Lord Dannatt, the former Chief of General Staff, said the UK must work with Bashar al Assad to defeat the Islamic State. Defense Secretary Hammond disagreed, saying it would not be “practical, sensible or helpful.” The head of Parliament’s intelligence committee observed that sometimes you have work with nasty people to get rid of even nastier ones. A current counterterrorism official said he was recommending tougher application of Tpims (Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures) on terror suspects, but a former official said no Tpims are currently in place. A former MI6 officer said investigators are closing in on the identity of the jihadist who murdered US journalist James Foley.
