Mektić: Literature on ISIL and bombs found at Omeragić's

I was in France and had the opportunity to speak with a number of police officers and I spoke on the topic of terrorism that France is facing, what can be linked to their terrorism and what is happening here, said BiH Security Minister Dragan Mektić speaking at a press conference about the visit to France and last night's event in Sarajevo, reports a reporter for the Bosnian news agency Patria.

For a number of years, there has been an illegal flow of weapons between the Western Balkans and France, and it is most likely that weapons and explosives in France come from the Western Balkans.

- We have a situation where this is a relapse of the war. In Serbia, Croatia, and BiH, there are groups that illegally transport these weapons. We agreed to establish a group that will work on cutting off groups that commit such criminal acts.

When it comes to terrorism in BiH, I warn about radicalization and that it has always led to the next step of violent extremism, which ended in terrorist acts.

This is now finally an event that has gone beyond all measure and which, if we are at all responsible, we should take measures that would affect deradicalization and prevent terrorism - said Mektić.

He said that in the territory of BiH there are certain local communities where the rule of law does not function, where radical communities have been created, which refuse to recognize the legal order and introduce some other regulations that apply in their environments.

- And always so far, from such radical environments, violent radicalism was born, from which terrorism emerged. We also have certain individuals who are not in our records, but after some events we see that they stayed in such communities.

How is it possible that in Maoča they set up their checkpoints, children do not go to school, the police must be there and the system and legal order must be established by force. We cannot allow the creation of parapolice organizations. There are no such measures. They support ISIL and go further and further until they come to defeat the system - said Mektić.

Enes Omeragić last night around half past seven most likely deliberately prepared all this and with several frames of ammunition left his house and committed a terrorist act.

- We did not have him in our records as part of an extremist group. We only have a connection between him and his son-in-law Muhamed Meca, but he was released because there was no evidence. Enes broke off all relations with his brother and father and spent more time with his son-in-law and some other persons. In the betting shop, besides the soldiers, there were other people, but he passed by them and killed our soldiers.

When he came out, he saw a soldier getting on the bus and fired again. Here the driver managed to turn off the light. Returning home, he threw a hand grenade in an area that has not yet been determined but a detonation was heard and that crater was being searched for.

The police located the house and began to subdue him and possibly arrest him. Again our lack of coordination was shown - said Mektić.

- Immediately different information appeared about different qualifications, and it is impossible to say in an hour what happened. Now we have a lot of indications that it was deliberately about terrorist activities, so we again had a situation where agencies were fighting over who would do the investigation, and the cantonal prosecutor also got involved - said Mektić, adding that literature and a diary in which he praised ISIL were found in the apartment.

He said that a plan of measures and actions that we need to implement to be more efficient must be adopted.

- First, I will propose that the ministry draft a law on the fight against terrorism. I will even see to propose in that law that in certain areas in such situations we can declare a state of emergency and that there are special powers in which the police will fight against terrorism. I believe that only with these special additional powers can we fight and have special elements, both we and the Prosecutor's Office - said Mektić.

Mektić said that forensic examinations will show whether Omeragić was under the influence of drugs. He also confirmed that he had several bombs with him.

One of the questions was whether the same story was heard after the attack on the police station in Zvornik, what the public can expect now.

We adopted a new strategy for the fight against terrorism and everyone who saw it, and who deals with this issue, assessed it as a very good document.

Mektić said that the key motives need to be seen. As an example, he cited France where mostly young people, minors, and women are going into radicalization.

He said that we should focus on repressive methods, and we must do preventive ones so that the entire system works that way.

- Several persons have been brought in and questioned today. We have somewhere around 50 of our citizens who have returned from Syria and we have 20 indictments that will charge them, but you have to prove to someone that they were in Syria, shot there, which is complex. We must find a way to destroy and break up this phenomenon. We need more money because security is expensive - said Mektić.

He also commented on the events and writings on social networks.

- When that appeared on Vijestiummeta, we did not have the opportunity to access it, but two hackers reported to me who exposed them and the next day sent me the name of the one behind Vijestiummeta - said Mektić.