EU counter terrorism data base: EU launches new counter-terrorism database – by Alexandra Brzozowski

The EU’s agency on judicial co-operation, launched a Counter-Terrorism Register on Thursday (5 September), designed to streamline the exchange of information between EU member states on potential terrorist offences.

The database will put together information from EU countries on ongoing investigations, prosecutions and convictions of militants, including returning foreign fighters that joined terrorist groups abroad such as among others the Islamic State (IS) in Iraq and Syria.

“The new Counter-Terrorism Register will help judges and prosecutors to proactively establish links between cases to ensure that criminals and terrorists do not go unpunished,” Security Union Commissioner Julian King said at the official launch of the register
.
According to King, currently, at least 1,300 EU citizens, of which more than half are children, are held in Syria and Iraq.

With the new register, the EU also hopes to help prevent new terrorist attacks in Europe, as prosecutors will have access to more information on suspects, Eurojust’s chief, Ladislav Hamran, told reporters upon the official launch of the register in Brussels.

Read more at: EU launches new counter-terrorism database – EURACTIV.com

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Terrorism in the Sky? Counter-terror police ‘monitoring’ Emirates plane at JFK as 100 people reportedly fall ill - by Sam Sweeney

New York counter-terrorism police are “monitoring” the ongoing quarantine of an Emirates airplane at JFK airport in New York, after 100 people reportedly fell ill during a flight from Dubai.
 

Emirates Airline Flight EK203 touched down in New York around 9am ET Wednesday after the pilot contacted air traffic controllers, telling them that many of his 500 passengers appeared to be sick with fevers over 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.7 C) and several of them were coughing.

The Airbus A380 was met by rows of ambulances and police vehicles from Port Authority Police and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Rather than going to a terminal, the aircraft was instead directed to a hard-stand area so that  emergency medical response teams could investigate.

NYPD’s Counter-Terrorism unit said it was “monitoring” the quarantine in case the incident progressed above a medical situation and that it was working with the Port Authority and federal partners.

Read more: Counter-terror police ‘monitoring’ Emirates plane at JFK as 100 people reportedly fall ill (PHOTOS) — RT World News

Terrorism: Terrorist groups need to be infiltrated and destroyed - cheaper than bombing and more effective

It is time to infiltrate terrorist organizations and destroy them

After the most recent terrorist attack in France, it seems their might also be an urgent need for a far more effective strategy than just the involvement of costly military operations.

First of all we should not label terrorists as good and bad ones - Daesh - Boko Haram, -PKK - Haqqani Network - Kataib Hezbolla - AL-Qaeda. They are all terrorist groups and should be labelled and treated as such.

Also for starters. Since just about every government in  the world is facing similar terrorist problems, cooperation and exchange of information between governments, in this respect, is not only important, but essential.

A "hot-line" for local citizens to call in every country, where they can confidentially report suspicious activities in their neighborhood certainly could be another effective tool to get a grip on these terrorist cells

In this context there should also be a financial reward system for people who can provide valuable information to the local authorities which leads to the arrest or elimination of terrorists.

Local government and the military should also develop training programs for individuals who can be used to infiltrate terrorist organizations via their recruitment programs and other means, to create internal chaos within terrorist organizations or destroy their chains of command.

Stopping terrorism can only happen when we are able to outsmart them.

© EU-Digest Editorial 

Terrorism: Abdelhamid Abaaoud Suspected organiser of Paris attacks killed in Saint Denis police raid - Allahu Akbar

The suspected organiser of the Paris attacks was killed in a police raid in the suburb of Saint Denis, officials confirmed on Thursday, as France’s lower house of parliament approved an extension of the state of emergency.

When the news was announced many people who heard it shouted

"Allahu Akbar" 

Read more: france 24 - Suspected organiser of Paris attacks killed in Saint Denis police raid - France 2

 

 

Netherlands divided over Dutch Islamists fighting in Syria - by Peter Cluskey

A survey of attitudes in the Netherlands towards Dutch Islamists who travel to Syria to fight the Assad regime shows that 75 per cent of Muslims regard them as heroes – while almost half the non-Muslim population believe they should be stripped of their citizenship.

The survey shows that while there is broad agreement in both communities – 87 per cent of Muslims and 66 per cent of non-Muslims – that Bashar al-Assad should be removed as Syrian president, on virtually every other question there is significant divergence.

For instance, on the question of arming rebel fighters, 49 per cent of Muslims were in favour, while just 6 per cent of the majority population supported the decision.

The poll was carried out for the TV documentary Alitjd Wat and compared the attitudes of Dutch Muslims of Moroccan and Turkish origin with those of “native” non-Muslim families.

The Counter-terrorism Coordinator in The Hague confirmed recently that about 100 Dutch-born jihadists, including at least two young women, have so far joined armed opposition groups, making the Netherlands the largest European recruiting ground for anti-Assad militants. Three are believed dead.

Read more: Netherlands divided over Dutch Islamists fighting in Syria - European News | Latest News from Across Europe | The Irish Times - Thu, May 30, 2013