UNl urges cooperation to tackle kidnapping for ransom by terrorists
Jan.29,2014: The United Nations Security Council has strongly condemned incidents
of kidnapping and hostage-taking committed by terrorists for any purpose, including
raising funds or gaining political concessions, and called for international cooperation
to tackle this scourge. On Monday in its first-ever resolution devoted specifically
to kidnapping for ransom by terrorists, the 15-member body called on all Member States
to prevent terrorists from benefitting directly or indirectly from ransom payments,
or from political concessions and to secure the safe release of hostages. Speaking
to reporters after the Council’s action, Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant, of the United
Kingdom, which drafted the resolution, said it has been estimated that in the past
three and a half years, al Qaeda-affiliated and other Islamist extremist groups have
collected at least $105 million. “It is therefore imperative that we take steps
to ensure that kidnapping for ransom is no longer perceived as a lucrative business
model and that we eliminate it as a source of terrorist financing,” he said, “We need
to break that cycle” he added. The resolution noted that “ransom payments to terrorist
groups are one of the sources of income which supports their recruitment efforts,
strengthens their operational capability to organize and carry out terrorist attacks,
and incentivizes future incidents of kidnapping for ransom.” It called on Member States
to encourage private sector partners to adopt or to follow relevant guidelines and
good practices for preventing and responding to terrorist kidnappings without paying
ransoms. It also encouraged the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) to hold a
Special Meeting with the participation of Member States and relevant international
and regional organizations to discuss measures to prevent incidents of kidnapping
and hostage-taking committed by terrorist groups to raise funds or gain political
concessions. Source: UN