Few observers will be surprised to hear that radical Islamists will, this year and beyond, keep trying to carry out terrorist operations in Britain. But the form of the next attack may be very different from what security services have been preparing for. That was demonstrated by the recent revelations of an alleged plot to kidnap - and broadcast the killing of - a Muslim British serviceman.
Terrorists are always adapting and innovating; the authorities constantly playing catch-up. It's now a gravely serious game of cat and mouse.
Much has been made in the media of the similarity between that alleged plot and the brutal tactics we have become so accustomed to in Iraq. Yet, if the leaked details about the attack prove to be accurate, it could have had unprecedented psychological, poli- tical and social effects.
Many kidnappings and killings of western hostages have been carried out on terrorists' home soil by insurgents in war-torn Iraq.
But the recent plot apparently involved a kidnapping and killing on western home soil. It would thus have represented a new level of horror for the public, and a new dimension of threat for western security agencies to adapt to.
Constant adaptation and change have become the key characteristics of Islamist terrorism, in its quest to become and remain as elusive as the proverbial needle in the haystack. Just when authorities believe they have a grip on the terrorists' identities and plans, the nature of both change.
