Dozens of people have been detained across western Europe today, though few of them have been charged with anything, following a new round of “anti-terror” sweeps focusing on Islamist communities across the continent.
French Premier Manuel Valis says that the operations were a response to a “terrorist offensive” in the wake of last week’s Paris attacks. Other officials claimed plots were in the offing to attack police in several countries.
A lot of the “imminent” attacks appear to have been highly speculative, with Germany conceding that despite all of the people detained in their operation, there was no evidence any of them were planning attacks inside Germany.
Belgium similarly insisted that the people they arrested only had “intentions” to kill police and were exactly plotting against anyone. The detentions seem to be focused primarily on potential “future” terrorists instead of actual terrorists.
This would be the perfect time to drop a dime on that loud annoying neighbor or the commercial competitor who just moved into the neighborhood…
"…seem to be focused primarily on potential “future” terrorists instead of actual terrorists."
Well, that should pretty much guarantee an adverse outcome. I wonder how many of these "arrests" are going to disappear into the US blackhole system? For information gathering purposes only, of course.
This is essentially EU solidarity. Everybody wants to get in on the act. It's the natural "stick together" reaction when people feel threatened. Whoever is really behind the Charlie Hebdo attack, they did the EU a big favour!
I can see the way Europe is going.
Western Europe loves plunder — Loves colonies, brutal imperialism and wars of aggression
And almost to a man do Western Europeans know full well that their brutal imperialism is why they are the most wealthy people on earth, know precisely how to end this minor irritant called terrorism and for the sheer glory and wealth to be gained by it — for an absolute intends to jack-up the brutality all the more.