Europe remains on high alert over terror fears

A further suspect has been arrested in Greece after police in Belgium carried out raids in Verviers last week.

Five men have already been charged with terrorism related offences after the raid on an apartment in the town last week.

Belgian prosecutors have requested to extradite one of the people arrested in Greece over a possible link with a foiled plot to attack Belgian police.

Britain's ability to stop terror attacks is being hampered by outdated laws that are "no longer fit for purpose", a former MI5 chief has said.

Jonathan Evans, director-general of MI5 from 2007 to 2013, said the intelligence services need to be allowed to properly monitor possible security threats.

He said social media like Facebook, WhatsApp and Snapchat were difficult for intelligence agencies to access.

His comments come after David Cameron promised to introduce new powers to track would-be terrorists online.

Mr Evans told the Sunday Telegraph: "Technological changes mean that it is much harder than it was a decade ago for the police or security agencies to find out what terrorists or criminals are saying among themselves."

The UK is currently on its second-highest threat level, meaning an attack is considered highly likely.

The suspected ringleader of a Jihadist cell behind the foiled Belgian terror plot is still on the run, a Belgian minister said.

It comes after four people were arrested in Athens by Greek Police on Saturday.

Asked today if the ringleader remained on the run after the arrests, Justice Minister Koen Geens told VRT television: "That is indeed the case," AFP reported.

It comes after two gunmen were killed during anti-terror raids in the east Belgian town of Verviers last week.

Five people have been charged with terror offences following a series of raids across Belgium.

Armed soldiers have been assigned to guard possible terror targets after the country raised its security to the second highest level.

A weekly rally by anti-Islamists in Dresden, Germany, has been cancelled after a threat of an attack against one of its leaders, police said.

Dresden Police said they had placed a "general ban" on all public gatherings on Monday following the threat, including the rally by Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West (Pegida).

A force spokesman said: "The police in Dresden have received information of a concrete threat against the weekly Pegida rally.

"Assasins have been called up to mingle among the Pegida protesters and murder one of the individuals leading the rally."

It comes after German security authorities said on Friday that they had specific warnings of a risk of militant attacks on central railway stations in Berlin and Dresden.

Police patrols have been increased across Europe in direct response to the recent terror attacks.

Armed police patrolled government buildings in Belgium two days after two suspected extremists were killed in anti-terror raids.

And police upped security here as well, because of what they call "heightened concern."

ITV News correspondent Richard Pallot reports:

Greek police have arrested four people suspected of plotting the foiled Belgian terror plot.

The suspects, which include the alleged Belgian cell ringleader, are being questioned.

Greek authorities said they would send DNA samples to their Belgian colleagues if they got enough evidence.

The Belgian authorities are also seeking a Brussels man of Moroccan origin who was hiding in Greece.

It comes after two gunmen were killed during anti-terror raids in the east Belgian town of Verviers on Thursday.

Nearly 300 troops have being deployed to guard potential targets of terrorism in Belgium, the defence minister said on Saturday.

Steven Vandeput told reporters they are being stationed at locations such as the US and Israeli embassies in Brussels and NATO and EU institutions after anti-terror raids captured a number of suspected Islamic extremists last Thursday.

Troops will reinforce police until this coming Thursday, when authorities will review the national threat level.

The country's terror warning system has been raised to level three, the second highest, following the raids.

"It's very important to say that this wasn't a simple decision. But it was necessary, at a time when police are overly engaged, for the army to enter in a supporting role," Mr Vandeput said.

A terrorist attack on the UK cannot be ruled out, the director of the EU's law enforcement agency has said.

Rob Wainwright, director of Europol, said the UK public could be reassued by increased security measures but admitted there was no guarantee attacks such as those in Paris could be stopped.

He told Sky News: "Stopping everything is very difficult, containing the threat fully is very difficult, but I'm sure we will prevail, as we have prevailed against other forms of terrorism in the past."

Asked whether he was saying there was no guarantee attacks such as those in Paris could be stopped, he said: "No, there can't be, otherwise what happened in Paris wouldn't have happened. I think there is a realisation across the police and security community in Europe.

"But at the same time we have a very strong determination to maximise our capability to keep our citizens safe."

Armed soldiers have been assigned to guard possible terror targets across Belgium today as the country remains on high alert to attacks by Islamic extremists.

It is the first time in 30 years that troops have been used to reinforce police patrols in the nation's cities, and comes a day after anti-terror raidssaw a number of suspects seized across western Europe.

Defence minister Steven Vandeput told Belgium's VRT television network that soldiers could be deployed to protect certain embassies and some buildings in Antwerp's Jewish quarter.

Belgium's terror warning system has been raised to level three, the second highest, following the raids.