ISIS has not been defeated, head of Britain's Armed Forces warns

The terrorism threat has 'proliferated' and
migration is set to rise significantly, the head of the Armed Forces warned
last night.
General Sir Nick Carter said Islamic State and
extremism had 'absolutely not been defeated' – as shown by last week's London
Bridge terror attack.
In his annual speech at the Royal United Services
Institute, the 60-year-old also said Syria had become a 'tinder box' that could
very easily ignite.
He warned of conflicts between different armed
groups, such as Russian mercenaries in the war zone.
He said: 'Daesh [IS], and the extremist ideas it
represents, has absolutely not been defeated – indeed the threat from terrorism
has proliferated – as was sadly demonstrated once again in last Friday's attack
at London Bridge.'
Convicted Islamist terrorist Usman Khan stabbed two
Cambridge graduates to death at Fishmongers' Hall in the capital.
Speaking in London, General Carter warned of a new
age of 'political warfare' where Britain's enemies deploy fake news, spies and
intimidation to threaten democracy.
In this new age, authoritarian opponents are
attacking Britain's 'way of life and our freedom in a manner that is remarkably
difficult to defeat without undermining the very freedoms we want to protect'.
General Carter said the risk of 'grey' area warfare
was 'unwarranted escalation leading to miscalculation', saying the Syria
conflict was a case in point.
He said there were more than 1,000 armed groups
fighting in Syria, adding: Of course, these different actors all have very
different agendas. This is a tinder box that could easily ignite a wider
conflagration.
Thousands of members of IS are believed to remain in
Syria and Iraq, with many having fled to other unstable states.
Thousands also remain in prisons across the region,
raising fears further conflict could lead to their release and a resurgent
terror group.
General Carter also warned that migration levels
were set to rise sharply.
'Poor governance, conflict, parlous economic growth
and climate change suggest that population displacement and migration will
increase significantly from the relatively small numbers we have seen so far,'
he said.
'And, of course, none of this is helped by great
power competition and a new scramble for Africa's resources.'
Britain is in a period of 'phenomenal change – more
widespread, rapid and profound than humanity has experienced outside of world
war', General Carter said.
He said it was 'more sustained than the two world
wars of the last century combined – and it is still increasing'.