British Islamic State terrorist killed by drone 'posed serious threat'

A British terrorist killed by a drone strike in Syria "posed a very serious threat to the UK" and was a "prolific recruiter and attack planner" for the Islamic State group.

Reyaad Khan, along with another Briton, Junaid Hussain, "encouraged multiple operatives around the world to conduct attacks against the UK and our allies," Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) concluded.

The assessment was based on 25 intelligence reports provided to the committee and two formal intelligence assessments carried out by MI5, MI6 and GCHQ.

Khan was killed by a British drone on 21 August 2015 near Raqqa. Two other men died in the strike, one of them, Ruhul Amin, was also British.

The strike was exceptional because it was the first time the UK had carried out a lethal drone strike outside of a military campaign. At the time Parliament had not voted and approved British airstrikes in Syria.

"It was a highly specific, targeted operation," chair of the committee Dominic Grieve MP said.

Three days later, Khan's close associate Hussain was targeted and killed by an American drone.

In evidence given to the Committee, an unnamed intelligence officer said the strikes made the UK safer.

"We have not seen anywhere near the pace of operational activity that we saw from Khan and Hussein," the intelligence officer said.

"I would describe the effect of the disruption as being immediate and serious on the network."

Khan was judged to have the ability to orchestrate and incite attacks "within a short period of time" - although it is not thought the drone strike was ordered in relation to a specific attack.

The committee did not seek to make a judgement on the legality of the strikes.

But a crucial document was withheld by the Prime Minister. This was "profoundly disappointing", Mr Grieve said, and meant the Committee was unable to conclude whether or not the strike was proportional and necessary.

The intelligence agencies provided evidence showing they considered other options to "disrupt" Khan's planning but concluded he was unlikely to travel outside IS-controlled territory and would not be dissuaded from his terrorist activities.

"The threat he posed was ongoing and there appears to have been no realistic prospect of it diminishing."

Although the intelligence agencies did not fear Khan would carry out an attack himself, MI5 feared he might contribute to a terrorist plot that might be missed "due to gaps in coverage".

The report has been heavily redacted in areas by Downing Street and the intelligence agencies.

The ISC notes that it has been unable to challenge the redactions, as it usually would, because it has been rushed into publishing the report before the upcoming General Election.