Taliban Takeover of Afghanistan Emboldens Extremists: UK Anti-Terror Chief

Taliban terrorists stand guard outside the Hamid Karzai International Airport after the U.S. military's withdrawal, in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Aug. 31, 2021. Khwaja Tawfiq Sediqi/AP Photo

The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan has “heartened and emboldened” Islamic extremists and the UK is vigilant to the increased terror threats, Britain’s domestic intelligence chief said on Friday.

Talking to the BBC’s Today programme on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Ken McCallum, director-general of the MI5 intelligence agency, also said that the threat of terrorism in the UK remains “real and enduring.”