INTRODUCTION

The growing threat from resident terrorists was starkly highlighted by the revelation that the five suspects, recently arrested in the Punjab region of Pakistan over a planned ‘jihad’ on US soil, were all American citizens. Sources suggest that the men – three of Pakistani-descent, one Egyptian and one Yemeni - may be linked to Jaish-e-Mohammed, a prohibited terrorist group with links to al-Qaeda and the Taliban, which has gained particular renown for its alleged involvement in the murder of US journalist, Daniel Pearl, as well as the attempted assassination of former Pakistan President Musharraf.

Tragically, these are not isolated incidents: David Headley is currently on trial in Chicago, accused of both abetting the 2008 attacks in Mumbai and of plotting to attack Jewish and media sites in Copenhagen; four Muslim converts were arrested for plotting to simultaneously blow up two synagogues and shoot down a military plane, in revenge for the deaths of Muslims in Afghanistan and Pakistan; Georgia-based Syed Ahmed and Ehsanul Sadequee were both convicted of facilitating attacks against the US; in Little Rock, Arkansas, a Muslim gunman killed one person and injured another at a military recruitment centre and of course the incident at Fort Hood, Texas, where US Major Nadal Malik Hasan shot 13 dead colleagues and injured 32 others.

Just over the border in Canada, the original ‘Toronto 18’ Muslims were linked to a diverse range targets, including: opening fire in a crowd; storming the Canadian Broadcasting Centre, Parliament and Intelligence Service; and beheading the Prime Minister. The suspects were filmed participating in arms training, while their leader praised al-Qaeda’s principles and methods. Even though charges have subsequently been suspended or dropped against seven of the men, it is clear that Canada is also experiencing the threat from Islamic extremist violence

The number of Muslims in America is not easy to determine, with estimates varying as widely as 1.5 and 7 million, and particular concentrations located in New York, California and Virginia. A 2005 Wall Street editorial noted that American Muslims have a higher rate of professional employment than average, with a third earning over $75,000 p.a. There is also a significant Muslim population in Canada, with 579,740 current residents, the majority of whom reside close to the US border in Toronto.

Despite the activities of all the agencies involved, acts of terrorism are still being planned against US citizens by US citizens, just as the 7/7 and 21/7 bombers in London were all UK citizens. The experience in the UK has led to close examination of the British Muslim communities and there has been much debate.
However, I feel that I am able to offer a fairly unique position on this subject from three perspectives: firstly, as the father of a young Muslim teenager, who could become at risk of disaffection and extremism; secondly, as a member of the British Muslim community that is experiencing perhaps the most intense period of vulnerability to Islamophobia in our history; and thirdly, as the former most senior Muslim officer in the British police service, tasked with providing safety to all communities.

GLOBALISATION AND TERRORISM

Despite the often diverse and contradictory views on globalisation, one fact is clear: we are all now living in an increasingly accessible world, where activity linked to money, goods, people and technology is much more fluid and flexible. Unfortunately, the process of globalisation also has a dark side: the expanding opportunities provided by globalisation are just as attractive to the entrepreneurial spirit of criminal enterprises and the political intentions of terrorist groups, as they are to the legitimate business world.

There is no doubt that globalisation has had a major impact on terrorism. Leading up to 2001, hundreds of people were killed and thousands injured in terrorist attacks, aimed predominantly against US military personnel and consular staff across the world, including Kenya, Beirut and the World Trade Centre in New York. But it was the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington on the 11th September 2001 that defined the new face of global terrorism. Four years later, the bomb attacks in July 2005 changed the landscape of London forever and created our new reality. This was the first time in London that we had experienced multiple and simultaneous home-grown terrorist attacks.

Because of difficulties around penetration, little real information exists about the global terrorist network and estimates of the size of this network are extremely varied. However, certain characteristics have become apparent: they have a ‘fuzzy’ organizational structure with only limited central oversight; operate in small independent local tight-knit cells; are patient, working to long term goals based on a common cause; and they are prepared to engage in indiscriminate multiple and simultaneous attacks to inflict mass fatalities and casualties using whatever means necessary.

The reality is that the threat from terrorism is very real – and that it is more likely to increase than decrease. Since the 7th July bombings, six further major conspiracies in the UK had been thwarted. In addition, Dhiren Barot from London was sentenced to at least 40 years for plotting "massive explosions" in the US and UK, aimed at killing hundreds at various targets. Peter Clarke, the former Head of the Counter-Terrorism in the UK, has said that, "The threat from terrorism is real. It is here, it is deadly and it is enduring”.

GROWING NEXUS BETWEEN TERRORIST AND CRIMINAL NETWORKS

The emerging synergy between globalisation, vulnerable communities, criminal networks and terrorism will undoubtedly become the marque of security in the 21st Century. There is no doubt that since the 9/11 attacks, the transformation of the international security environment in response to the terrorist threat has been preoccupying governments. However, it is equally important to note that while the focus remains firmly fixed on countering global terrorism, organised crime continues to flourish under the radar.

One of the consequences of the perceived nexus between criminal networks and terrorism has been to tighten up the global control of financial transactions, including anti-money laundering control. As the legitimate sources of money are being closed off, terrorist networks are increasingly acquiring funding from illegal sources, either locally or internationally. Al-Qaeda, Hamas and Hezbollah operatives have involved themselves in an array of criminal enterprises, including drug sales, credit card fraud, armed robbery and the illicit sale of counterfeit cigarettes, pharmaceuticals, DVDs and other goods. Perhaps the most marked example was the estimated 12.5 billion ÚS dollars derived from drug trafficking from Morocco, that is believed to have funded the 2004 Madrid rail attack, along with other terrorist incidents.

PROFILE OF MUSLIM COMMUNITY

The concept of homogeneity among Muslims is a myth. There is no one ‘Muslim community’ just as there is no one ‘Muslim viewpoint’. However, for most Muslims, their religion tends to permeate their political and social life and their religion unites them on a global basis. The concept of ‘Ummah’ i.e. ‘one global Muslim community’ highlights the growing loyalty that exists across national boundaries, but it is a moot point whether the concept of ‘Ummah’ genuinely reflects increasing communal and spiritual bonding across the Muslim world or more accurately represents the political opposition to the perceived global persecution of Muslims by the ‘West’ in countries such as Afghanistan, Kashmir, Palestine, Chechnya and Iraq.

KEY DRIVERS AROUND DISAFFECTION & EXTREMISM

At the present time, there is insufficient empirical research to determine exactly why some young Muslim men resort to extremist violence. However, we do know that a significant minority are at risk of disaffection and extremism. UK intelligence indicates that the number of young British Muslim men actively engaged in terrorist activity, whether at home or abroad, or supporting such activity, is extremely small and estimated at considerably less than 1%. Therefore we also need to keep a sense of perspective.

If we are to move forward, we must improve our understanding about the extent and causes of extremism, and any links between extremist sentiment on the Muslim community and terrorist activity. At this stage all we can say is that there are a variety of issues that impact upon young Muslim men, and may increase the likelihood of their moving towards extremism. The 6 ‘D’s discussed below are based on my experience, taking into account my contacts with Muslim leaders, clerics, academics and a broad cross-section of Muslim communities in the UK and internationally.

Disadvantage: Overall, British Muslim communities are largely concentrated in areas of multiple deprivation and consequently experience the highest levels of disadvantage. However, the links between social deprivation among British Muslims and extremist violence is not a simple cause and effect. In fact, the British Muslims who are most at risk of being drawn into extremism and terrorism fall into two distinct groups:

a) Well educated: typically targeted by extremist recruiters and organisations circulating at colleges and universities;
b) Under-achievers with few or no qualifications: sometimes drawn to Mosques where they may be targeted by extremist preachers or converted and radicalised whilst in 'prison.

Discrimination: ‘Islamophobia’, the fear or hatred of Islam and, by extension, Muslims, is nothing new. However, since the watershed of 9/11, many different forms of anti-Muslim expression have been emerging, including systematic stereotyping. As a result, the terms ‘Islam’ and ‘Muslims’ have almost become synonymous with terrorism, creating a very real perception that all young Muslim men are bad and present a real 'law and order' issue.

Disconnection: Parts of the Muslim community are still developing an understanding of how to reconcile their faith and Islamic identity with living in a secular multi-cultural society, and with modern social challenges. In the UK, some young Muslim men feel they cannot be both British and Muslim. Post 9/11 and then 7/7, there has also been a huge pressure on the Muslim community to publicly explain themselves, their religion and practices. At the same time, there is still an extremely low level of Muslim participation and representation in mainstream institutions of influence - in public appointments and mainstream politics. Equally, some young Muslim men have also become disillusioned with mainstream Muslim organisations that they perceive to be pedestrian, ineffective and in many cases, ‘sell-outs'.

Discontent: Linked intrinsically to all of this, is the growing challenge of anger amongst young Muslim, particularly about the cumulative impact of Islamophobia and the consequent sense of helplessness. For instance, there is anger over the arrests and searches under anti-terrorist powers, which they perceive as being applied excessively and abusively. Similarly, there is anger about the perceived "double standards" in British' foreign policy. There is anger about the lack of any real of any tangible `pressure valves', in order to vent frustrations, anger or dissent. The cumulative effect of Islamophobia, both internationally and nationally, linked to social exclusion, has created a generation of angry young people who are vulnerable to exploitation.

Denial: Certain elements of Muslim communities are in various stages of denial, whether about the events of 7th July, Muslim extremism or the responsibilities of the Muslim community and leadership at large. Some elements of the Muslim community have become intensely self-reflective, both in terms of individuals and communities, and are still in "survival" mode.  For others, there is an overriding preoccupation with conspiracy theories around the threat of terrorism and the significant political leverage of fear attributed to the West.

Division: The protective strand of law enforcement effort in the UK is largely based on stop and search and passenger profiling. While some intelligence may be applied these practices, to all intents and purposes, they are largely appearance-driven. Because there is no single ‘Muslim’ appearance, the principle target group has tended to be people of South Asian origin. Unfortunately, the impact of this approach has been to create a division between Muslims on the one hand and Sikhs and Hindus on the other.

THE DYNAMIC OF DISAFFECTION

Flight: A Guardian/ICM poll conducted immediately in the aftermath of July 2005 found that two-thirds of Muslims considered leaving the UK. However at the present time the opportunity of ‘flight’ is only realistically available to professionals or people with sufficient wealth to be able to emigrate to places such as the Middle East, USA and Canada. It is anticipated that the majority of this group would stay in the UK until such time as there is a political backlash, or racial and religious attacks create further vulnerability. The other group with the potential to ‘flight’ is the significant number of older people seeking to return to their country of origin on their retirement, although finance may be a restricting factor there.

Fight: Taking legal action against such issues as religious intolerance, ‘hate crime’ and ‘disproportionality’ remains extremely difficult. It is a common perception that illegally fighting back would only serve to alienate the Muslim communities as a whole and criminalise young Muslims in particular. However, the concept of ‘fight’ has manifested itself in three critical areas; the outbreak of violent disorder, the emergence of Muslim criminal gangs and more recently in the form of extremist violence and terrorism. The key issue emerging from the concept of ‘fight’ is that young Muslim men engaging in disorder, gang membership and radical extremist behaviour, will all lead to further criminalisation and victimisation.

Separation: Separation remains a real risk for many British Muslims. In the USA and Canada, Muslims are well represented in the professional classes, giving the community a greater social confidence and a positive sense of belonging. There are of course wealthy Muslim groups in the UK, such as the Bora and Ismaili communities and London is also the largest centre for Islamic finance outside the Muslim world, largely because of the City's role as a centre for Middle Eastern and Asian banking. However, in the UK, Muslims remain predominantly isolated in the lower income groups and are particularly concentrated in deprived inner-city boroughs.

Integration: A strong Muslim identity and strict adherence to traditional Muslim teachings are not in themselves problematic or incompatible with being British. The majority of young Muslim men are able to integrate into society, define a British Muslim identity for themselves and contribute positively to society. It is only among certain elements of young British Muslims, that there is this heart-searching about where they belong – in Britain, or in an ‘Islamic’ community? These British Muslims feel a powerful sense of solidarity with Muslims around the world, with both young and old saying foreign conflicts in the Middle East, Kashmir and Afghanistan were of greater concern than domestic issues.
If we are to prevent the flight, fight or separation of Muslim communities in the UK or any other country, we need to work together to achieve some form of what Dr. Mohamed Elmasry of the Canadian Islamic Congress terms “smart integration”. This promotes the preservation of people’s identity in matters of religion, culture, language and heritage, while simultaneously encouraging both individual and collective contributions in the country’s business.
Why are there grounds for concern?

While the true number of disaffected young Muslim men is not known, there are a number of indicators that there are grounds for concern. Firstly, a small number of young British Muslims are known to have committed or participated in terrorism both at home and abroad or to have joined violent or militant organisations in other countries, e.g. the British suicide bombers in Israel. Secondly, a number of extremist groups are known to operate in the UK and seek to recruit young Muslims, often on campuses and colleges or in prisons. Thirdly, there are increasing numbers of young Muslim men that have needed UK consular services after being detained on suspicion of terrorist or extremist activity in other parts of the world (e.g. Yemen, Egypt and the US).

SOME IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS

However, before we can work towards generating solutions we need to consider how we have got to a position in UK and the USA where our own citizens are prepared to kill innocent people for their own warped ideology or reasons? Have there been systematic public policy or leadership failures, which need to be corrected? We know from bitter historical events that a blanket policy of `eradication’ will not work. For every person we arrest it affects a huge number of people within the notion of `extended families’. When we release a person without charge, they have the potential to become `dysfunctional role models’.

In the UK we are developing an institutional sense of negativity towards members of `new communities’ - many of whom prop up the labour force and bring further diversity within our communities. This process of negativity is extending itself to another vulnerable group, young people, who are often portrayed as bad. As a result, levels of victimisation, criminalisation and isolation from mainstream institutions are increasing. The Muslim leadership, community and religious representation have to reflect on how members of the community have been operating under parental radar to commit or plan mass murder. This danger within their midst really exists and there do not appear to be any community plans to deal with it within the current `victim-centred mentality’.

These issues will not go away just by simply averting our gaze and not listening to the messages. These issues cannot be left to the Muslim communities in isolation. At the present time they do not have the capability or leadership capacity to deliver solutions without help.

However, both British and American Muslim communities need to face the unpalatable fact that their religion has been ‘hijacked’ by a small and unrepresentative violent extremist faction. These acts have not occurred in a vacuum: they have a political, religious and social context that we cannot ignore in developing our response to ensure safety amongst our distinct communities. The people who have committed these acts are criminals and should be treated as such, no matter what excuses or what justification some might seek to bring to the debate following these atrocities.

Muslims must ask therefore themselves some difficult questions, such as:

· What is happening in our communities?
· What can we do about it as a Muslim community?
· What help do we need from our host communities?
· What long-term strategies need to be put in place?
· How can we actively co-operate with the law enforcement services?

In the aftermath of the London bombings, I met with a broad range of representatives from the Muslim Community. There were a number of significant messages emerging from this consultation process:

· There is a need for Government to take a long, hard look at the social, economic, demographic, and other issues underlying these events, possibly through a Royal Commission or other type of Independent Inquiry.

· Any efforts to marginalize some of the mainstream Muslim organisations could attract opportunists who want to position themselves with promises of new ideas and thinking, but do not deliver results and often only make things worse in the longer term.

· Many are disillusioned with mainstream Muslim organisations, which are widely perceived as being discredited and only fit for lobbying government or communities on behalf of governments.

· Indigenous communities are more expert at accessing government via informal and formal channels, whilst newer communities in Britain do not always have the knowledge or capacity to access government.
 
The key learning for me coming out of this consultation process was that the law enforcement agencies should have real concern about the lack of community information and intelligence on such issues as radicalisation, preachers of hate and the distribution of hate material.

We should therefore not really be surprised at this finding on several fronts:

· We never really ‘reached-out’ to these communities to engage them;
· Muslim communities are ‘retreating’ into themselves in the face of the hysterical and hostile reception following the recent events that have stigmatised the Muslim Community as a whole, many of whom are proud to be British and are devastated at what has happened;
· Muslims do not know how to deal with systems and procedures, on which they have never been consulted and perceptions differ in communities about what these initiatives are and how they work e.g. anti-terrorist hotlines, etc.
 
THE NEUTRAL AGENDA

So where are we right now? I believe we are standing at a critical crossroad. The overriding objective must be to stop another terrorist bombing happening again. There is much discussion around politics and religious ideology, but the key issue remains that everyone wants to feel safe, irrespective of which community or ideology they belong to. To achieve this mutual safety, communities must work together in an atmosphere of trust.

Therefore, when we talk about law enforcement in communities, we need to simplify the messages. The reason why we are all here is basically to improve the law enforcement services provided to members of all communities. What we are in fact talking about here is:

· Making communities safer
· Making sure we provide customised services to meet their expectations
· Engaging with communities about what we do.

Overall, we are providing a very neutral message: “Building the confidence and trust of communities”. However, our difficulty is that sometimes we over-complicate this message. And in doing so, we have entered into the debate around the political, religious or social re-engineering of communities. This in turn generates emotion and tension, compounds the issue of stereotyping and stigmatism, and adversely impacts on community trust and confidence, which is critical to effective policing. Once confidence has eroded, the effort required to restore it is immense.

SUGGEST WAY FORWARD

Right from the outset, it is important to state that there does not appear to be any single answer to reducing the risk of disaffection and extremism among young Muslim men. It is my prediction that we are in this for the long term.

It is vital that we acknowledge the intrinsic relationship or nexus that exists between serious crime, terrorism and communities, particularly the new and vulnerable communities. · At the present time, adopting a robust approach to tackling criminal networks and counter-terrorism is essential. It is equally important to respond to Muslim concerns about the use of anti-terrorist powers. However, we cannot focus solely on the law enforcement solution and need to do much more work on prevention. Whatever we do, we must not penalise Muslim or any other communities.

It is quite clear that the complex dynamic mix of new communities requires a much more sophisticated approach to law enforcement around new minority communities than is currently being applied. The key challenge for law enforcement therefore is how to get into different communities, really understand them, work in partnership to build capacity and capability, and connect them into policing and other institutions in positive and collaborative ways.

As a consequence, I have started to develop a plan that will contain a number of interrelated projects, developing such elements as pursuing a strong crime prevention agenda, improving our understanding of the dynamics of disaffection and tackling the underlying causes, such as employment, housing etc. In addition, there will be a focus on creating a new identity for Muslims, building community capability and capacity, connecting grass roots to institutions and supporting action within communities. Finally there I will explore how to provide community leadership, engage in multi-faith dialogue and future-proof the Muslim community through the development of positive role models.

CONCLUSION

The impact of globalisation has significantly changed the landscape of law enforcement, particularly in the context of the nexus between sophisticated criminal and terrorist networks and new communities, leaving many new communities feeling particularly isolated and vulnerable. The terrible events that occurred in the USA in 2001 and in London in July 2005, have served to further compound the vulnerability of Muslim communities.

On closer examination of such Muslim communities, it is possible to begin to see how the relationship between factors such as discrimination, disadvantage, disconnection, discontent,  denial and division, has collectively created a dynamic around disaffection, which in turn influences the degree to which people will resort to flight, fight or separation, or move positively towards some form of integration.

The most dangerous of these outcomes is of course to ‘fight’ and in the UK we have experienced a small but significant minority of young Muslim men increasingly resorting to either through spontaneous disorder, criminality or acts of terrorism. If we are to effectively meet the challenge of engaging young Muslim men at risk of dissatisfaction and extremism, then we need to have a greater understanding and ability to influence this dynamic.

Therefore, we need to shift our emphasis from a totally law enforcement agenda towards a strong prevention and community-focused agenda. Of course Government needs to take responsibility for tackling the underlying causes of disadvantage – around education, employment, health, youth and safety. Of course law enforcement agencies need to work together with Muslim communities to build community capability and capacity, particularly in tackling extremism among Muslim youth. But the overriding critical requirement is for real sustainable leadership and effort to be provided from within Muslim communities.

Reducing the risk of dissatisfaction and extremism of young Muslim men matters for two distinct reasons:

· it is a potential threat to community integration and cohesion
· it is a potential cause of terrorist activity

In order to effectively tackle the tiny minority of people who promote, support and engage in violent extremism, we need to build and sustain community cohesion and ensure that no community is left feeling isolated or vulnerable. This is important not just for Muslim communities, but for all our faith groups as well as our black and minority ethnic communities.

In conclusion, if we are to prevent the flight, fight or separation of Muslim communities we need to work together to achieve smarter integration. This will require a significant shift in mindset from harmful denial or anger to a situation where the aim is for all communities to work together in partnership with the law enforcement and other agencies. Tackling terrorism can only be effective if all communities work together in partnership with the law enforcement agencies and this can only be achieved once a real climate of trust and confidence has been established. Only then will we be able to build and sustain community cohesion and ensure that no community is left feeling isolated or vulnerable.