UK terror threat level lowered a notch to ‘substantial’

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s official threat level for international terrorism has been lowered to “substantial,” meaning an attack is likely. It previously stood at “severe,” signaling that U.K. intelligence officials considered an attack highly likely. Home Secretary Priti Patel said the threat from terrorism in the U.K. was “complex, volatile, and unpredictable.” The threat level was raised to severe, the second-highest rung on a five-point scale, in November after an Iraq-born man blew himself up with a homemade bomb outside a hospital in Liverpool. The Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre sets the threat level based on intelligence about international terrorism at home and overseas.