Not quite sure how I feel about this... I suppose exact statistics are un-needed, but there is a lot of good information in the Patterns of Global Terrorism reports. I hope the National Counter Terrorism Center eventually replaces it with something similar, but better refined.
The new weapon against terror: ‘tramps’
MI5 and Special Branch agents pose as vagrants to gather intelligence
By Liam McDougall and Neil Mackay
BRITISH intelligence agents are disguising themselves as down-and-outs in “key terrorist target areas” as part of a nationwide surveillance operation to foil attacks by al-Qaeda
Senior intelligence and police anti-terror sources revealed that the ploy has been sanctioned for use in areas considered to be potential terror targets – such as around Westminster and the Scottish parliament – and in areas with large Muslim populations. Major tourist attractions such as Edinburgh Castle and the Tower of London are also being surveilled by officers posing as tramps.
One British intelligence source said the agents, dressed as vagrants, were being used as “spotters and intelligence gatherers”. He said: “We are using agents in the field in a variety of ways. Some adopt the guise of the homeless or vagrants in key target areas.
“A vagrant is perfect for long-term surveillance or just picking up interesting tidbits in the street. They blend in and become almost invisible to the public. They are our eyes and ears in key locations.”
The astonishing admission comes just days after Kamel Bourgass, a suspected al-Qaeda operative living in London, was jailed for 17 years at the Old Bailey for plotting attacks in Britain using the deadly poison ricin. Police and MI5 believe the 31-year-old Algerian, a failed asylum seeker, had been picked for training in one of Osama bin Laden’s camps in Afghanistan and was part of a network of terrorists that stretched across Europe.
He was convicted on Wednesday after a raid on a north London flat in 2003 found recipes for poisons, including ricin and cyanide, written out in Arabic in Bourgass’s handwriting. Bourgass stabbed Special Branch officer Stephen Oake to death after police cornered him during a later swoop at an address in Manchester.
A British intelligence source revealed that there were “20-plus key Islamic terrorist suspects in the UK”, many of whom had not been arrested before.
The Sunday Herald understands that the none of the 20-plus group relates to the Muslims detained in Belmarsh. These suspects are understood to be “sleepers” connected to al-Qaeda cells who live in the UK until called upon to carry out an attack.
The source also confirmed that undercover anti-terror teams were being sent incognito into “key areas” of the UK. Some were dressed as vagrants.
“The areas that we are targeting are obviously of interest to us, to the ongoing war on terror and Britain being a prime terror target. We’ve got these guys keeping watch in city centres for any suspicious activity or terrorist planning.”
The teams have been ordered to monitor anyone who maybe acting suspiciously around key tourist sites, “high-profile” buildings or mosques. Currently, the UK has been placed on high alert for terror attacks. Possible targets include next month’s general election and the meeting of the G8 leaders, including US President George Bush, at Gleneagles, Perthshire, in July.
http://www.sundayherald.com/49168
I think they just don't want to have to release such a document to the public, and probably for good reason.
Terrorists may gain a good overview of what we are doing.