No one can question that Europe is in trouble. Terrorists attacked the U.K. again, this time in the heart of London. On Saturday night, June 3, 2017, three terrorists struck innocent pedestrians with a van on London Bridge, then left the van and went on a stabbing rampage at nearby Borough Market. The death toll at this writing is at 7 with over 48 injuries. 12 people have already been arrested in connection to the attack. It was a low tech., inexpensive yet lethal terrorist attack using a vehicle and knives. ISIS has stated that they will attack us using everyday objects like vehicles, knives, tools, etc. It had all the hallmarks of an ISIS attack, and they have now claimed responsibility. ISIS was responsible for the last two attacks in the U.K., and it is the third lethal terrorist attack in England in just over two months.
One can’t witness the current rash of terrorism in Europe and think that all is well in terms of how the Europeans are dealing with this growing problem. They lack the willingness to vigoursly investigate, incarcerate and export those who are on terrorism watch lists or are known to be part of active terror cells. There is no organized strategy to build relationships with the Muslim communities and the moderate Muslims that populate the European landscape. The British and the rest of the Europeans have taken a full reactive stance on terrorism rather than a proactive preventative approach. Many Muslim refugees and immigrants fail to assimilate. ISIS has declared that it will enter countries through the refugee stream, and it has done just that. Hard core Islamists are also in the mix of immigrants. This, along with online radicalization and the “homegrown” radicalized Islamists that are already part of Europe is breeding a militant mindset that is seeing a new generation of terrorists that are attacking with greater frequency.
Central to the issue is that many immigrants and refugees harbor disdain and intolerance of their new western societies and refuse to assimilate and accept the laws, customs and cultures of the countries who have accepted them. They gravitate to the already established and disassociated Muslim communities Furthermore, these same unaccepting immigrants/refugees expect the countries who take them in to acquiesce to their culture, their religion and ultimately their law-Sharia Law. The European leaders, in many cases, are bowing to their demands – reverse assimilation.
What is most troubling is the refusal of European leaders to acknowledge what is happening to their countries by refusing to accept and acknowledge Islamic fundamentalism, extremism and terrorism at the expense of being seen as politically incorrect or intolerant, and ultimately at the expense of their citizens. Too often, counter-intelligence agencies have information about those who end up committing terrorist acts before they commit them, but the information isn’t acted on because of the leaders and politicians’ political correctness and fear of being seen as Islamophobic and refusal to acknowledge Islamic terrorism. As an article from the Gatestone Institute pointed out, “immigrants have asked for gender segregation at work and in educational institutions; they ask for faith schools (madrasas), and demand an end to any criticism of their extremist practices…such as forced child marriages and inciting hatred for other religions. They call any criticism “Islamophobia. They seek to establish a parallel justice system such as sharia courts. They are also unlikely, on different pretexts, to support any anti-terror or anti-extremism programs. They seem to focus only on criticizing the policies of West.
Some European officials and leaders accept terrorism as a way of life. Mayor Sadiq Khan of London thinks that people who live in big cities “have to be prepared for these sorts of things and need to become accustom to terrorism.” He stated that terrorism is “part and parcel to living in a big city”. The French Prime Minister after the 2015 Paris attacks stated that France “will have to live with terrorism.” Why do they have to accept and live with terrorism? Political correctness has superseded all common sense in much of Europe. This has resulted in reacting to terrorism after the carnage has taken place rather than taking a proactive initiative that will root these terrorists out before they are able to act. This mindset has created an atmosphere of mistrust between European citizens towards their leaders and a growing disdain of immigrants that are inhabiting their countries.
Europe faces a serious dilemma. Terrorist breeding grounds are thriving and growing with each successful event like the ones that have plagued the U.K. and ultimately all of Europe. The article went on to state, “It is now the responsibility of Western governments to curb this growing turbulence of religious fundamentalism. Western governments need to require ‘hard-line’ Muslims to follow the laws of the land. Extremists need to be stopped from driving civilization to a collision course before the freedoms, for which so many have worked so hard and sacrificed so much are — through indifference or political opportunism — completely abolished.” This battle is now at a crossroads, and every leader in Europe and the west must make the decisions regarding how they will fight this new era of terrorism or be prepared to see terrorism proliferate to a point of no return.