Terrorist Prisoners Hit Record High In British Jails Amid Warnings of Radicalisation

A record number of terrorists are being held in British prisons, new figures show amid warnings over radicalisation inside “chaotic” jails. Statistics released by the Home Office on Thursday indicate there were 243 people in custody for terror-related offences, up 24 on the previous year. It comes as the government pushes for a raft of changes aiming to jail terror offenders for longer and make serious criminals serve more of their sentences in prison. Four alleged terror attacks have been launched by serving or released prisoners in the past year, in Fishmongers’ Hall, HMP Whitemoor, Streatham and Reading. A prison officer working in the high-security estate told The Independent the current situation was a  “nightmare”.

The Ministry of Justice said it has improved monitoring and intelligence-sharing inside prisons and trained officers on how to spot the signs of extremism. But the officer said the training was “awful” and that staff were “run ragged” and powerless to monitor conversations in other languages. Recent research warned that some extremists see their time in prison “as an opportunity” to become more extreme and prepare for attacks. A separate report published by the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation said terror offenders were not being prosecuted for further crimes committed in prison, including making weapons and glorifying terrorism.

Read more: Lizzie Dearden, Independent, https://is.gd/sxkF0H