Britain adopts new plan to combat terrorism through education and society

Nahla Abdel Moneim

Western societies are trying to push extremism away from their borders, especially the United Kingdom, which has adopted several frameworks to refute these ideas and dangers. However, counterterrorism police chief Neil Basu says police and security forces cannot overcome violent extremism alone.

Basu said in press statements on Wednesday, August 7 that sociologists and crime experts can help tackle terrorism in the UK. The best way to combat it is to increase integration and social mobility, and to develop education, which has a great impact on reducing violence that goes beyond the security services.

In addition, Basu said that 80% of those involved in attacking the country’s strategic objectives are of British origin or were born in Britain, which confirms that internal social issues appear to be the root causes of terrorism. Therefore, the grievances and resentments that some hold seem serious and pose a threat to the country. He called on sociologists to examine the matter and prevent a multi-generational conflict that destroys the social fabric of the UK.

With regard to terrorism issued by far-right groups, Basu pointed out that it is on the rise, especially since Britain’s vote to exit from the European Union.

Regarding recruitment by the far right and radical Islamists, the head of Britain’s anti-terrorism police points out that the anti-terrorism agencies have monitored the integration of people under the banner of these currents from different backgrounds. It includes several factors driving the adoption of terrorist behavior.

On the decline of the presence of ISIS, he said that control operations increased by 50% from 2015 to 2017 and since then the threats remained at a high level, adding that the agencies are dealing with a lot of caution so far despite the loss of the terrorist group’s geographical location in Syria and Iraq.

As for the Muslim minorities, Basu pointed out that society should accept everyone and must not reject any religion, even if its constituents are conservative, which would elevate the values ​​of integration and coexistence in society and reduce sectarian tension. More importantly, Basu stressed that the issue is before the government to address and adopt an integrated strategy that allows the development of education in order to renounce violence and integrate everyone in society to uphold the values ​​of citizenship and refute terrorism.

On January 23, 2019, the UK launched a media awareness campaign through cinemas and theaters with short video clips titled New Communities Defeating Terror, showing images of extremist figures and some of the ways in which explosives are used, as well as signs that might indicate whether someone is a terrorist or not. This was aimed to integrate society into the fight against terrorism and not to limit it to the security role.