Britain’s MI5 intelligence service did not and will not “speculate” on internal terror threats, particularly in newspaper reports, a spokesman for the Home Office told The Media Line on Monday.
The statement follows a report in this week’s Sunday Times about an MI5 investigation of two Al-Qa’ida terror cells planning large-scale attacks in Britain.
The attacks will target Jewish institutions and public spaces like shopping centers and banks; the cells are composed of North African and Saudi nationals, according to the report. The article piqued the attention of international media, terror watchers, and Jewish groups.
The Home Office spokesman said that security agencies would only alert the public if there were “specific intelligence [information available] relating to an attack.”
Diplomatic and public institutions worldwide are on high alert after four suicide bombers attacked two synagogues, a British-based bank and the British consulate in Turkey last week.