No shortcuts when fighting terror

The terrorist attack on London Bridge on Saturday, the third attack to strike the United Kingdom in as many months, was hardly surprising. If anything, what is surprising is that terrorism did not hit the U.K. with such intensity sooner, as it has France and Belgium in recent years.

One main reason is that Britain is an island. Therefore, access is limited and closely monitored. This systematic surveillance has helped authorities to successfully prevent known terror operatives from infiltrating the country, but the policy that has been effective against external threats lacks a complementary approach to confront the threat of domestic terrorism.

The two previous attacks -- the stabbing attack in Westminster on April 27 and the suicide bombing in Manchester on May 22 -- were carried out by British nationals who were Islamic State sympathizers. Once more details are made public about the three terrorists who carried out Saturday's attack, it is likely we will learn that once again the British were struck by their own and the perpetrators sought to imitate the "success" of their predecessors.

Islamic radicalism is not a new phenomenon in Britain. Already 25 years ago, Israeli security agents warned the British authorities of systematic, extremist activity in the central mosque near Regent's Park in London, and not only there. The situation has only escalated since, spreading throughout Britain. In many cities across the U.K., and in many neighborhoods in London, youth are systematically indoctrinated against the West and especially against the same nation that welcomed their parents and granted them citizenship.

For a variety of reasons, mainly in the name of upholding individual rights, the British have so far failed to address the root of the problem. After the infamous July 7, 2005 al-Qaida attacks in London, authorities did enact a number of measures, but these focused mainly on monitoring activity within the capital itself and preventing terror suspects from entering the U.K. The rush of young British Muslims to join Islamic State in recent years to fight the jihadi group's wars in Syria and Iraq has prompted British authorities to monitor these individuals, but not to systematically monitor the terrorist hubs in Britain from which they emerged.

Western intelligence officials have been working under the assumption that the more ground Islamic State loses in the Middle East, the more it will intensify its efforts to strike the West. This is reflected in the instructions Islamic State gives its operatives, some of whom are European citizens returning to their homelands, as well as to its sympathizers on social media. And as Israel knows well, when such instructions are given in already precarious times, such as the holy month of Ramadan or ahead of elections (Britons go to the polls on June 8), the threat increases significantly.

British Prime Minister Theresa May vowed Sunday to take intense steps to thwart terrorism. While better late than never, it is highly doubtful that a series of raids across London is the answer to the madness of those who plow a van into pedestrians and then go on a stabbing spree. If May wins Thursday's election, she will have to do much more than she has done so far. May will have to act forcefully and bolster intelligence and operational cooperation with Europe, all while her country is in the process of divorcing the European Union.

Should her rival, Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn -- the man who once said he considers Hamas and Hezbollah officials his friends -- win the election, the global war on terror will face a serious problem.

This is a complex issue that once again forces Europe to face the challenge of dealing with terrorism. There are no shortcuts in the war on terror. Britain has a wealth of experience and advanced capabilities in this field as a result of its years of fighting against the Irish underground and its involvement in conflicts elsewhere across the globe. However, should the U.K. again decide to refrain from taking real action, the countdown to the next attack will begin.

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