Iran and Russia plot to use UK criminals to carry out their 'dirty work' bringing 'mayhem' to Britain's streets
8 October 2024, 13:29 | Updated: 8 October 2024, 15:26
Iran and Russia are trying to recruit UK criminals to carry out their “dirty work” for them, MI5’s chief has warned.
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In a major speech on the threats facing the country, Ken McCallum revealed that his teams have helped thwart 20 Iran-backed plots since January 2022 in a huge escalation of the threat they face.
Speaking at the Counter Terrorism Operations Centre, he paid tribute to our army of spooks, but warned that they faced “the most complex and interconnected threat environment we’ve ever seen” - and are facing more risks than ever before.
Britain’s top spy boss issued a stark warning to “those tempted to carry out such tasks” on behalf of rogue states.
He said: “If you take money from Iran, Russia, or any other state to carry out illegal acts in the UK, you will bring the full weight of the national security apparatus down on you.
"It’s a choice you’ll regret.”
And he revealed that threats coming from states like Iran have shot up 48 per cent in a single year.
Mr McCallum revealed in a wide-ranging speech:
- A “staggering” one in eight people being investigated by his teams are now under 18 as youngsters continue to get radicalised by the internet
- The UK hasn’t yet seen the war in the Middle East trigger direct terror action “at scale” on UK streets – but suggested that it could in future
- Russia’s GRU are on a sustained mission to “generate mayhem on our streets” including arson, sabotage and more – and are behaving increasingly recklessly as Putin gets more desperate
- Since March 2017, MI5 and cops have disrupted 43 late-stage terror attacks – including firearms and explosives
- Lone individuals indoctrinated by online hatred are still making up most threats to the UK
- AI is now being used by MI5 to combat threats “lawfully and ethically”
- But he is most concerned with the worsening threat from Al-Qaeda and Islamic State which is building back terror networks
So far, in the year since the October 7 attacks, there has not been an increase in late-stage plotting for UK-based attacks, Mr McCallum told LBC.
But he suggested that we could see this in future and said he was “powerfully alive” to the possibility.
Britain’s army of spooks is well prepared to disrupt criminal gang plots who may have been influenced by Russia and Iran, he insisted.
Criminals may be at risk of taking payment or instruction to do their illegal bidding.
And they’re reaching out to them online too, but extra powers under the Security Act will mean they face a range of punishments, he added.
Their work is still mostly split with 75 per cent Islamist terrorism, and 25 per cent extreme right wing terrorism.
But a “dizzying range of beliefs and ideologies” is developing, with many displaying a range of views, he said.
Compared to his years combating threats like al-Qaeda and Isis, he said it was growing even harder to figure out whether attacks were motivated by ideology or driven by other factors like mental health.
Andrew Marr and David Lammy discuss warning from MI5 over spying
The Director General of MI5 said: “Today, an attacker might not have connections to other terrorists.
“They might not be on our records.
“And there’s often no claim of responsibility.”
He spoke at length about his fears for the youth of tomorrow, saying 13 per cent of all people being investigated by MI5 are under the age of 18 – a threefold increase in just the last three years.
“That’s not something I would have expected to see earlier in my career,” he added.
Extreme right-wing terror “skews heavily to young people” he said, which was “driven by propaganda that shows a canny understanding of internet culture”.
And he defended the use of his security services to be able to peek into private communications – warning that it would allow “child abusers and terrorists to operate at scale” if they weren’t able to.
Russia was still a major state-based threat to Brits in the UK – and they were using criminals here to try and “weaken Western resolve”.
More than 750 Russian diplomats have been expelled from Europe in the years since Putin invaded Ukraine – the “great majority of them spies”.
And they’re continuing to deny diplomatic applications from Russian spies, adding: “It’s not flashy but it works. Kick them out, keep them out.”
The spy boss also discussed risks to the UK from the wider conflict in the Middle East, one year on from the Hamas attacks on Israel.
Chiefs are “powerfully alive to the risk” that it could spark terrorist action in the UK - but it hasn’t happened at scale yet.
He hinted that it could occur in the future, saying: “we haven’t – yet – seen this translate at scale into terrorist violence”.
Britain’s terror threat level is currently ‘substantial’ meaning an attack is likely – and is kept under constant review.
Mr McCallum also warned of the threat from China – saying there are “risks to be managed” even as the UK goes for growth and trade deals.
He said: “The choices are complex, and it rightly falls to ministers to make the big strategic judgements on our relationship with China… where it’s in the UK’s interests to cooperate, and how we do so safely”.
But MI5 will still target threats to our democracy, attempts to coerce people, and protect people who speak out against the Chinese government.
