Britain Must Not Overreact To IS Threat

Videos showing the killing of unarmed people by IS are one of its key weapons, but can only effect countries if they allow it.

They include French-speaking murderers when the accused have been francophone and Russian speakers when the victims have been alleged to be spies of the Kremlin.

Dozens of similar and even more grotesque videos have shown the murder of alleged Aran and Kurd spies who have been killed by drowning, burning, rocket attack and shot dead by children on murderous treasure hunts through the ruins of ancient cities.

In every case there is a threat against the government of the country concerned, a threat to launch terror and a threat to invade.

The threats of terror are real. We have seen the use of terror in Paris, in Tunisia, in the Sinai and elsewhere.

But none of these attacks amounts to the sort of strategic event that "Islamic State" seeks to achieve.

To have meaning outside of its borders it needs to make good on its near term bravado - and that is where it is weakest. It does not have the power of a nation state - not even the potential of North Korea.

It cannot effect the British economy or the British way of life unless the British choose to allow it to do so by overreacting.

There are secret agencies that will now redouble their efforts to track down the latest poster boy for British extremism.

The smart thing for the rest is to keep calm, and carry on.