The recent arrests in the horrific
Brussels terror attacks last month may help authorities get closer to cracking the "plans and intentions" of ISIS jihadists in Europe, former House Intelligence Committee Chairman Pete Hoekstra tells
Newsmax TV.
In a panel discussion Friday with "Newsmax Prime" host J.D. Hayworth, the former Michigan lawmaker and current Shillman senior fellow at the Investigative Project on Terrorism says the arrest of Mohamed Abrini is not principally a law enforcement victory.
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"What I'm really interested in [is] how did we finally nab this guy," Hoekstra said. "It's going to be interesting to see exactly what information we gain here when we capture him."
"Some will say, hey great, this is all about law enforcement," added Hoekstra, the author of
"Architects of Disaster: The Destruction of Libya."
"That's not what this is about. This is about understanding better what capabilities does ISIS have in Europe and what are their plans and intentions."
National Security analyst Ryan Mauro tells Hayworth Abrini was arrested in an area near Brussels that's about 40 percent Muslims and where there are "so many extremists."
"There's going to be future terrorist attacks coming out of that place if they don't figure out a way to get a handle on it," he warns.
Hoekstra agreed officials in Europe and the United States will have to "get much better" at finding the terrorists in our communities.
"It's getting into these networks and breaking them down before they ever figure out whether they're going to go to an airport, whether they're going to go to a restaurant, whether they're going to go to a football stadium or whatever," he said. "We need to be much more aggressive at getting into these networks and into these cycles so that we stop them before they ever get that far."
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