|
The London bombings on the 7th of July 2005 underscored the need for a comprehensive anti terrorism British law. The attacks on civil targets were carried out by Islamic militants. The militants were believed to owe allegiance to the Al Quaeda terrorist organization.
The anti terrorism British law was formulated as a result of increased terrorist activity in British territory is referred to as the Terrorism Act 2006. The law was formulated to reflect the security concerns of the British administrative establishment. The bill was passed by British parliament and is active and valid at present. The Terrorism Act of 2006 is an extension of the Prevention of Terrorism Act that was propounded in 2005. The first legislative step to prevent terrorism was put forward in 2000. However, there was an overhauling of the law to curb terrorism in 2001. Known as the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act of 2001, this allowed the detention of foreign nationals for suspected terrorist activities for over an extended period of time.
The anti terrorism British law as laid down by the Terrorism Act 2006 encompasses a wide range of active and passive terrorist activities. The provisions of the law bar any person on British soil to actively and passively encourage terrorist activity. The passive support is stated to be any action that directly or indirectly promotes terrorist activity. The distribution of terrorist literature and carrying out of terrorist training also falls under the purview of Terrorism Act 2006.
The Terrorism Act 2006 prohibits any person to undergo unauthorized military training. Attendance at the training ground is also made a cognizable offense. Possession of unauthorized and unlicensed weapons is also deemed as an illegal activity. Threat calls are also a punishable offense.
The Terrorism Act 2006 empowers the British Government to prosecute any group or person suspected of any terrorist activity with a specific detention period. The arrested individual could be held for a period of 28 days without charge, under the approval of a judicial authority.
|
