Popular Post chrisp65 Posted August 31, 2018 Popular Post Share Posted August 31, 2018 and this is us, dancing for coins on a tour of countries that between them don't have the GDP of Spain a dance we could have been doing whilst still in the EU 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowychap Posted September 1, 2018 Share Posted September 1, 2018 (edited) As they're the clearings in the woods in charge, I'll pop this in here (I looked for my old counter-terrorism thread but that seems to have passed, unfortunately): How a plot to kill Theresa May in Downing Street was foiled Quote A college drop-out who sought revenge for his uncle's death in Syria has been convicted of preparing to attack Downing Street and kill the PM. Naa'imur Rahman, 20, was convicted at the Old Bailey after he was trapped in a major undercover operation involving the FBI, MI5 and police. Rahman approached officers posing online as fellow extremists, asking them for help with an attack. He met two and repeatedly asked for bombs - leading to his conviction. He has now been jailed for a minimum of 30 years. How did the plot develop? Last summer Rahman was homeless in London after falling out with both his mother in the city and close relatives in Walsall, where he grew up. Walsall to Syria: Fighters, travellers and victims? Three years ago he was referred to the national deradicalisation scheme, Channel, amid concerns that the-then teenager could be brainwashed by his uncle. When he was investigated last year over an allegation of sexting with an underage girl, intelligence emerged from his phone that he had maintained contact with his uncle. Who was Rahman's uncle? Musadikur Rohaman left the UK for Syria in 2014. The Old Bailey trial heard that he'd been encouraging his nephew to attack the UK and had sent him bomb-making plans and other extremist material. However, in late June 2017, Rohaman was killed in a coalition drone strike on IS fighters near the city of Raqqa. When Rahman learnt of his uncle's death, prosecutors told the trial that he planned his revenge. How did he develop his plan? Rahman made contact with IS recruiters via social media - but unbeknown to him the contact was actually an FBI agent. That agent referred Rahman to an MI5 team of online role players who convinced him that they were genuine IS figures. "I want to do a suicide bomb on Parliament," Rahman told the MI5 role players. "I want to attempt to kill Theresa May. All I need now is a sleeper cell to lay low for now." Despite his total lack of skills or training, MI5 was concerned that Rahman would press ahead, so counter-terrorism chiefs launched an elaborate undercover operation to gather evidence of his intent. As Rahman kept asking for help, the MI5 team introduced him to an undercover police officer in London posing as an Islamic State weapons fixer. The jury watched secretly recorded video of Rahman meeting "Shaq" in a car and setting out his aspirations. He told the story of his uncle's killing - and asked for a truck bomb and firearms - before conceding he could neither drive nor fire a gun. Rahman then settled for storming Downing Street in an attempt to kill Theresa May. How would he attack Downing Street? On 6 November last year, Rahman laid out his final plan to "Shaq" - a recording of it was played in court. "I have drawn up a plan, gone through it in detail in my head. You know at the gate of Downing Street? There are about four men innit? And two men on the door? "I want to get past that gate and if I can get to the door I want to make a dash for Theresa May. She sleeps there every night." Shaq asked Rahman to elaborate on how he thought this was possible. "If I have a backpack with stuff inside and I do that at the gate and I get past the gate... a 10-second sprint to the door." "I'll be honest with you," replied Shaq. "I've never looked at it." "I wanna drop a bag at the gate, so the gate blows up a bit and I can go through and then like, make a run, like I was thinking taking a human hostage until I get to the actual door. "Grab a human shield and then once I get close enough to the door, I'll do what I can with them to get inside." "You're trying to get to Number 10," asked Shaq. "That's your main objective?" "Take her head off, yeah," replied Rahman. Rahman said he couldn't fund the attack because he was "broke and homeless" - but he handed over a jacket and a rucksack, asking for both to be filled with explosives. Shaq returned the items with a fake bomb in the bag and the jacket filled with supposed explosives. Rahman took both off him and said: "Do you know? Now I've seen everything it feels good." As he walked away from the scene he was surrounded by police, arrested, and later said: "I'm glad it's over." Did he really intend to attack? Rahman told his trial that none of his plans was serious. When he made contact with men whom he thought were his uncle's comrades in Syria, he had begun showing off, making up schemes to impress them. He told jurors that one fantastical proposal had been to build balloons to drop missiles from the edge of space. Rahman claimed he had been set up and tricked by MI5 and the police. But prosecutors showed that Rahman had carried out extensive reconnaissance of Downing Street, Parliament and nearby government buildings. The jury had to be convinced that Rahman had seriously intended to attack Downing Street and had taken the first steps along that course. In sentencing, Mr Justice Haddon-Cave said: "I am sure that at all material times Rahman believed the devices to be real and capable of causing serious harm." I'll stress that I wasn't there in court so didn't hear all the evidence. However, come the **** on. From the media report above, at no point was Theresa May, the PM, ever in danger of being killed. At no point was any sort of plot 'foiled'. Edited September 1, 2018 by snowychap Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xann Posted September 3, 2018 Share Posted September 3, 2018 Disgraced prick Liam Fox is hoping that the Lords don't overturn his wish to screw us over in secret during US trade talks. Considering what a fabulous job the Tories did with poisoning TTIP for the whole of Europe, let's hope he doesn't get his wish! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chindie Posted September 5, 2018 VT Supporter Share Posted September 5, 2018 May is making an 'emergency statement' later on. Supposedly about national security, i.e. Salisbury. 'Hey look over there!' 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted September 5, 2018 Share Posted September 5, 2018 Yep. Merve the swerve denounces Govt policy/approach on Brexit as incompetent. Headline news Diversion required. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amsterdam_Neil_D Posted September 5, 2018 Share Posted September 5, 2018 2 hours ago, Chindie said: May is making an 'emergency statement' later on. Supposedly about national security, i.e. Salisbury. 'Hey look over there!' "Let me be clear......" 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chindie Posted September 5, 2018 VT Supporter Share Posted September 5, 2018 Someone should fire a bullet at her feet every time she utters that phrase or any variation of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xann Posted September 5, 2018 Share Posted September 5, 2018 "What's Important..." <insert something irrelevant here> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VILLAMARV Posted September 5, 2018 Share Posted September 5, 2018 22 minutes ago, Xann said: "What's Important..." <insert something irrelevant here> ....is the War on a noun? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xann Posted September 5, 2018 Share Posted September 5, 2018 7 minutes ago, VILLAMARV said: ....is the War on a noun? A three stage codewheel type political speech writing device in the making. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PompeyVillan Posted September 6, 2018 Share Posted September 6, 2018 18 hours ago, Xann said: "What's Important..." <insert something irrelevant here> I've been really clear that... [Doesn't answer a question, ever] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post chrisp65 Posted September 7, 2018 Popular Post Share Posted September 7, 2018 These are the people running the country. These are the people at the heart of what sort of border we have in Northern Ireland. I can't decide if its more damning of the PM or the NI Secretary. Karen Bradley, the Sec of State for N.I., didn't know there was all sorts of politics in play in Northern Ireland and people tended to be for one side or the other. Astounding. I don't know what's the bigger story, that an adult in the UK with a passing interest in politics didn't know anything about Northern Ireland. Or that an adult in the UK with a passing interest in politics gave her that job and thought that was an adequate appointment. These are the people deciding whether we need to reinstate check points. 4 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VILLAMARV Posted September 7, 2018 Share Posted September 7, 2018 37 minutes ago, chrisp65 said: These are the people running the country. These are the people at the heart of what sort of border we have in Northern Ireland. I can't decide if its more damning of the PM or the NI Secretary. Karen Bradley, the Sec of State for N.I., didn't know there was all sorts of politics in play in Northern Ireland and people tended to be for one side or the other. Astounding. I don't know what's the bigger story, that an adult in the UK with a passing interest in politics didn't know anything about Northern Ireland. Or that an adult in the UK with a passing interest in politics gave her that job and thought that was an adequate appointment. These are the people deciding whether we need to reinstate check points. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VILLAMARV Posted September 7, 2018 Share Posted September 7, 2018 She is 6 years older than me. Unless she grew up under a rock I find it hard to take that statement seriously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NurembergVillan Posted September 7, 2018 Moderator Share Posted September 7, 2018 I've known that since I was about 14. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wainy316 Posted September 7, 2018 Share Posted September 7, 2018 Surely they'll be practically wiped out in a generation's time... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowychap Posted September 7, 2018 Share Posted September 7, 2018 13 minutes ago, Wainy316 said: Surely they'll be practically wiped out in a generation's time... No. People's political bent is not static. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ender4 Posted September 7, 2018 Share Posted September 7, 2018 15 minutes ago, Wainy316 said: Surely they'll be practically wiped out in a generation's time... No, because i believe (i may be wrong) that the demographic stays the same as time moves on - so the younger people who are voting Labour right now, will slowly switch to Tory as they get older. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VILLAMARV Posted September 7, 2018 Share Posted September 7, 2018 21 minutes ago, Wainy316 said: Surely they'll be practically wiped out in a generation's time... I wonder what the graph with axis for mortality rates/wealth looks like 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xann Posted September 7, 2018 Share Posted September 7, 2018 5 minutes ago, ender4 said: No, because i believe (i may be wrong) that the demographic stays the same as time moves on - so the younger people who are voting Labour right now, will slowly switch to Tory as they get older. With Tory repulsiveness and incompetence at record levels and still rising, I sincerely hope not. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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