SCOTLAND is a “hostile environment” for terrorists, according to the senior officer promoting a week-long anti-terror push.
Assistant Chief Constable Steve Johnson was in Aberdeen’s Union Square yesterday as the single force began a national campaign aimed at combating extremist violence.
The push follows devastating attacks in Manchester and London, which resulted in the national threat level being raised to critical.
This has since been reduced to severe, which means another attack is highly likely.
Events publicising police work and safety advice will be held in Aberdeen, Dundee, Inverness, Stirling, Perth, Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Johnson said: “The purpose of this week-long initiative is not to alarm the public, but to provide them with all the necessary information they require to identify suspicious activity and more importantly, to keep themselves safe and secure.
“The tragic events in Manchester and London have undoubtedly left our communities shaken and concerned and our activities taking place throughout Counter Terrorism Awareness Week are aimed at offering reassurance to the public by demonstrating the range of capabilities at our disposal to both deter, and respond to, terrorism-related incidents.”
He went on: “There is no specific intelligence suggesting an attack in Scotland, however keeping our communities informed is essential to ensure they can assist counter terrorism.
“I have said before that ‘communities defeat terrorism’ and Scotland’s greatest defence against the terrorist threat is our close knit communities and the relationship police and partners have with the public.
“I would like to thank our colleagues from all partner agencies for their continued support of counter-terrorism policing and for the assistance they are providing throughout Counter Terrorism Awareness Week.
“We are demonstrating that Scotland is a hostile environment for those intent on causing harm and by continuing to work together we can ensure this remains the case.”
Meanwhile, Greater Manchester Police Chief Constable Ian Hopkins said his force is under “real strain” after years of job cuts. It had 8148 officers in March 2010, but this fell to 6297 by March last year.
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