Terrorism, in all its forms and manifestations, is a key threat to the security and safety of EU Member States, as well as to democratic values and the rule of law. The cross-border nature of terrorist networks and activities calls for enhanced sharing of information and coordination to ensure a robust judicial response and bring perpetrators to justice.
- The threat of jihadist terrorism in the EU remains significant.
- The various profiles of perpetrators and potential victims of violent right-wing extremism and terrorism bring additional challenges in effectively addressing the threat posed by individuals and groups motivated by such ideologies.
- The internet, social media and the darknet continue to be used to disseminate extremist and terrorist content, (self-) radicalise, incite and finance terrorist activities, and connect with individuals and groups abroad.
Operational support to terrorism cases
Fighting terrorism remains an important pillar of Eurojust’s operational work. In 2023, the Agency continued to support a large number of investigations and prosecutions in EU Member States and third countries, with a 30% increase in the number of newly registered cases in 2023 compared to 2022.
Eurojust’s assistance was sought to facilitate (urgent) European Investigation Orders (EIOs) and European Arrest Warrants (EAWs), coordinate investigations, exchange information, avoid ne bis in idem situations and plan joint action days. The investigations and prosecutions coordinated by Eurojust concerned acts committed by terrorist groups, cells and individuals related to (planned) terrorist attacks, terrorism financing, training and/or recruitment for terrorism, public incitement or provocation to terrorism and radicalisation.
In some cases, in addition to terrorism, the investigations also addressed murder, kidnapping, money laundering, computer fraud, document forgery, illicit trafficking in arms, ammunition and explosives, drug trafficking, human trafficking, racism, xenophobia or other organised criminal activities.
Enhanced digital information exchange in terrorism cases
On 31 October 2023, Regulation (EU) 2023/2131 amending Eurojust Regulation (EU) 2018/1727 as regards digital information exchange in terrorism cases entered into force. As a result, the European Judicial Counter-Terrorism Register (CTR) has been reinforced. The Register, which was launched in 2019, aims to establish links between suspects and terrorist networks and ongoing and past investigations across the EU.
The recent attacks in Belgium and France confirm that the threat of terrorism on European soil is still very much alive. Close coordination and early information sharing are crucial ingredients in the successful fight against this heinous crime, and this is precisely what we expect to achieve by reinforcing the Counter-Terrorism Register.
The Regulation enhances Eurojust’s ability to detect links between counter-terrorism investigations and prosecutions by:
- clarifying the obligation of national authorities to inform the Agency of any ongoing or concluded criminal investigations, prosecutions, court proceedings or decisions on terrorist offences;
- defining the specific categories of data to be shared, including information identifying the suspected, accused, convicted or acquitted natural/legal person, as well as information on the terrorist offence and national proceedings;
- setting out clear timelines for the initial transmission of information and for subsequent updates;
- envisaging the use of handling codes to guide the possible further use and sharing of the information;
- determining the secure communication channels to be used for the transmission of information.
The CTR helps identify links between judicial proceedings that are not known to national authorities. The links between proceedings identified by Eurojust help national authorities to reveal the cross-border nature of terrorist cells and/or activities and better understand the connections to other serious crimes. Once a link is confirmed, national authorities may decide to follow up bilaterally or ask Eurojust for legal and operational assistance tailored to the specific needs of each case. Eurojust may also take a proactive role in coordinating cross-border cases and act on its own initiative, as provided for in the Eurojust Regulation.
The Regulation contributes to the European Union’s digitalisation of justice initiative (see chapter 2), and improves information exchange and coordination, as outlined in the European Commission’s Counter-Terrorism Agenda.
Insights from the 2023 Eurojust Meeting on Counter-Terrorism
In November 2023, Eurojust held its annual Meeting on Counter-Terrorism. The meeting brought together the national correspondents for Eurojust for terrorism matters, specialised prosecutors from both EU Member States and non-EU States, as well as representatives of EU institutions and agencies and international organisations.
The amendments to the Eurojust Regulation regarding digital information exchange in terrorism cases and the strengthening of the CTR were an important point of discussion with participants during the meeting.
Victims’ rights was another key issue. Participants shared their national experiences with mass trials with a focus on victims’ rights, with particular reference to the trial concerning the terrorist attacks in Paris and Saint-Denis in France in November 2015 (see chapter 4 on victims’ rights for more information). Victims should be protected and supported at all stages of the proceedings. Consulting and coordinating with all stakeholders (including civil parties, defence lawyers, journalists and police forces) at an early stage is key to establishing all necessary modalities before trial. In light of the cross-border nature of terrorism, the measures taken by national authorities should also take into account the specific needs of foreign victims. This can be facilitated by international cooperation, including through the involvement of Eurojust.
International judicial cooperation is an effective tool to support cross-border victims of terrorism and other types of crime. Eurojust plays an important role in facilitating and coordinating the cooperation between involved countries to safeguard victims’ rights. EU Member States and partner third countries are encouraged to seek Eurojust’s assistance to ensure the best possible protection and guarantee of victims’ rights in cross-border cases.
Interesting verdicts and best practices were also on the agenda. The successfully concluded judicial proceedings on the Cataluña terrorist attacks in Spain in August 2017 were presented as a best practice. These proceedings benefited from the early involvement of Eurojust, the setting up of a joint investigation team (JIT) through the Agency, and the effective use of EIOs and MLA requests among more than 10 countries, including EU Member States and third countries.
The meeting also addressed the dissemination of terrorist content online. The detection and referral of terrorist content is key in addressing the spread of terrorist propaganda online. Tools and platforms have been put in place to ensure efficient operational support so that law enforcement and judicial authorities can successfully conduct counter-terrorism investigations and prosecutions.
Hate speech and hate crime
Eurojust’s coordination tools continued to be successfully used to support national authorities in investigating and prosecuting hate speech and hate crime. Eurojust facilitated the transmission and execution of EIOs, MLA requests and arrest warrants, and ensured efficient judicial coordination. The cases supported by Eurojust involved both EU Member States and third countries and concerned alleged offences committed online and offline. Depending on the facts of each case, hate speech and hate crime were investigated in relation to alleged terrorist offences, xenophobia and racism, or other types of criminal offences.
In 2023, Eurojust joined the High-Level Group on combatting hate speech and hate crime, as well as the dedicated EU working groups on reporting and data collection, hate speech online and victim support. During the year, Eurojust presented its work in support of hate crime investigations and prosecutions during several events in the framework of the working groups and participated in activities organised by the EU and UN.
Five right-wing terrorists arrested throughout Europe with the support of Eurojust and Europol
Crime: Members of a right-wing organisation use an online platform for terrorism-related activities, including the dissemination of violent extremist propaganda, the active recruitment of new members and the sharing of manuals for 3D-printed weapons.
Action: The case is opened by Eurojust in July 2023 at the request of the Belgian authorities and is supported by Europol’s European Counter Terrorism Centre (ECTC). Eurojust and Europol support the competent authorities in Belgium, Croatia, Germany, Lithuania, Romania and Italy in an international operation, including a joint action day on 9 November 2023.
Result: During the joint action day, five suspects are apprehended and an additional seven are interrogated. Data carriers and weapons are also seized.
Eurojust's Role: The Agency hosts two coordination meetings to facilitate judicial cooperation between the national authorities involved in the investigation. Eurojust supports the action day, together with Europol, to enable real-time coordination.
Eurojust is an agency of the European Union