Tens of thousands of foreign jihadists fighting for groups like the Islamic State pose a "significant and evolving" threat to world security though their exploitation of social media and the Internet to spread their ideology and raise funds, according to a new United Nations report.
“With some 30,000 foreign terrorist fighters coming from over 100 countries, terrorism is a global threat, which requires a global response,” said Jean-Paul Laborde stated late on Tuesday.
“Attempts to resolve these issues effectively through a purely domestic approach will not work,” said Laborde, who is assistant secretary-general of the UN Security Council's Counter-Terrorism Committee.
Nations need to respond to this worldwide threat with the same speed and versatility shown by IS and other jihadist groups, Laborde said.
“Together, we need to urgently step up our efforts and reinforce our preventive capacity across the board – in a flexible and immediate way,” he stated.
UN member states have reinforced border controls and prevented suspected foreign terrorist fighters from travelling, while Internet giants such as the video-sharing website YouTube are also helping stem propaganda and the recruitment of foreign soldiers, he said.
Most counties are now able monitor Internet sites, including social media, to combat online incitement to commit acts of terrorism, according to the report.
But only 51 states have the technology to use the advance passenger information system (API) to detect potential foreign terrorist fighters at borders and airports and only half of these states are using the system.
"It is still easy for anybody wishing to join a terrorist organisation or to travel to a conflict zone to make direct, anonymous contact with a terrorist recruiter,” Laborde warned.
Tackling terrorist financing sources remained another weakpoint, he said.
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