RIYADH - MENA Herald: The Riyadh Forum on Countering Extremism and Fighting Terrorism, under the sponsorship of the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition, conducted a panel on the ties between terrorism and criminal activities.
“Criminals in Europe are very involved in terror. Almost 70% of foreign fighters from Germany are known to law enforcement for criminal activates not related to extremism,” Mr. Rajan said. “Prisons are where criminals and terrorists meet and radicalization takes place,” he said.
Panel members were Professor Joseph Mifsud, Director London Academy of Diplomacy; Katherine Bauer, US Department of the Treasury; Michael Hurley, 9/11 Commission; Dr. Khalid Al Khalifa, Isa Cultural Center – Manama and Rajan Basra, Research Fellow at Kings College London.
The panel provided great insights into the relationship between terrorist activities and criminal organizations. The nexus is a very close one as both terrorist and criminals profit and fund their efforts through illegal methods.
“Petty crimes can be seen in the background of all people conducting terrorist activities in the West,” Mr. Hurley said. “These individuals are already subjects of interest to law enforcement but the connection between crime and terrorism is often overlooked,” he said.
The panel was very concerned about the relationship between prisons and radicalization. Without developing programs and treatment within the prison system they will continue to be hotbeds for extremists and terrorist recruitment.
In closing they discussed the world-wide connection of organized criminal activity and the financing of terror. Ms. Bauer said, “Criminal activity in one country may be financing terrorism in other countries. We must not overlook even petty crimes as they can lead to bigger terrorist activities in other areas of the world.”