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| Newsletter | May 2004 | |
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Contents |
Suicide bomb risk in the UK under research by leading security experts | |||
The risks of a lone suicide bomber targeting crowded areas like bars, shopping centres or the tube network has been under intense research and investigation for the past 12 months. Resilience and security experts at Cranfield University in Wiltshire, in partnership with the Defence Academy of the UK are working with the Government to map out scenarios and the risk profile of suicide bombings taking place on mainland Britain. This research includes analysis of how the Government might best respond to such events and how individuals involved in security might best be trained. As Professor Chris Bellamy, director, Security Studies Institute at Cranfield University explains, although risk can be predicted, it is a continuum and an integrated approach to managing these risks is required in order to combat the threat of suicide bombings fragmenting the British way of life: "At Cranfield University we have several departments working together to understand from a mathematical as well as operational and global security perspectives how best to manage the risk of suicide bombings on mainland Britain". "This is a very different scenario to the one which was presented when the IRA were active during the 1970s and 1980s as the current risk pattern is much harder to identify and predict," says Bellamy. The Resilience Centre at Cranfield University has been established to improve the capacity of Government and business to respond to emerging and disruptive challenges through the provision of relevant education, training and research in management and related topics. This includes development of the latest computer modelling techniques. Cranfield University also has a number of contracts for its expertise as a world leader in global security and analysis. For example, there is a four year contract with the European Community to advise in the development of infrastructure and communications. "What's clear is that in order to manage this real and perceived threat to our national security, we need an integrated approach which in effect means re writing the handbook for dealing with the current security situation in the UK". "Research and teaching work at the Cranfield University, in association with the Royal Military College of Science, The Defence Academy and others is beginning to provide valuable insights in managing such risks and there's now much more inter-Governmental collaboration which has started to feed into this country's own resilience efforts," concludes Prof Bellamy. Media contact: Ardi Kolah, Director of Marketing & Communication (Defence) Cranfield University Mobile 077100 77941 (24 hours) 020 8 542 8110 Office: 01793 785 435 Email: a.kolah@cranfield.ac.uk or ardi@kolah.com |
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