Douglas Murray and staff from the Centre for Social Cohesion join the Henry Jackson Society

By Jonathan Isaby

It was announced yesterday that Douglas Murray (pictured) and his staff at the Centre for Social Cohesion have joined the Henry Jackson Society.

The Henry Jackson Society will now oversee and co-ordinate research on radicalisation and extremism within Britain, although the CSC will continue to update legacy projects.

As part of the reorganisation, CSC Director Douglas Murray becomes an Associate Director of the Henry Jackson Society.

Alan Mendoza, Executive Director of the Henry Jackson Society, said of the changes:

"We're extremely pleased to see the joining together of staff from our two respected think tanks, both of which have a proven commitment to the security and longevity of democratic values both at home and abroad.  Douglas and I are very much looking forward to expanding the programme, activities and output of the Henry Jackson Society to meet the pressing public policy challenges facing Britain and the world today."

Centre for Social Cohesion argues "imperfect" Control Orders are an important instrument of national security

By Tim Montgomerie

Control Orders were introduced by the last government to impose various restrictions on people who are suspected of terrorist connections. One of the reasons why the individuals cannot be deported, which is the usual remedy for such individuals, is the fear that they may be tortured in their countries of origin.

A new report from the Centre for Social Cohesion, written by Robin Simcox, lists some of the people who have been subject to COs:

• Faraj Hassan al-Saadi, convicted in Italy for membership of a terrorist group and described as the ‘European envoy’ of Musab al-Zarqawi, the former head of al- Qaeda in Iraq;
• Abu Qatada, the al-Qaeda ideologue convicted in absentia in Jordan of terrorist offences;
• A suspected member of the Tunisian Fighting Group, convicted in absentia in Tunisia of terrorist offences;
• A senior member of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG), a proscribed terrorist group, convicted in absentia in Morocco of terrorist offences relating to the May 2003 bombings in Casablanca; and
• An Ethiopian suspected of undertaking terrorist training in Somalia, who was also associated with the 21/7 suicide bomb plotters.

A PDF of his full report is here.

In today's Times (£) Rachel Sylvester identifies the issue as a source of tension between the Coalition partners:

"The spooks and the cops are unwilling to see detention without trial brought down to 14 days. They are opposed to the idea that control orders should be scrapped. David Cameron — a more paternalist Tory than civil libertarians such as David Davis — may be unwilling to overrule his security experts, who are warning that to take a more liberal approach could make a terrorist attack in Britain more likely. But if he insists on retaining Labour’s controversial measures that would put him on a direct collision course with Nick Clegg on an issue of symbolic importance for the coalition. “These are big battles,” says one insider."

'Britain is at the centre of global struggle against violent Islamism'

Two days before the fifth anniversary of the 7/7 bombings, a new report from the Centre for Social Cohesion, Islamist Terrorism: The British Connections, states that the majority of terrorist-related activity in the UK over the last ten years has been home-grown. Sky News reports:

"The Centre for Social Cohesion found that 69% of such incidents between 1999 and 2009 were carried out by British citizens. The research also suggests that seven of the UK's eight major bomb plot cells contained individuals with direct links to al Qaeda... A number of British Muslims have been convicted in foreign courts or have fought for, or trained with, terrorist or extremist Islamist groups abroad, the report outlines."

Douglas Murray, Director of the CSC, told The Telegraph: “The report proves how great a threat violent Islamism poses to the world – and the fact that Britain is at the centre of this global struggle.”

Last week Met Assistant Commissioner John Yates warned that Britain could not afford to cut its anti-terrorist policing. Yates said that the al Qaida threat remained "severe", was constantly mutating and vigilance was needed now as part of protecting the 2012 Olympics. Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude accused Mr Yates of "shroud-waving" and "alarmism".

The dangers of revolutionary Islamist party Hizb Ut-Tahrir

"Hizb Ut-Tahrir - Ideology and Strategy" (PDF)

Authors: Houriya Ahmed and Hannah Stuart

Publication date: November 2009

A report researching the Islamic extremist party Hizb Ut-Tahrir who, according to the report's authors, seek to establish an expansionist super-state in Muslim-majority countries and seek to unify Muslims worldwide into one political bloc.

The BNP's Online Fascist Network

"The BNP and the Online Fascist Network" (PDF)

Author: Edmund Standing. Introduction by Alexander Meleagrou-Hitchens

Publication date: 13 July 2009

The report claims that despite attempts by the BNP's leadership to moderate their image, many of their members hold views which are consistent with Neo-Nazis. The paper looks into the links between the BNP and fellow Fascist groups across the world and their use of the internet to consolidate these relationships.

Concerns over UK University funding from dubious overseas sources

"A Degree of Influence - The Funding of Strategically Important Subjects in the UK Universities" (PDF)

Author: Robin Simcox

Publication date: March 2009

This report is a study analysing the high levels of foreign funding entering British academia. The paper illustrates that university subjects designated as "strategically important" by the British Government are receiving large financial payments from foreign donors. According to the author many of these donors are linked to despotic regimes known for perpetuating human rights abuses.