U.K. Politician’s Murder Puts Focus on Anti-Terrorism Program
U.K.’s Patel Says ‘Prevent’ Program to See Independent Review
(Bloomberg) -- The murder of a U.K. lawmaker has focused attention on “Prevent,” a program designed to identify people at risk of becoming radicalized, as well as on how to combat “corrosive” online discourse.
U.K. Home Secretary Priti Patel said Sunday the counter-terrorism program is undergoing an independent review. The suspect in the deadly stabbing of Conservative MP David Amess had reportedly been referred to “Prevent” several years ago -- as had at least two others in the past few years who went on to commit violent or deadly acts.
“It’s timely to do that, we have to learn, not just from incidents that have taken place, but how we can strengthen our programs,” Patel said on Sky News’s “Trevor Philipps Show.”
The suspect in custody was identified by a U.K. government official as Ali Harbi Ali, a 25-year-old British citizen of Somali origin.
He’s been held under the U.K.’s Terrorism Act, the Metropolitan Police said in a statement. Early investigations revealed a potential motivation linked to Islamic extremism, the police said.
The BBC reported that Ali was referred to “Prevent” some years ago. However, the U.K. official, speaking under the usual custom of anonymity, said the man was never a formal subject of interest to MI5, the nation’s domestic security agency.
Patel said it was “important to recognize” that people referred to “Prevent” are not automatically at risk of becoming radicalized.
The father of the suspected killer told the Sunday Times newspaper that he’d been “traumatized” by his son’s arrest. Harbi Ali Kullane, a former adviser to Somalia’s prime minister, confirmed that his son is in custody, the paper said.
Patel said the government is looking at new security measures in the wake of Amess’s killing, including greater police protection for elected officials.
“We need to close any gaps,” she said. “Our elected representatives need to be able to go around with confidence that they are safe and secure in the work they are doing.”
Yet Amess’s killing shouldn’t sever the relationship between MPs and voters, she said. “This should never, ever break that link between an elected representative and their democratic role,” she said on Sky.
On Saturday, U.K. police said they planned to contact all of the nation’s MPs to discuss security measures.
Patel said that various protective measures are already available to MPs. Many came together after the shooting and stabbing murder of Labour MP Jo Cox while attending a constituent meeting in 2016, she said on the BBC’s “Andrew Marr Show.”
Asked if she would consider legislation removing anonymity on social media, Patel said on Sky that the government will “look at everything.”
Separately, Patel told the BCC that while “corrosive” behavior is rampant online, any response “has to be proportionate, and it has to be balanced.”
People use anonymity on social media for a range of things, she said, adding “we can’t just apply a binary approach.”
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