Bomb probe shifts to intelligence By Gordon Corera BBC security correspondent
The investigation into the London bombings is evolving once again with a shift towards intelligence operations out of the public eye. Coupled with this is a growing focus on the international aspect of the attack as evidence points away from a small autonomous group of Britons and towards a possible wider international conspiracy, perhaps even leading directly to the remnants of al-Qaeda's core. The first few days after the bombing involved detailed forensic and detective work at the scene of the crime, piecing together details to identify the bombers. Then came the dramatic raids in Leeds as the police operation broke cover. This led to a further period of close forensic and detective work to examine the evidence found in Leeds and later in Aylesbury. The new phase - which has just begun and could go on for a long period - is just as intense but is more focused on finding the network and infrastructure behind the bombers - those who supported, financed, encouraged and armed them. A key question is whether the immediate network around the bombers had the capabilities to organise and carry out these attacks or whether they received help from the broader al-Qaeda network. Security service One aspect of this is intense work by the security service MI5 tracing every aspect of the bombers' past lives - their social and religious associations, their travel and their lifestyles to try and establish how they were radicalised - and by whom. Was this a group of friends who were drawn together by their radicalism and if so how did they get in touch with a broader network? It is vital to track down the individuals with the ability to encourage bombers as well as deliver the material capability in order to prevent future attacks Or did a broader network participate in their radicalisation from an earlier stage and guide them towards becoming suicide bombers? Authorities will be especially trying to understand how the individual bombers generated the commitment to not just decide to carry out a suicide bombing but carry it through to the final moment. In other cases, individuals have stayed close to bombers to drive them on towards the goal and make sure they do not have any second thoughts. Analysts say that understanding how the group prepared themselves spiritually is as important as how they prepared themselves in terms of organising explosives. It is vital to track down the individuals with the ability to encourage bombers as well as deliver the material capability in order to prevent future attacks. Global On the international front, the travel of the bombers is another avenue being intensively explored. So are the movements of one individual - thought to be a non-resident Briton - who came into the country in the weeks before the attack and then disappeared hours before it and who may have links to al-Qaeda. On this front, Britain's secret intelligence service MI6 is pursuing active leads in a number of countries. Pakistan though is clearly the main focus, with three of the bombers being of Pakistani origin and at least two thought to have travelled there in recent years. Investigators are still not entirely clear on the significance of their travel. Any connection is not yet clear. Reports from Islamabad say that Pakistani intelligence and other agencies are working flat out to accommodate British demands for information. Wider circles As the investigation draws wider and wider circles, the question is still open as to whether it intersects with figures within the al- Qaeda leadership. The received wisdom on al-Qaeda's modus operandi is that its leadership - under severe pressure - sets broad strategic direction such as which countries should be targeted and then lets individual, largely autonomous groups carry out its own attacks. However, our understanding is constantly adapting and it remains to be seen whether any actual operational capability might have been provided for this attack from figures in Pakistan closely connected to al-Qaeda. Understanding this may be critical but could also take time. Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/uk/4686063.stm Published: 2005/07/15 12:17:31 GMT © BBC MMV Post message: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe : [EMAIL PROTECTED] List owner : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
