MI5 watchlist

So the attacker responsible for the terror killings in Westminster was known to MI5. There may be people who, hearing that from the Prime Minister, will say, "how on earth could he carry out what he did if he was being watched by MI5?" Well let's be real about this. Theresa May said he was known to MI5 from some years ago. In other words, his name came up because he appeared to be espousing radical Islamist views. But there are probably thousands of people of similar persuasion living in Britain, some of them more radicalised than others and a small number actually plotting some possible attack in the future without taking meaningful steps. But the majority may just be developing a slow-burning hatred for the West in general and Britain in particular, after watching propaganda videos of fellow Islamists being attacked in the war zones of Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan and elsewhere. So, let's estimate there are 4,000 angry radical militant-orientated people living in this country, most of whom will do nothing to put their anger into killing action. Can MI5 and the police watch all of them? By watch, I mean, having 24-hour surveillance operations monitoring their every move. Well, MI5's staffing levels have grown significantly over recent years, but they will never have enough to keep watch over every suspected radical who just might launch a terror attack. To mount a round-the-clock surveillance operation on a single individual, it takes a series of daily shifts involving up to 24 MI5 officers. Multiply that by 4,000 and you get the picture. All MI5 can do is focus intelligence efforts on individuals who seem to be the most likely to pose a grave threat to the security of the country. Even that task places huge pressure on the manpower available. It is simply not realistic to keep a permanent watch on every person who has been spotted on the odd occasion voicing radical views or mixing with undesirable radicals at their local mosque. This Westminster Bridge/Parliament Square killer had come into MI5's radar a few years ago. But unless the Security Service has slipped up, it is probably the case that in recent years, this individual, now thankfully dead, has done nothing to give away his secret plotting. Had he started making phone calls to fellow radicals talking of carrying out an attack, I have no doubt he would have been given the sort of 24-hour surveillance needed to build up a full picture of his movements, associations and life pattern. His name was there on MI5's database, but there are tens of thousands of names listed, all included because of some recorded evidence of radical behaviour. This man was on the database list but was not, I assume, on a current watchlist. Terrorists play the long game. They can pick their moment and their target, maybe after several years of playing the life of a normal human being, with a job, even with a wife and children. They strike when they think the moment is right. Perhaps this hate-filled individual chose Wednesday because it was the first anniversary of the March 22 suicide bombings in Brussels. It may be as simple as that.