Shamsul Hassan, Pakistani high commissioner to Britain, on 14 September.
“This will infuriate Muslims in this country and make the streets of London less safe,” he added. “The Americans’ trigger-happy actions will radicalise young Muslims. They’re playing into the hands of the very militants we’re supposed to be fighting.”
Pointing out that no high-level Taliban or al Qa’eda leader…

After a vigorous campaign to defend him, Nottingham University staff member and peace activist Hicham Yezza was freed from detention on 15 June and the threat of deportation lifted.

After a university staff member found the manual on his computer, Hicham, editor of the university peace magazine, Ceasefire, was arrested on campus on 21 May, along with 22-year old research student Rizwaan Sabir. Both were held under the Terrorism Act, accused of downloading an al-Qa’eda training…

On 15 March, Tony Blair's most influential adviser for over a decade, Jonathan Powell, revealed that he believes that “at some stage you're going to have to come to a political solution as well as a security solution” to the threat from al-Qa'eda. Powell added: “And that means you need the ability to talk.” Lines of communication should be kept open - as in Northern Ireland, where Powell had a leading role in the peace process.

On 19 March, the British prime minister launched the much–delayed National Security Strategy (NSS) – to little enthusiasm. The Daily Telegraph (which accompanied its report with a picture from Dad's Army) described the document as "a disappointing damp squib".

The report says that Britain faces "diverse and interconnected" threats, including pandemic influenza, failed states, transnational crime, terrorism and the proliferation of WMD. These have "diverse and interconnected"…

Gandhi and Beyond is divided into three parts: the first two chapters look at the work of Gandhi and Martin Luther King; the next three at how their ideas have been used by other activists such as Cesar Chavez and Dorothy Day; and the final two at issues of gender and principles for action. The author says in his introduction that he hopes it will add to academic knowledge about nonviolence, whilst also inspiring people to act. I think he is more successful in the former objective, than the…

The British legal system has begun finally to re-consider the conviction of the two Libyans jailed for the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, which came down over the Scottish town of Lockerbie, causing the deaths of 270 civilians in all.

The suspicion at the time of the bombing was that the Lockerbie bombing might have been retaliation for the destruction of an Iranian civilian airliner, a year earlier, on 3 July 1987, by US sea-to-air missiles, causing the deaths of 290 civilians…

Once again, Britain is enduring terrorist attacks. Once again, the Prime Minister is denying obvious realities, flying in the face of a near-national consensus.

Now it is Gordon Brown claiming that the attacks in London and Glasgow happened “irrespective of Iraq, irrespective of Afghanistan”. Brown and his ministers are fully aware that this is not the judgement of Britain's counter-terrorism experts.

After the 7/7 London bombings, British police involved in…

Written and directed by best selling War Plan Iraq author Milan Rai - and featuring interviews with Bruce Kent and Michael Foster MP, as well as a host of Vox Pops from the proverbial man/woman in the street - this DVD is an excellent, short, and thought-provoking primer, explaining why the UK Government's “war on terror” is not only wrong but is actually endangering UK citizens.

Counter terror: Build Justice demonstrates clearly how alQaeda draws upon legitimate grievances…

Messages to the World is the first time that all the written statements and audio broadcasts of Osama bin Laden have been brought together in a single volume in English. Starting in December 1994, with what is generally considered to be his first published statement intended to reach a broad audience, the text covers the decade up to December 2004, and another attack against the ruling family in his homeland of Saudi Arabia.

It is strange that it has taken so long for such a work to…

On 7 July 2005 four young British men detonated bombs on London's public transport system, killing 52 people as well as themselves. Why they did it and how we can prevent future such attacks are the two central themes of Milan Rai's latest book, which combines a deeply moving tribute to the bombers' victims with the gripping, page-turning qualities of a good detective novel.

In the immediate aftermath of the attacks - and before the Government shrewdly re-focused the public debate…