December 3, 2019December 3, 2019 by Crimson Tazvinzwa

London Bridge terror attack: when should terrorists be released from prison?

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Armed police stand guard near London Bridge after the attack. Photograph: Daniel Sorabji/AFP via Getty Images

Are terrorism cases dealt with differently from other cases?///BY CRIMSON TAZVINZWA

After the terrorist attack in London last week, political parties in the UK are blaming each other.

A man recently released from prison for a terrorism offence killed two people in a terrorist attack that has been leapt upon by politicians ahead of the election next week.

London Bridge attack was one of dozens of convicted terrorists released early from prison in Britain; reaction from Dr. Zuhdi Jasser, president of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy.

Terrorism

Terrorism is the use or threat of action, both in and outside of the UK, designed to influence any international government organisation or to intimidate the public. It must also be for the purpose of advancing a political, religious, racial or ideological cause.

Examples;

serious violence against a person or damage to property,

endangering a person’s life (other than that of the person committing the action),

creating a serious risk to the health or safety of the public or a section of the public,

action designed to seriously interfere with or seriously to disrupt an electronic system.

The attacker, Usman Khan, had been attending a conference on the rehabilitation of offenders. He killed Saskia Jones, 23, and Jack Merritt, 25, and was himself shot dead by police.

UK counterterrorism police on Saturday searched for clues into how a man imprisoned for terrorism offenses before his release last year managed to stab several people before being tackled by bystanders and shot dead by officers on London Bridge. Two people were killed and three wounded

Terrorism crimes are difficult to police in that the sentencing, rehabilitation and parole are all emotive subjects that are best debated outside of an election cycle.

Terrorism crimes and terrorist-related offences are subject to the criminal justice system in the same way as all other crimes. The CPS reviews the case and makes a charging decision in line with the Code for Crown Prosecutors. However, terrorism offences are distinct from other types of crime in that individuals who commit terrorism-related offences have political, religious racial and/or ideological motivations, unlike typical criminal motivations, which may be personal gain or revenge, for example. The CPS and Metropolitan Police have specialist units that were set up specifically to undertake terrorism cases and there are four other police Counter Terrorism Units (CTUs) around the country.

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November 30, 2019 by Crimson Tazvinzwa

London Bridge terrorism attack filmed from all angles

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Footage has emerged of the moment an attacker, wearing a fake explosive vest, is pounced on by civilians, wrestled to the ground and then shot by police on London Bridge. Usman Khan, 28, died at the scene following the incident just before 2pm on Friday. Two members of the public died in the terror attack, and several others were injured.

CRIMSON TAZVINZWA

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September 22, 2019 by Crimson Tazvinzwa

Brexit news latest: EU is in no way responsible for consequences of UK’s exit, says Jean-Claude Juncker

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The EU is in “no way responsible” for the consequences of Brexit, Jean-Claude Juncker has said.

The European Commission president said the bloc should not be held accountable for what is a “British decision”, stressing: “The European Union is not leaving the United Kingdom, the United Kingdom is leaving the European Union.”

Speaking to Sky News’ Sophie Ridge, Mr Juncker said: “The EU is in no way responsible for any kind of consequences entailed by the Brexit.

“That’s a British decision, a sovereign decision that we are respecting but don’t try to charge the European Union with the responsibility.”

Mr Juncker hinted at concerns that a hard border in Ireland would lead to the return of unrest on the island of Ireland.

He confirmed that controls at the Irish border would have to be implemented if Britain were to leave the EU without a deal, insisting: “We have to make sure that the interests of the European Union and of the internal market will be preserved.”

But he said he did not like the prospect of a hard border, given the violent clashes seen during The Troubles.

The conflict between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland lasted almost 30 years and cost the lives of more than 3,500 people, before the Good Friday Agreement

Mr Juncker told the Ridge on Sunday programme: “I don’t like it, a hard border. Because after the Good Friday Agreement – and this (agreement) has to be respected in all its parts.

“The situation in Ireland has improved; we should not play with this.

“Sometimes I have the impression that some people are forgetting about the history.

“But history will be back immediately.”

The Brussels official said he “was not criticising” British MPs and insisted he had “the highest respect possible for Westminster because it’s the mother of all parliaments.”

But, he stressed, it was the UK Government’s responsibility to stop any Irish border from becoming “significantly harder”.

It comes days after Mr Juncker said he was “doing “everything” to help secure a withdrawal agreement because he felt a hard Brexit would be “catastrophic” for both sides.

“It’s better for Britain and for the European Union to have an organised deal,” he told Sky.

He also suggested an openness to the contentious Irish backstop plans being scrapped, so long as they were replaced with a viable alternative.

Mr Juncker said on Thursday: “I don’t have an erotic relation to the backstop.

“If the results are there, I don’t care about the instrument.

“If the objectives are met, all of them, then we don’t need the backstop.”

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August 12, 2019 by Crimson Tazvinzwa

NIGEL FARAGE: Everything the Brexit Party leaders hates about Britain

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Brexit is often described by its most zealous proponents as a patriotic project. Usually evoking World War Two (we’re talking about you, Mark Francois), Brexit is depicted as a continuation of a long-standing battle to rid ourselves of foreign dictators. Nothing, they say, could be more British//By Sam Bright; Scram

Yet, Brexit’s chief protagonist, Nigel Farage, has today shown that he’s perhaps not the patriot that many people would like to believe. The Brexit Party leader used a speech in Sydney, Australia, to describe the late Queen Mother as an “overweight, chain-smoking gin drinker,” and to harangue princes Charles and Harry – as well as Meghan Markle.

And this got us thinking – Farage actually hates a lot of things about Britain, including:

Our capital

Farage regularly uses his soapbox to slam “out of touch” Remainers in London who are trying to thwart his precious Brexit, or so he says. He even arranged a march from Sunderland to London to “tell the Westminster elite we will not be betrayed over Brexit.”

And it seems Farage is also not a fan of our capital’s famous diversity. At a speech at UKIP’s Spring conference in 2014, Farage said that immigration had caused Britain’s cities to “become unrecognisable.”

Attempting to justify these comments, the former UKIP leader cited a train ride he’d taken in London where he couldn’t hear “English being audibly spoken in the carriage.” This, he said, didn’t make him feel “very comfortable”.

What’s more, Mr Brexit has in the past said that London is “blighted” by “wholly Muslim areas” – echoing President Trump’s criticisms of the capital and its mayor Sadiq Khan.

The BBC

A good majority of Brits (well more than voted for Brexit) are proud of the BBC. It’s a national institution. Yet, Farage is not such a fan.

During the recent European elections campaign, when he was subject to a grilling from veteran presenter Andrew Marr, the Brexit Party leader said: “The BBC are now the enemy.”

Indeed, Farage often moans about alleged anti-BBC bias, and a number of his MP candidates have pledged to “reform” the public service broadcaster, if they are elected at the next general election.

The mother of all Parliaments

During the EU referendum, Farage relentlessly campaigned for Parliament to “take back control” from Brussels. Yet, ever since, he hasn’t stopped criticising the way that Parliament operates.

In particular, he says that Parliament is “betraying” the wishes of the people, by refusing to sanction an economically calamitous no-deal Brexit.

Farage clearly doesn’t like the fact we have a Parliamentary democracy, in the same way he doesn’t like most of the royal family, the BBC, or our capital.

Maybe he should think about emigrating?

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London Bridge terrorism attack filmed from all angles

Brexit news latest: EU is in no way responsible for consequences of UK’s exit, says Jean-Claude Juncker

The EU is in “no way responsible” for the consequences of Brexit, Jean-Claude Juncker has said.