IS planning ‘large-scale’ Mumbai-style attacks in Europe: Europol report

It says the strikes will be directed at soft targets like public places and restaurants in the continent -- and in France in particular.

January 25, 2016 08:28 pm | Updated February 14, 2019 02:05 pm IST - LONDON:

Smoke is seen billowing out of the ground and first floors of the Taj Hotel in south Mumbai during security personnel's "Operation Cyclone" following the 26/11 terror attacks in 2008. Releasing a new report on counter-terrorism, Europol Chief Rob Wainwright said the Islamic State is preparing to execute more terrorist attacks, including more ‘Mumbai-style’ strikes, in member states of the EU -- and in France in particular.

Smoke is seen billowing out of the ground and first floors of the Taj Hotel in south Mumbai during security personnel's "Operation Cyclone" following the 26/11 terror attacks in 2008. Releasing a new report on counter-terrorism, Europol Chief Rob Wainwright said the Islamic State is preparing to execute more terrorist attacks, including more ‘Mumbai-style’ strikes, in member states of the EU -- and in France in particular.

The Islamic State (IS) is plotting “Mumbai-style” terrorist attacks directed at soft targets such as public places and restaurants in Europe, and in France in particular, the European Union police agency Europol warned on Monday.

Europol chief Rob Wainwright said that the ISIS had “developed a new combat style capability to carry out a campaign of large-scale terrorist attacks on a global stage — with a particular focus in Europe.”

It has the will and the capability

Releasing a new Europol report on counter-terrorism, he said the terror group “has a willingness and a capability to carry out further attacks in Europe.”

“All national authorities are working to prevent that from happening,” he added.

The report warned that “the IS is preparing more terrorist attacks, including more ‘Mumbai-style’ attacks, to be executed in member states of the EU, and in France in particular.”

Soft targets beware

The Europol report has said the attacks will be primarily directed at soft targets, because of the impact it generates.

“Both the November Paris attacks and the October 2015 bombing of a Russian airliner suggest a shift in the IS strategy towards going global,” it added.

Tactical freedom

“In selecting their targets, local IS commanders are believed to enjoy tactical freedom to adapt their plans to specific local circumstances, adding to the difficulty for law enforcement to detect such plans and identifying the people involved at an early stage,” the eight-page report said.

Nine militants carried out multiple terror attacks in Paris in November that killed 130 people.

Similarities in Paris, Mumbai attacks

The report said the modus operandi in Paris and Mumbai attacks was similar. The chosen targets in both cities included restaurants and cafes and centres of entertainment, guaranteeing high impact in numbers of fatalities and in the level of attention generated, the report said.

In Mumbai there were 10 attackers, in Paris nine. The Mumbai attacks resulted in 166 deaths while the Paris carnage killed 130 people.

New beheading video

The Europol warning comes at a time when the IS has released a strongly defiant new beheading video, showing the nine ‘Paris attackers’ and threatening an attack on the U.K.

The 17-minute video, dubbed ‘Paris Has Collapsed,’ features the final words of the killers behind the Paris attacks last November and shows footage of the Big Ben, Tower Bridge and Trafalgar Square as well as British Prime David Cameron and House of Commons Speaker John Bercow.

The U.K.-related images are shown towards the end of the clip, which predominantly focuses on the Paris attackers.

The video seemingly aims to show that the Paris attackers, some of whom had French and Belgian passports, had trained in IS-held territory before carrying out Paris attacks.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.