UK lowers threat level from ‘severe’ to ‘substantial’

The U.K. government announced Monday that it had lowered its terror threat level from “severe” to “substantial” due to fewer attacks in Europe.

The Associated Press reports that the Joint Terrorism Analysis Center set the threat level in the middle of a five-point scale, indicating that Britain is likely to be attacked. The news service notes that the threat level had been raised in November to indicate an attack was highly likely following deadly incidents in Austria and France.

“The decision to lower the threat level from severe to substantial is due to the significant reduction in the momentum of attacks in Europe since those seen between September and November 2020,” Home Secretary Priti Patel said, according to the AP.

Patel added that though the threat level was lowered, “terrorism remains one of the most direct and immediate risks to our national security.”

Three people were killed in Nice, France, in October after a man carried out a knife attack at a church.

In November, four people were killed in Vienna, Austria, after a gunman went on a shooting spree in the Inner City District near a synagogue. ISIS later claimed credit for the attack in Austria though security officials said the gunman’s connection to the terrorist group was unclear.

The U.K.’s threat level has mostly stayed at “severe” since 2014, the AP notes, at one point rising to the highest level of “critical” in 2017.