Counter-Terrorism Task Force Meets: Investigations Underway Against 40 Individuals, Prosecutors Lacking

The Counter-Terrorism Task Force held a meeting where current activities in the fight against terrorism, monitoring and prevention of terrorism-related activities, as well as the need to strengthen the capacities of the Prosecutor's Office of BiH and appoint prosecutors to the Terrorism Department, which currently has only one prosecutor working actively and at full capacity, were discussed, reports the BiH news agency Patria.

Given that the Prosecutor's Office of BiH has filed indictments and is already prosecuting around 20 individuals in connection with participation in terrorist activities and going to foreign battlefields in Syria, and active investigations are underway against at least 20 more individuals related to recruitment, organizing departures, and other illegal activities connected to Syria, it is evident that the priority need is the appointment of prosecutors, which has been pending for several months due to various obstructions.

The Prosecutor's Office of BiH and partner agencies are currently conducting investigations against at least 40 individuals whose activities can be linked to terrorism, terrorist activities, and potential terrorist threats. Several international operations in the fight against terrorism are also underway, in which our country participates with partner countries.

Any delay in the appointment of prosecutors will directly endanger the fight against terrorism.

It was emphasized at the Task Force meeting that OSA, SIPA, and other police agencies almost daily provide information and reports to the Prosecutor's Office of BiH on terrorist activities and events that can be linked to terrorism, which creates an increasing number of active cases.

One of the conclusions is that a very important segment for citizen security, where activities need to be intensified, is continuous work on detecting, preventing, and thwarting activities related to terrorism, because when a terrorist act occurs, law enforcement agencies deal with the consequences.

Furthermore, a transformation of terrorist activities and the operation of perpetrators in cyberspace (video recordings and internet posts) has been observed, both in BiH and globally. Law enforcement agencies in BiH and worldwide are facing a situation where perpetrators of terrorist acts are extremely young individuals between the ages of 20-30, often with a criminal past, which are situations requiring a new approach and in which law enforcement agencies must act to detect and prevent such dangers in a timely manner.

The Counter-Terrorism Task Force, which includes the heads of police and security agencies at the BiH and entity levels, will soon be transformed into a coordination body for better efficiency, and will continue its activities in the fight against terrorism and the elimination of terrorist threats, all in the interest of creating a safer environment for the lives of all citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina.