As
if it were not bad enough that hundreds of radicalized Britons have
traveled to Syria to join ISIS, the even worse news for the UK is that
hundreds of them have come back.
Such
was the information released Thursday by Scotland Yard, London's
Metropolitan Police Service. A senior police official said the trend
raises the specter of more ISIS-like crimes being committed on home
soil.
"There is no doubt of the
horrific nature of the offenses being committed overseas," Assistant
Commissioner Mark Rowley said. "The influence of those who wish to bring
similar violence to the streets of the UK has been an increasing threat
here."
According to Scotland Yard,
about 700 extremists are believed to be among the many Britons who have
traveled to Syria, a significant proportion of whom went there to join
the terrorist group ISIS, which has become known for beheading captives
in Iraq and Syria in its effort to found a Middle East caliphate.
Terrorism arrests up 33%
In
the last year, terrorism-related arrests inside the UK have risen -- up
to 338 between April 2014 and March 2015, an increase of 33% over the
year before, according to Scotland Yard.
"The
type and level of the threat is complex and ranges from lone actors
intent on carrying out crude and violent attacks to sophisticated
networks set on completing ambitious and coordinated plots," Rowley
said.
Historic sites damaged by ISIS 11 photos
He
urged the public to be vigilant and to report anything suspicious. And
he left no doubt that he perceives the threat to be global.
"ISIL
and other terrorist groups are trying to direct attacks in the UK,"
Rowley said, referring to ISIS by an another name, "encouraging British
citizens to travel to Syria to fight and train, and are seeking, through
propaganda, to provoke individuals in the UK to carry out violent
attacks here."
