The scourge of terrorism must be tackled at its roots
Focusing only on security measures while ignoring the economic and educational deprivation that feeds extremism will not bring the problem to an end
Britain is not unaccustomed to terrorist violence. After the IRA bombs that targeted pubs and other crowded venues towards the end of the 1900s came the London transport suicide bombings by four Islamists that killed 52 people in July 2005. The allegiances of those killers, their planning, weapons and modus operandi, can be potential clues to police and undercover agents trying to prevent attacks.
Yet, if people are cowed by this kind of violence, or forced to change their way of life, the terrorists have won. Britons have had to deal with it for a long time, in the spirit that life has to go on. And that is the best way. Britain is an island fortress compared with Europe, and London is considered one of the best prepared and safest cities in the world. It is therefore something of a trophy target for murderous martyrdom.
As long as the West focuses its anti-terrorism effort on operational measures, and the socially malignant roots of terrorism continue to flourish, severely economically and educationally disadvantaged centres in parts of the Muslim world that lack basic job opportunities will continue to be recruiting grounds for foot soldiers of terrorism.