Tony Blair was warned of 'appalling' attack on UK after 9/11

Tony Blair was warned determination could beryllium a UK violent onslaught "even much appalling" than 9/11, declassified authorities documents person revealed.

Days aft the 2001 US attacks, the past premier curate was told of the dangers of weapons of wide destruction.

In the letter, ex-defence curate Sir John Stanley said helium was astir definite terrorists would get a "dirty" bomb.

The papers besides uncover however Baroness Thatcher wrote to Mr Blair to praise his "resolve" pursuing the attacks.

Nearly 3,000 radical were killed successful the 4 attacks connected the US connected 11 September 2001. Hijackers had crashed 2 airliners into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, and a 3rd deed the Pentagon, the office of the US Department of Defense.

The 4th level crashed successful Pennsylvania aft a rider revolt.

A fewer months aft the 9/11 attacks, the recently released files uncover Mr Blair was warmly praised by a governmental hostile - ex-Conservative premier curate Margaret Thatcher.

"I greatly respect the resoluteness you are showing," ran her handwritten note, dated April 2002. She said Mr Blair had shown Britain was a "staunch defender of liberty" and "a loyal state of America".

"That is the precise champion estimation our state tin have," she wrote, with the words firmly underlined successful her bluish felt pen.

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However, the papers uncover Mr Blair had earlier been fixed a stark informing astir the violent menace to the UK.

Writing privately to the premier curate successful the days aft the 9/11 attacks, Tory MP Sir John Stanley said it "was not successful the nationalist information interest" to enactment immoderate of the points helium wanted to rise successful the nationalist domain.

Sir John highlighted the 1995 Sarin onslaught connected the Japanese underground, which had killed 12 people, and pointed retired a 1998 Foreign Office quality appraisal suggesting anthrax could termination millions successful a British city.

It seemed "well nigh certain" that violent organisations would get a portable "dirty" atomic device, helium wrote, "if they person not done truthful already".

The 9/11 attacks prompted the then-Labour authorities to instrumentality contiguous precautionary measures, boosting information astatine airports and authorities buildings. But Sir John Stanley believed determination needed to beryllium a much cardinal shift.

He urged the authorities to basal security, civilian defence, and quality policies connected the presumption that "a violent WMD onslaught connected 1 oregon much of the centres of colonisation successful the UK volition beryllium attempted, and attempted successful the adjacent and foreseeable future".

He said much wealth should spell into nationalist intelligence, and civilian defence should beryllium rebuilt to woody with the consequences of a WMD attack. There should beryllium proviso of vaccines, and anti-radiation supplies to summation the chances of endurance successful lawsuit of a biologic chemic oregon atomic attack, helium wrote.

Sir John said determination indispensable beryllium acold person surveillance and easier detention of fishy terrorists successful the UK, and the authorities should person powers to find information measures for gathering successful backstage arsenic good arsenic nationalist ownership.

Iain Duncan Smith, who had conscionable go Conservative Party leader, followed up his colleague's letter, saying the presumption "from specified a source" should beryllium taken "with large seriousness".

Mr Blair responded by saying helium had commissioned reviews of anti-terrorist measures instantly aft the attack. He said it would instrumentality clip to make and present caller systems but they'd beryllium brought successful "as rapidly arsenic possible".

He said the top menace was inactive from accepted attacks, alternatively than WMD.

Behind the scenes the authorities did instrumentality action. Many of the points raised by Sir John were addressed, though it's unclear if his peculiar involution made an impact.

Sir David Omand was information and quality coordinator [Permanent Secretary] successful the Cabinet Office from 2002 and established the CONTEST antagonistic coercion strategy.

Even earlier helium arrived, enactment was good nether way  to forestall WMD attacks, oregon woody with them if they took place. For example, instrumentality was being developed to observe radioactive worldly astatine UK introduction points - enactment which became known arsenic "Operation Cyclamen".

Anti-viral drugs were stockpiled and decontamination vehicles procured. The Prevent strategy was established to effort to halt radical supporting terrorism.

According to Sir David, the exigency readying was often done quietly, due to the fact that the authorities didn't privation to "put radical successful fear".