7/7/05 attacksU.K. security services acted properly with the information they had

We are nearing the grim anniversary of the 7/7/05 London terrorist attacks. A week ago the Parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) published a review of intelligence concerning the attacks. The review was carried out as part of a lengthy and detailed investigation by the ISC to determine whether the attacks could have been prevented in the light of what was known at the time and what should have been known.

Drawing on sensitive intelligence gathered by the Security Service, the police, and other U.K. agencies, the ISC concludes: “we cannot criticize the judgments made by MI5 and the police based on the information that they had and their priorities at the time.”

MI5 reports that two of the 7/7 attackers appeared on the fringes of another terrorist plot, Operation CREVICE, which the Security Service was investigating in 2004, but were not identified or investigated in detail by the Service or the police as they appeared to be petty fraudsters, not involved in attack planning. The ISC has found that, prior to the attacks, there was no reason to believe that the two — Mohammed Siddique Khan and Shehzad Tanweer — were involved in a plot to carry out terrorist attacks. Immediately following the CREVICE arrests, further work was undertaken on leads emerging from the CREVICE investigation. Shortly after this, however, all of the Service’s resources had to be fully committed to other threat to life investigations.

The ISC reports that, since the attacks, the U.K.’s intelligence agencies and the police have implemented certain changes in the way that they operate. The government has also increased the resources directed toward national security work. While it is impossible to guarantee that there will be no repeat of the 7/7 attacks, the ISC concludes that the chances of detecting a similar plot have been improved.

The ISC has also addressed a number of allegations about the handling of 7/7-related intelligence material. It has found that there is no evidence to support claims of overlooked clues and ignored warnings.

For more information:

• Could 7/7 Have Been Prevented? Review of the Intelligence on the London Terrorist Attacks on 7 July 2005 (Intelligence and Security Committee, 12 May 2009)
• The 7 July 2005 bombings and the Security Service (a summary of MI5’s role in the investigations prior to the 7/7 bombings)
• The 7/7 bombings: rumors and reality (answers to various allegations, rumors and claims about the 7/7 bombings)