UK warns citizens of “likely” terrorists attacks in TT

Britain’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) on Friday last updated its travel advisory on Trinidad and Tobago, cautioning of potential terrorist attacks in the Caribbean islands.

According to the advisory, “Terrorists are likely to try to carry out attacks in

Trinidad & Tobago. Attacks could be indiscriminate, including in places visited by foreigners.”

It went onto note that although there have been no recent attacks in the twin island, more than 100 Trinidad and Tobago nationals have travelled to Syria and Iraq to fight along with Daesh (formerly referred to as ISIL) and are likely to pose a security threat on return.

“There’s also a threat from individuals who may have been inspired by terrorist groups, including Daesh and al Qaeda, to carry out so-called ‘lone actor’ attacks targeting public events or places,” the advisory detailed.

It further referred back to January 30, when the country’s Ministry of National Security of Trinidad and Tobago confirmed that it is working closely with international partners – especially the United States, Britain and Canada – in strategic areas such as intelligence and information sharing on people who are found to be associated with any terrorist group, whether locally or internationally.

“There’s a heightened threat of terrorist attack globally against UK interests and British nationals, from groups or individuals motivated by the conflict in Iraq and Syria. You should be vigilant at this time. Find out more about the global threat from terrorism, how to minimise your risk and what to do in the event of a terrorist attack,” Britian advised.

The August 11th travel advisory update was done against a March 1 update in which the UK said that “There is a general threat from terrorism.”

Over the recent years, the conversation has been deepening on ISIS turning to the Caribbean region for recruitment. In fact, recent reports have revealed that the twin island of Trinidad and Tobago, with a population of just 1.3 million, is said to be largest recruitment source of ISIS per capita, in the Western Hemisphere.

This is following revelations by the T&T Government back in February that some 130 of its nationals, including women and children, have left for Syria and Iraq over the last four years and are suspected of being involved in terrorist activities.

Subsequently, a New York Times article had reported that law enforcement in the decorated tourism destination country were “scrambling to close a pipeline that has sent a steady stream of young Muslims to Syria, where they have taken up arms for the Islamic State…”

This was after the then newly President elect, Donald Trump, had a phone conversation with Trinidadian Prime Minister, Keith Rowley, about terrorism and other security challenges.

“American officials worry about having a breeding ground for extremists so close to the United States, fearing that Trinidadian fighters could return from the Middle East and attack American diplomatic and oil installations in Trinidad, or even take a three-and-a-half-hour flight to Miami,” said journalist Francis Robles in the February 21, 2017 article titled “Trying to Stanch Trinidad’s Flow of Young Recruits to ISIS”.

There are propaganda videos released by the Islamic State portraying fighters, speaking with Trinidadian accents, training in the desert with sniper rifles and encouraging their countrymen to join them.

Trinidad has a history of Islamic extremism. Back in 1990, a radical Muslim group – Jamaat al Muslimeen – held the then-prime minister and several Cabinet members hostage during a six-day siege which claimed 24 lives. More recently, in 2012, Trinidadian national Kareem Ibrahim was sentenced to life in prison for joining a failed plot to blow up the John F Kennedy International Airport, New York, in 2007.