Countries cannot fight terrorism in isolation: UN

Countries cannot afford to deal with countering terrorism in isolation, UN Deputy Secretary- General Jan Eliasson said Tuesday, calling for a truly effective response to leverage the resources of the international community.

In his closing remarks to an open briefing organized by the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC), Eliasson noted that the international community should look at all aspects of the problem of terrorism, including the underlying factors leading to the recruitment of new terrorists.

"The threat posed by terrorism can seem overwhelming, particularly to states with a weak criminal justice system," he added.

In this regard, Eliasson said UN has been providing specialized training to criminal justice practitioners so that they can respond to the complex nature of terrorist crimes in an " accountable and transparent" manner, referring to the UN organized training for Nigeria to fight against the extremist group Boko Haram.

"There is no standard, no universal solution to the complex and global threat of terrorism," he said. "It is now crucially important to let every terrorist and terrorist group hear the same message from Member States, the United Nations, and partners everywhere: the world stands united in denouncing and rejecting your atrocities."

The CTC works to bolster the ability of United Nations Member States to prevent terrorist acts both within their borders and across regions. It is assisted by the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED), which carries out policy decisions of the Committee, conducts expert assessments of each member state and facilitates counter-terrorism technical assistance to countries.

The UN has considered terrorism as an increasingly prominent threat to the international community after witnessing a recent spate of atrocities committed by extremist groups like the Islamic States (IS) in the Middle East and Boko Haram in Nigeria.