UNSC discusses terrorism, cross-border

NEW YORK, Dec 19 (KUNA) -- UN Under Secretary General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman stressed Friday the need to counter terrorism, following the despicable attack on a school in Pakistan by Taliban.
At the Security Council's open meeting on terrorism and cross-border crime, Feltman stressed on the need for urgent action to address terrorism and its transnational linkages regrettably well-illustrated, for example by the intensification of Boko Haram activities across the Lake Chad Basin region of Central Africa.
In the Secretary General's recent visits to Africa, he was constantly reminded that terrorism and cross-border crime cannot be addressed separately, he said.
Efforts to combat terrorism, he said, will not bear fruit unless we combine law enforcement actions with measures to strengthen good governance, rule of law and human rights. He also said that "we will not uproot the ideologies that lead to violence if we do not win over hearts and minds." The European Union said when it comes to enhance peace and security world-wide, a critical opportunity now exists for the international community to consider ways to support the post-2015 development agenda.
The Managing Director, Global and Multilateral issues, European External Action Service Mara Marinaki said concrete progress in the areas of security, justice, human rights, and the rule of law are crucial for achieving sustainable development which is reflected in the post-2015 development agenda.
Joint security and development efforts especially in the area of countering violent extremism and conflict prevention need to be enhanced, she stressed.
"It is our common responsibility to ensure that the Rule of law, the respect for international law, in particular human rights, refugee and humanitarian law, are essential components of the fight against terrorism and organized crime," she concluded.
Meanwhile, Iran condemned, before the Council, terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including State terrorism.
"We firmly believe that resorting to indiscriminate violence and acts of terrorism, whether by terrorist groups or by State military forces, and killing and injuring civilians and generating terror and intimidation among the public are criminal acts which could not be justifiable in any manner," Ambassador of Iran to the UN Hossein Dehghani added.
He said that his country has long been a target of terrorism, and they are fully aware of the grave consequences of acts of terrorism for the victims, their families and for targeted societies at large. (end) mao.bs