Last night, just before the news came in about the drama in the Lindt cafe in Sydney, the YNET (Yedioth Ahronoth) English site put up an extensive interview I had with Dr. David Scharia, one of the heads of the UN’s Counter Terrorism Force.
As yet we do not know who is behind the operation in Australia or whether the perpetrator is linked to ISIS and has volunteered to serve with that organization in the past. It is not too early, however, to consider the danger presented by those volunteers when they return home from the fighting in Syria and Iraq.
In this interview, Dr. Scharia gives an up-to-date intelligence picture of ISIS and the Global Jihad as viewed by the UN, and of the latest research into the volunteers in the ranks of the organization and their numbers. He also tells of his part experiences as a senior counsel and prosecutor in terrorist cases, and how he tries to apply that experience to streamline the world battle against what seems to many to be an enemy that cannot be defeated.
Here is a link to the story.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4603420,00.html
I am sure that all of us, whether secular or religious, of all faiths, will join the prayers for the safety of the hostages in the Lindt Cafe and for a peaceful end to this incident.