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The Battle of Britain, Part Two
(Jerusalem Post) Yehuda Avner - At the Athenaeum, one of London's celebrated gentlemen's clubs, I met Sir Herbert, a friend from the '80s during my London ambassadorial days and his colleague, an old MI6 hand, now retired, a Sir Charles somebody. Sir Charles brooded: "We've never had a security problem like this in England before. And it's getting bigger all the time." "It's not like Northern Ireland during the Troubles, when we could do our undercover work like a fish in water. Even the most diehard Irish Republican nationalist cracked under a little bit of coercion, or the promise of a little cash. But your average Muslim fanatic - he'd rather blow himself up first, and take you with him into the bargain." As we left the Athenaeum and stepped out into the street, Sir Herbert halted in his tracks, outraged. Propped up against a nearby wall, an Evening Standard billboard bellowed: "Police Bust Finsbury Park Arab Terrorist Cell." Sir Herbert exclaimed: "This is the Battle of Britain Part Two, and it's more insidious than the last. Think about it: Western civilization has been locked in an historic war with Islam now for 1,000 years. We had thought we had settled it for good in our favor, thanks to our technological superiority. But look what's going on now. All our modern gadgetry is impotent in the face of their fanaticism. By George, yes - the MI6 and the CIA could do with a strong infusion of Mossad and Shin Bet savvy. Do me a favor and tell your people that when you get back home." The writer, a veteran diplomat, is a former ambassador to Great Britain.