Creating the national/border security nexus: counter-terrorist operations and monitoring Middle Eastern and North African visitors to the UK in the 1970s–1980s

This article looks at an earlier episode in the history of the UK border security apparatus by examining how the immigration control system was used in the 1970s and 1980s to detect potential terrorists from the Middle East and North Africa. Using recently opened archival records, it shows that the...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Smith, Evan 1981- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 2019
In: Terrorism and political violence
Year: 2019, Volume: 31, Issue: 3, Pages: 595-614
Online Access: Volltext (Resolving-System)
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Keywords:
Border control
Counter-terrorism
Immigration
Middle East
North Africa
United Kingdom
Description
Summary:This article looks at an earlier episode in the history of the UK border security apparatus by examining how the immigration control system was used in the 1970s and 1980s to detect potential terrorists from the Middle East and North Africa. Using recently opened archival records, it shows that the UK government introduced a strict system of visa checks, interviews, and other measures to nearly all Middle Eastern and North African visitors to the UK to prevent the entry of suspected terrorist personnel. By using these highly arbitrary measures, it became the modus operandi of the UK authorities to treat all Middle Eastern and North Africans as potential terrorists until convinced otherwise.
Item Description:Gesehen am 22.06.2023
Published online: 14 Feb 2017
ISSN:1556-1836
DOI:10.1080/09546553.2016.1272455