The United Kingdom has seen its share of terrorism since 9/11, and is constantly on the alert for possible acts of violence.
Something they did not foresee, however, is the diaspora of Muslim Brotherhood members fleeing Egypt after the military takeover and deposition of President Morsi, who are now heading to the UK.
Alarm bells are going off in the Cricklewood district of London's metro area. Small pockets of protest against the Egyptian military held there recently have caught the attention of authorities.
The Brotherhood always maintained a base in London, but now it is not just some official outpost but a virtual media center for the group.
What worries UK authorities is the fact that a large presence of Brotherhood members could signal the creation of a terrorist nerve center, a place where people are instructed and prepped for terrorist attacks abroad and nationally, or simply a place where Brotherhood members could hatch violent plans away from the Egyptian military's prying eyes.
The Egyptian's military fierce attack on the Brotherhood has caused a re-entrenchment abroad by members who have successfully escaped General al Sisi's wide net.
What concerns authorities in the UK too, is the fact that suddenly the humble headquarters of the brotherhood on the Cricklewood district broadway in London seems to have been shuttered, or at least shut down to anyone who does not belong to the Brotherhood.
There is the definite sense that the Brotherhood is digging in, and possibly going underground. Investigators who have tried to speak with the Brotherhood chapter representatives have been shut out. Neighbors say that only a few men visit very quietly the once public premises.
But the same investigators, unfazed by the neighbor's reports that nothing unusual is occurring in the building, wait for people to show up. When the chapter members arrive, they quickly insist that they are simply a media outlet with no official attachment to the Brotherhood, although their assessment of the Brotherhood is all but glowing.
Looking at the so called media outlet's offerings, their website displays a majority of Muslim Brotherhood statements. Most of the statements come from the leaders of the Brotherhoods, including Mohammed Badie, now incarcerated. One of the articles in the website is a scathing denounciation of the kangaroo court sentencing of 529 Brotherhood supporters to death, a sentence passed just last week.
The UK government however, is not going to take the small 'media outlet's' word and just ignore their activities. In fact, they have launched a full review of the Brotherhood's activities in the UK.
Prime Minister Cameron was even more unequivocal. To him the Brotherhood is a group with certified ties to violent extremist and terrorist groups. There is none of the benevolence expressed by sympathizers on London streets that the Brotherhood is a non violent group with specific views and interpretations of the Koran.
The monitoring Cameron has already ordered would seek to establish how the group's message and activities have changed recently, and whether they signal a shift to a more 'active' phase.
What prompted such extensive observation and review of the Brotherhood, Cameron insists, are recent communications received from British Embassies in Egypt and the Middle East that, which, when taken together, indicate a shift in the Brotherhood's activities and message that should not be ignored.
Interestingly, the review has been entrusted to Sir John Jenkins, Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, a country that is a declared enemy of the Brotherhood. The result of the inquiry and review of the Brotherhood's activities in the UK will be made public at their conclusion.
Op_Ed
Partial Sources: The Guardian UK/Al Jazeera/BBC: 4.1.14
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