STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. Some people just belong in jail. Terrorists in particular. And if they ever see the light of day again, it should be after a long, long incarceration.

Thats the lesson to take away from what the world saw in London last week.

Authorities said that Usman Khan, 28, killed two people in a stabbing spree on London Bridge.

Even more shocking is the fact that Khan had been released from jail a year ago, after serving only part of a sentence he received in 2012 for being part of a cell that planned terrorist attacks.

Some of the terrorists working in cahoots with Khan wanted to carry out attacks on the London Stock Exchange. Khan is said to have wanted to foment terrorism in his ancestral homeland of Kashmir.

Khan, who was killed by police during the London Bridge attack, was a terrorist. His associates were terrorists. He was released from jail after seven years, according to CNN, without even a Parole Board review, as part of an initiative that saw other terrorists released early as well.

Khans lawyer said that there was no indication that Khan, who was 19 years old when he was charged in 2010, would re-offend. Hed recanted his radical views at trial. In a jailhouse letter, hed asked to take part in a de-radicalization program.

And yet there he was, carrying out a knife attack on London Bridge. CNN pointed to speculation that recent events in India-controlled areas of Kashmir, where the Delhi government has launched a security crackdown, might have radicalized Khan all over again.

So it looks like Khan hadnt buried his jihadist beliefs all too deeply after all.

By the way, five of Khans 2010 accomplices were among around 70 other convicted terrorists who have also been released early by the U.K., CNN said.

One of them, Mohibur Rahman, was re-arrested after planning a mass-casualty attack on a British military or police target. Hes back in jail, where he clearly belongs. Thankfully, nobody had to die before the error of his release was rectified.

The U.K.s early release of all those terrorists is now being reviewed. Given that radical Muslim terrorists can often become even more radicalized by prison jihadist networks, and grow even more dangerous, its a smart move to just keep them in jail. Or to make sure that theyre segregated from other jihadis while incarcerated. Let the civil libertarians object all they want.

More convicted terrorists are set to be released from across Europe. Can the world really take that risk?

Its important to determine just who can be rehabilitated and who cannot. And to keep close, close track of convicted terrorists if they are paroled. Thats another problem highlighted by the London Bridge bloodshed: Khan was wearing an ankle monitor, but was still able to travel to London to carry out his attack. Whos watching these dangerous parolees?

Knife attacks overall, by the way, have been on the rise in the U.K. in recent years. Knife-related homicides took 285 lives in England and Wales from March, 2017 to March, 2018, according to USA Today. Thats a record amount since data collection began in 1946, the paper said. And the data does not include knife deaths in Scotland or Ireland.

Its another lesson to keep in mind. The United Kingdom has some of the most restrictive gun laws in the world. Private ownership of handguns is banned. Police officers generally dont carry firearms. So offenders have found other ways to carry out their mayhem. Because you cant legislate against murderous actions by unhinged people.

Thankfully, the number of fatalities per incident are far lower than whats seen in some mass shootings.

Still, there continues to be a price to pay. Maybe we should ban knives too. We should surely keep convicted terrorists behind bars. And for a long time.

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Lesson from the London Bridge attack: Once a terrorist, always a terrorist (opinion) - SILive.com