According to new statistics, the number of far-right extremist inmates has reached an all-time high in the last year. Another significant trend revealed by the data is that under-20s account for one-third of all arrested terror suspects. In the fiscal year ending September 2022, police detained 190 people on suspicion of terrorism-related offences. 33% (63%) were aged 20 and under, with 32 being under the age of 18. 42 people (or 22%) out of 190 were aged 20 and under in the previous 12-month period. The Home Office statistics, released on Thursday, also show how terrorist prisoners’ ideologies have evolved over time. The proportion of terrorist inmates who hold Islamist-extremist views has reached a new low. Meanwhile, those with an extreme right-wing ideology have reached their peak. As of the end of September, there were 239 people in custody in the United Kingdom for terrorism-related offences. 65% (155) of those were classified as Islamist-extremist, compared to 94% in the year to September 2015, when the proportion was at its highest. In the year to September 2022, 28% (66) of terrorist prisoners were recorded as having extreme right-wing views, compared to 4% in the same period in 2014/15. According to the most recent statistics, 8% (18) of terrorist prisoners were not classified as having a specific ideology. MI5 director general Ken McCallum stated last month that terrorism inspired by Islamist ideology continues to account for roughly three-quarters of the security agency’s terrorist caseload. Last year, he warned that extreme right-wing terrorism is “sadly here to stay,” revealing that agents are looking into teenagers as young as 13. A separate report released by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) examined the role of the internet in the radicalization of 437 convicted extremist offenders in England and Wales, concluding that the internet was “increasingly prominent” in radicalization. According to an analysis of specialist reports from 2010 to the end of last year, female offenders and people over the age of 25 experienced the greatest increase in online radicalisation over time. A third of the criminals studied in the study had mental health issues or personality disorders. Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC) and depression were the most commonly reported conditions, with these “most common” among those primarily radicalised online, according to the findings.
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