(Eagle News) — “The threat from international terrorism has grown over the last few years,” according to the World Counter Terror Congress which is set to hold its conference this March 2019.
The world meeting set from March 5 to 9 in London noted that the devastating terror attacks in various parts of the world “have caused major loss of life, destruction of property and economic damage across the globe.”
“As nations seek to advance their resilience and ability to combat the global terrorist threat, there is need for collaboration on shared challenges faced. The World Counter Terror Congress provides a high level platform for discussion of the current threat and approaches to safeguarding our nations from it,” a statement from the World Counter Terror Congress website said.
-Gathering of international security experts-
The conference gathers over 300 internationally recognized security experts from all over the world as they “seek to find the strategic and operational approach to fight terrorism.”
It will “cover a broad spectrum of priorities, including de-radicalization and the prevention of individuals/groups from engaging in terrorist activity, protective security measures and the safeguarding of our societies as well as intelligence led operations and the pursuit of terrorist suspects.”
“The global security community needs to continually stay one step ahead of the threat from violent extremist groups, combining the latest technology with constantly evolving operational strategies and policy,” the statement from the World Counter Terror Congress said.
-Counter-terrorism-
“This starts with counter extremism – the prevention of marginalization that creates a breeding ground for terrorism – and moves through intelligence-gathering on potential attacks to discuss operations for shutting down imminent incidents,” it said in the statement published in its website.
The Philippines was recently ranked the 10th country most impacted by terrorism, becoming the only country in Southeast Asia to land in the top 10 of the Global Terrorism Index (GTI) 2018.
The country was also rated the 8th among countries with the highest increase in terrorism deaths worldwide this year.
The list of countries considered as emerging terrorism hotspots was released by the Institute for Economics and Peace in its 2018 Global Terrorism Index (GTI).
The report listed as among the worst terrorist attacks in the Philippines the Marawi City siege last year which started with the attack by ISIS-inspired Maute rebels in May 2017. The Marawi City siege lasted for five months.
Philippine troops of a southern Philippine city where Islamic State supporters waged a brutal five-month battle began leaving Marawi on October 25, as a group of journalists were given the first ever press tour of the devastated city. / AFP PHOTO / TED ALJIBE
The GTI report said that terrorist activity in countries like the Philippines “exacerbated tensions between splinter terror groups and national governments.”
Iraq topped the list of “most impacted countries” followed by Afghanistan, Nigeria, Syria, Pakistan, Somalia, India, Yemen and Egypt.
