boy, 12, at risk of being lured into extremism

Tag : Ball Bearing Parts

"He is at risk of being a violent young man and a threat tosociety," said Sir Norman. "He is not a Muslim, he is not driven byideology - he's too young to spell the word - but he is beinginfluenced and intoxicated by the imagery and appeal of jihadistand other internet violence."
Sir Norman shocked a conference of chief police officers by showingthem a picture of the boy. Although his face was obscured, he wasseen to be a small-framed child with tousled blond hair.
The boy came to Britain with his family in 2005 fleeing "a despoticregime" and seeking asylum, he said.
His behaviour led to him being referred to social services within ayear of his arrival. He had been involved in assaults and criminaldamage at his school and, after police were asked to intervene,they found videos of beheadings on his mobile phone.
The boy had downloaded the footage from jihadi websites and wassharing it with classmates. He spoke of wanting to become a sniperand asked questions about what it would be like to kill someone.His father had turned a collection of imitation guns which firedball-bearings into police.
Inquiries into the 12-year-old's past revealed that he had beenaccused overseas of helping two other boys rape his five-year-oldsister.
Sir Norman added: "This case presents real challenges andcomplexities. He seems addicted to violence."
The police approach to the boy, and other youths, was to regardthem as vulnerable people rather than criminals.
Sir Norman said that discussions about jihad and the ideology ofal-Qaeda were common in internet chatrooms and on social networkingsites while schoolchildren were being targeted for indoctrinationby street-corner radicalisers.
Trying to prevent that grooming process was an essential part ofthe Government's counter-terrorism strategy, he said.
Sir Norman said: "The success of the UK effort to counter theAl-Qaeda threat has pushed back the supply chain of sophisticatedexplosive material, attack planning and training for would beterrorists. Like any determined, ideologically based terror group,core AQ are prepared to wait for opportunities to strike.
"In the meantime, the AQ brand of violent extremism continues tospread like a virus, infecting young minds. The internet, theradicaliser and the disaffected peddle the virus.
"We know there is a latent sense of grievance in the minds of manyyoung people which, with the right conditions, can lead to thedesire for violent expresson.
"What happens if they learn how to build and deploy an explosivedevice that will cause mass casualties, or if core AQ can get theirhands on these people to act as mules for a more sophisticatedattack."
The scheme to identify vulnerable youths is being piloted inLondon, Lancashire and West Yorkshire before being extended toother parts of the country. Sir Norman said it relied heavily onco-operation with Muslim communities.
He added: "Every young Muslim will be exposed to a conversationabout al-Qaeda. In the same way that we urge parents to talk tochildren about drugs or knives, I would say to Muslim parents:'Talk to your kids about the dangers of being influenced by themessage of violent struggle'."
Assistant Commissioner Bob Quick of Scotland Yard said at theconference, in Liverpool, that despite an apparent lull interrorist activity the threat was still present.
He added: "There is no reason to drop our guard one iota. There'snothing to lead us to believe we're immune from the events we'veseen over the last four summers."