UNSC to discuss COVID-19 impact on combating terrorism

(MENAFN - Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) NEW YORK, June 16 (KUNA) -- UN Security Council (UNSC) members will discuss later today the COVID-19 epidemic's impact on the international efforts to prevent and combat terrorism and violent extremism, as the council seeks to analyze how the growing terrorist threat has evolved during the pandemic.Tunisia, which is organizing the meeting with the participation of other members, has prepared a memorandum indicating the secondary effects of the epidemic, such as social isolation and political and economic pressures.According to the memorandum, lockdowns and other emergency measures have affected human rights and fundamental freedoms with a disproportionate impact on vulnerable populations, which in turn increases societal grievances and can be exploited by terrorist groups in both contested and non-conflicted countries.The memorandum also noted that the pandemic has undermined counter-terrorism measures and increased terrorist threats, especially in conflict areas where state capabilities are less prepared to deal with the pressures caused by the health crisis.Last June, the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism published a policy paper entitled "The Impact of the Pandemic on Countering Terrorism and Violent Extremism" that identified many of the challenges posed by the pandemic and addressed the rise in xenophobia, discrimination, hate speech and the spread of propaganda and conspiracy theories, which fuels the growing trend of right-wing terrorism. (end) asf.aa MENAFN16062021000071011013ID1102291354