ISIS elements in Malta
The arraignment of seven young Syrian men on charges related to terrorism is really worrisome.
Among the other serious charges issued, the one that should really concern each and every one of us is that of recruiting or attempting to recruit people to commit terrorist acts. All the charges are undoubtedly founded on facts, thanks to international intelligence and cooperation in criminal matters.
It is already bad enough that there is a major public concern out there regarding safety shortcomings on our roads and other public areas where many people gather.
Politics is politics but there are serious dangers in making claims about the ability to defeat terrorism in general, ISIS in particular. Are all the respective authorities sufficiently prepared to ward off any such far-reaching threats on our shores? The fact that these seven ISIS sympathisers have been flushed out and duly taken to court in no time at all is but a feather in the cap of our public order guardians.
However, how can we be sure that there are no more ISIS elements and sympathisers still lurking within our towns and villages, possibly preparing to strike heavily when the opportunity arises?
Europe, of which Malta is part, may have turned the corner regarding the immediate threat of ISIS-directed attacks. It has not seen an ISIS-directed attack since May 2017. With the demise of ISIS’s territorial state in Syria and Iraq, attacks in Europe are increasingly likely to be ISIS-enabled or ISIS-inspired but not ISIS-directed.
We must remain on our guard and be constantly vigilant.
Mark Said – Msida
Vive la difference!
People protest on the day of the coronation of Britain’s King Charles III on May 6. Photo: AFPCharles Xuereb (May 12) may be surprised to learn that I too believe in freedom of expression which, like him, I regularly claim on the letters’ page of the Times of Malta.
In comparing recent events on the streets of Paris with those on the streets of London, I would invite him to view and contrast video footage and news reports on the website of the UK paper The Guardian, not generally regarded as a supporter either of the British monarchy or of right-wing political views.
Like him (and the Metropolitan police), I regret the arrests of anti-monarchy protesters at the coronation procession in London. But the police who made them used neither riot gear nor tear gas on their fellow citizens, who, in turn, had used nothing more threatening than placards and anti-monarchy shouting. Not so in Paris.
Alan Cooke – Sliema