Mr / Mrs President
Should Europe criminalize jihad trips? The Council of Europe’s member states act with different strategies and some do not have any strategy at all. Radicalization of young people may result in them becoming terrorists. This is a situation that cannot be entirely dealt with by the security service. But the situation also requires a broader perspective and requires preventive work.
Should Europe criminalize jihad trips? The Council of Europe’s member states act with different strategies and some do not have any strategy at all. Radicalization of young people may result in them becoming terrorists. This is a situation that cannot be entirely dealt with by the security service. But the situation also requires a broader perspective and requires preventive work.
What will young
people meet when they leave their homes to go on jihad trips? Some may lose
their lives, others will become murderers.
A British study
found that 60 percent of terrorist crimes and terrorist plans directed against
European targets can be linked to returned jihadists. In Germany there are
programs for defectors.
Mr Jens Stoltenberg,
former Prime Minister of Norway, has said:
"To me it's basically the same thing: Extremism is extremism, whatever the purpose
may be. Extremists are people who believe they have the right to expose other
people to suffering, death and pain and do not respect the democratic rules of
the game". In Sweden the debate is however sadly apologetic; public funds finance
activities and invitations that should be enough to get government to respond.
Should al -Shabaab be defined as terrorists? According to me they should.
Recruitment from
European countries continues. Over five hundred men from Europe have traveled
to Syria to fight with al-Nusra, a radical Islamist group linked to al- Qaeda.
Jihadists often recruited through the internet. Youtube clips in different
languages encourages young Europeans to give their lives in jihad.
European jihadists
are a threat in many ways: In Syria the jihadists disrupt the popular uprising
against the dictator Bashar al-Assad. The al-Nusras goal is not democracy but
to create a sharia state, which contributes to an even more disrupted surrounding world.
According to
Amnesty International the al-Nusras, as well as the regime, have committed
serious abuses against civilians.
In Europe, the
widows of perished jihadists and jihadists “veterans” play an important role when
it comes to recruiting new jihadists: Among Islamists in Europe these widows
and jihadist “veterans” are perceived war heroes, which is helpful in the
recruitment of new jihadists.
When the jihadists return to their home countries they constitute a serious threat. The risk that they will commit terrorist crimes in their home country increase.
As a consequence
of the globalized terrorism, the position of the Council of Europe may be of
globalized character as well.
