Noting Terrorist Groups’ Resilience, UN Counter-Terrorism Chief Tells Security Council Lasting Global Collaboration Key to Address Conditions Conducive to Lawlessness

Speakers Discuss Risk ISIL/Da’esh, Their Affiliates Pose in Syria, Afghanistan, Across Africa

The resilience of terrorist groups underscores the need for sustained international collaboration and comprehensive, long-term responses that address the conditions conducive to terrorism, the Security Council heard today during a briefing on the threat posed by Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/Da’esh).

Vladimir Voronkov, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism, discussing the Secretary-General’s twentieth biannual strategic-level report on the topic, highlighted the volatile situation in Syria, and “the risk that stockpiles of advanced weapons could fall into the hands of terrorists”.  An estimated 42,500 individuals, some with alleged links to Da’esh, remain in detention camps in the north-east.  Member States must “facilitate the safe, voluntary and dignified repatriation of their nationals still stranded in those camps and facilities”, he said. 

Providing details on the global terrorism landscape during the past six months, he said that, in Afghanistan, ISIL-Khorasan continued to pose a significant threat noting that its supporters plotted attacks in Europe and were actively seeking to recruit individuals from Central Asian States.  In West Africa and the Sahel, Da’esh affiliates and other terrorist groups intensified attacks, including against schools in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, while in Somalia, the organization successfully recruited foreign terrorist fighters. 

Sub-Saharan Africa has become the epicenter of global terrorism, he said, noting that the United Nations has prioritized capacity-building support to the continent.  His office increased its delivery of technical assistance by 16 per cent, relying notably on the work of its Rabat Office.  Highlighting the Fusion Cells programme which delivered specialized training to 124 analysts from 21 African Member States, he stressed the need to further strengthen border security to counter movements of terrorists.  His office partnered with the Governments of Kuwait and Tajikistan to organize a conference on this.

The Countering Terrorist Travel programme, he said, continued to expand with 63 beneficiary Member States who are increasingly relying on the goTRAVEL software to collect and process passenger data to detect and prevent terrorist movements.  Noting that the Pact for the Future renewed the international community’s commitment to a future free from terrorism, he urged Member States to translate these commitments into action, prioritizing inclusive, networked and sustainable responses.

Approach Centered on Prevention, Respect for Human Rights Key to Countering Terrorist Threat

Also briefing the Council was Natalia Gherman, Executive Director of Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, who voiced concern over the humanitarian and security crisis in north-eastern Syria, with over 40,000 individuals confined in camps and detention facilities, under conditions marked by overcrowding, inadequate shelter and limited access to clean water and sanitation.  Beyond the Middle East, Da’esh remains agile, taking advantage of ongoing conflicts and regions experiencing growing instability, she continued.  The group now poses a threat to security and sustainable development across the African continent.

Armed terrorist groups, such as Islamic State West Africa Province, are exploiting fragile conditions to recruit children, commit abductions and attack schools and hospitals.  In the Sahel and the Lake Chad Basin, Da’esh’s centralized operations continue to proliferate as regional cooperation declines, she said, adding that the role of the regional financial hubs used by the group and its affiliates has also expanded.

“Addressing these threats requires an approach centered on prevention, grounded in respect for human rights, and with regional cooperation as the linchpin,” she stressed, noting the Committee’s visits to Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Malawi, Mauritania and the United Republic of Tanzania.  Assessments revealed gaps in border security and the need for stronger regional collaboration to counter the transnational nature of Da’esh’s activities.  For its part, the Executive Directorate has recently adopted the non-binding guiding principles on preventing, detecting and disrupting the use of new and emerging financial technologies for terrorist purposes — the so-called “Algeria Guiding Principles”, she said.

Council Members Concerned Over Terrorists’ Adeptness at Expanding Operations, Attractomg New Recruits

In the ensuing discussion, Council members expressed concern that, despite decades of counter-terrorism efforts, the phenomenon has transformed adeptly, taking advantage of new technology and financial innovations.  Sierra Leone’s delegate said that ISIL/Da’esh and their affiliates “continue to demonstrate resilience and adapt their modus operandi with extensive propaganda, as well as increased finances, fighters’ expertise and technology”.  14,000 fatalities were recorded on the African continent alone in 2024, he said, noting the impact on women and girls.  A security-centered approach alone is insufficient, he stressed.

Along similar lines, Algeria’s delegate said that terrorist groups use the lack of development and marginalization to recruit and expand — therefore, security arrangements and development initiatives are equally necessary to combat this.  Highlighting the Sahel, he said that well-equipped armed groups are adopting advancing military strategies as well as using organized crime, narcotic trafficking, kidnapping and new technologies to finance such operations.

France’s speaker noted that Da’esh, Al-Qaida and their affiliates are misappropriating new technology — such as drones — to carry out more targeted and lethal attacks. “These groups thrive on the soil where basic human rights are being violated, where women are marginalized,” she stated, adding that their use of sexual violence as a means of sowing terror has been documented.

“Our work is far from complete,” said Somalia’s representative, spotlighting “patterns of expansion” across regions, with groups establishing networks that transcend national borders.  For its part, his Government has successfully conducted military operations with international partners to neutralize foreign Da’esh affiliates and implement joint security initiatives.

The representative of the United States highlighted her Government’s “precision air strikes” against ISIS in Somalia on 1 February.  Her country “stands ready to find and eliminate terrorists who threaten the United States and our allies,” she said.  She also urged Council members to list more ISIL and Al-Qaida affiliates in the 1267 Sanctions Committee list so that they will be subject to its worldwide assets travel ban and arms embargo.  While the Sahel has become “the global epicenter for fatalities from terrorist attacks”, ISIS-Khorasan is increasing its capabilities to conduct attacks and recruit in Afghanistan and Pakistan, she said.

Counter-terrorism Policies Must Oppose Double Standards and Selectivity 

Pakistan’s delegate drew attention to the need to address white supremacy and far-right extremism, as well.  Counter-terrorism policies have so far singled out only one religion — Islam — but they must address the negative impact of stigmatizing Muslims and fanning the flames of Islamophobia, he said.  His country is at the forefront of counter-terrorism efforts, fighting not only Da’esh, but also TTP [Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan] and Majid Brigade.  Further, “the international community has failed to address State terrorism, including the use of State power to suppress legitimate struggles for self-determination or to continue foreign occupation”, he said.

It was the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) invasion into Libya and the invasion of Iraq which spawned ISIL, the Russian Federation’s delegate said.  Further, the United Nations’ counter-terrorism officials must “study the facts” on assistance to terrorists provided by Western countries, he said, adding that Ukraine, for instance, has become a logistic hub from which weapons disseminate across the world.  NATO troops who hastily left Afghanistan also abandoned vast quantities of weapons which fell into the hands of ISIL and affiliates, he said.

The Council should oppose double standards and selectivity in counter-terrorism efforts, China’s representative, Council President for the month, speaking in his national capacity, underscored.  He also voiced concern over the Turkistan Islamic Party in Syria, and called on Damascus to fulfil its counter-terrorism obligations and prevent any terrorist forces from using the Syrian territory to threaten the security of other countries.

Calls to Ensure Terrorist Groups Do Not Take Advantage of Instability in Syria 

Several speakers, including the delegates of Denmark and Slovenia, stressed the need to ensure that terrorist groups do not take advantage of the instability in Syria.  Greece’s delegate underlined the need for a political road map in that country that includes constitutional reform, free and fair elections and inclusive governance. “This is the only way towards the eradication not only of Da’esh, but terrorism in general,” he added.  The United Kingdom’s delegate spotlighted the Global Coalition’s efforts to reduce the risk Da’esh poses as Syria embarks on its historical political transition.  However, “we cannot fight terrorism with force alone”, he emphasized, calling for a whole-of-society approach — with the meaningful participation of women — to address the long-term drivers of terrorism.

Terrorists’ Increased Use of Information and Communications Technology Draws Concern

Delegates also considered how to tackle terrorist groups’ increased use of information and communications technology (ICT), with Guyana’s representative noting that gaming and social media platforms bolster resources and recruitment.  The Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team has reported extensively on the increased risk of online radicalization and recruitment targeting youth and minors and the increasing use of cryptocurrencies by Da’esh, she said.

Also noting Da’esh’s use of cryptocurrencies, Panama’s delegate said:  “Terrorism thrives on secrecy and underground flows of money.”  His country is the only Latin American nation to participate in the Global Coalition against Da’esh and is committed to preventing terrorists from using the Panamanian banking system for their financing.

The Republic of Korea’s speaker stressed that the international community must respond by leveraging artificial-intelligence-driven analytics to improve threat detection, disrupt terrorist narratives and bolster information integrity.  Seoul’s new “AI and Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism” project, designed in collaboration with the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism, seeks to map out how terrorists exploit AI and build States’ capacity to counter these tactics by incorporating AI solutions, he said.