joyful
06-11-2007, 06:35 PM
Britain faces a generational battle against Islamic extremism that may take up to three decades to win, a former British Navy Chief observed. Sir Alan West, who is responsible for security and counter-terrorism within the interior ministry, told The Sun* that “we are talking about a generation ~ and by that I would say 30 years.”
He elaborated: “That doesn't mean necessarily that we are going to stay at a severe level of threat for all those years. But to be able to say one has absolutely changed the mindset and thought of people is going to take a generation.”
Sir West added that the battle against extremism will be in phases. “After some years it will become much better and then the threat will hopefully go.”
Perhaps I am being optimistic in thinking that we can get rid of it entirely. But I think 15 years is still a good time for reducing it dramatically,” he said, pointing out that the Cold War between the USA and the USSR lasted 40 years. Sir West also conceded that it was “highly likely that Britain might be the site of another terrorist attack.”
http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=8&theme=&usrsess=1&id=175091
He elaborated: “That doesn't mean necessarily that we are going to stay at a severe level of threat for all those years. But to be able to say one has absolutely changed the mindset and thought of people is going to take a generation.”
Sir West added that the battle against extremism will be in phases. “After some years it will become much better and then the threat will hopefully go.”
Perhaps I am being optimistic in thinking that we can get rid of it entirely. But I think 15 years is still a good time for reducing it dramatically,” he said, pointing out that the Cold War between the USA and the USSR lasted 40 years. Sir West also conceded that it was “highly likely that Britain might be the site of another terrorist attack.”
http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=8&theme=&usrsess=1&id=175091