1 month ago
LONDON, Sept 11 (Reuters) - Intelligence services must not dwell too much on past threats but accept that a new strategic shock along the lines of the 9/11 attacks could already be in preparation where they are not looking, the head of Britain's MI5 spy agency said.
In an opinion piece published on Friday to mark 25 years since al Qaeda militants crashed hijacked passenger jets into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon, MI5's Director General Ken McCallum said security agencies had to be ready to adapt to current and future challenges.
"We know that the next strategic shock will, by definition, not resemble the last one. That is perhaps the most important lesson of all," McCallum wrote in the commentary for the Independent newspaper.
"We must of course always learn from the last attack – but must beware of preparing brilliantly to fight yesterday's enemy, using yesterday's methods, against yesterday's target ... The uncomfortable truth is that the next strategic shock may already be taking shape somewhere we are not yet looking."
Al Qaeda, though diminished, remains a threat, as does the aspiration of that group and other militants for mass casualty attacks, McCallum said.
#next
In an opinion piece published on Friday to mark 25 years since al Qaeda militants crashed hijacked passenger jets into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon, MI5's Director General Ken McCallum said security agencies had to be ready to adapt to current and future challenges.
"We know that the next strategic shock will, by definition, not resemble the last one. That is perhaps the most important lesson of all," McCallum wrote in the commentary for the Independent newspaper.
"We must of course always learn from the last attack – but must beware of preparing brilliantly to fight yesterday's enemy, using yesterday's methods, against yesterday's target ... The uncomfortable truth is that the next strategic shock may already be taking shape somewhere we are not yet looking."
Al Qaeda, though diminished, remains a threat, as does the aspiration of that group and other militants for mass casualty attacks, McCallum said.
#next
2 months ago
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is facing backlash after giving a ceremonial pen from a 9/11 remembrance ceremony to a top aide who once represented a convicted al Qaeda member whose brother-in-law hijacked the plane that struck the Pentagon.
Mamdani signed executive orders Friday ahead of the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, designating the date a citywide day of remembrance and service and strengthening efforts to prevent future terrorist threats.
After signing the final order, Mamdani handed the pen to NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch and asked her to pass it to chief counsel Ramzi Kassem. Kassem previously represented Ahmed al-Darbi, who pleaded guilty to war-crime charges tied to al Qaeda plots against commercial ships and was the brother-in-law of Khalid al-Mihdhar, one of the hijackers aboard American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon, killing 184.
Mamdani Faces Growing 9/11 Backlash As Old Post Resurfaces Ahead Of Ground Zero Ceremony: 'Is This Real?'
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch hands a ceremonial pen to Ramzi Kassem, who once represented a convicted al Qaeda member tied to a 9/11 hijacker.
#qaeda #jessica #tisch
Mamdani signed executive orders Friday ahead of the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, designating the date a citywide day of remembrance and service and strengthening efforts to prevent future terrorist threats.
After signing the final order, Mamdani handed the pen to NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch and asked her to pass it to chief counsel Ramzi Kassem. Kassem previously represented Ahmed al-Darbi, who pleaded guilty to war-crime charges tied to al Qaeda plots against commercial ships and was the brother-in-law of Khalid al-Mihdhar, one of the hijackers aboard American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon, killing 184.
Mamdani Faces Growing 9/11 Backlash As Old Post Resurfaces Ahead Of Ground Zero Ceremony: 'Is This Real?'
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch hands a ceremonial pen to Ramzi Kassem, who once represented a convicted al Qaeda member tied to a 9/11 hijacker.
#qaeda #jessica #tisch
2 months ago
By David Lewis
LONDON, Aug 15 (Reuters) - An estimated $50 million ransom paid to free a hostage seized by al Qaeda-linked militants in Mali in late 2025 has helped to fund their advances across West Africa and the group's global network, U.N. experts said.
A new U.N. report detailing the use of the ransom did not identify the hostage or say who had made the payment.
Three regional sources identified the country having made the payment as the United Arab Emirates. The sources said that an Emirati citizen, as well as two other foreigners who had been kidnapped but were not referenced in the U.N. report, were freed after money changed hands. They did not explain how it had been done.
In response to questions about the kidnapping and ransom payment, a UAE official did not address the specifics of the case but said the country was unwavering in condemning and countering extremism and terrorism.
#country
LONDON, Aug 15 (Reuters) - An estimated $50 million ransom paid to free a hostage seized by al Qaeda-linked militants in Mali in late 2025 has helped to fund their advances across West Africa and the group's global network, U.N. experts said.
A new U.N. report detailing the use of the ransom did not identify the hostage or say who had made the payment.
Three regional sources identified the country having made the payment as the United Arab Emirates. The sources said that an Emirati citizen, as well as two other foreigners who had been kidnapped but were not referenced in the U.N. report, were freed after money changed hands. They did not explain how it had been done.
In response to questions about the kidnapping and ransom payment, a UAE official did not address the specifics of the case but said the country was unwavering in condemning and countering extremism and terrorism.
#country
