ODDS STRONGLY AGAINST ASYLUM SEEKERS BEING INVOLVED IN TERRORIST ATTACKS

Only 5% of terror strikes in Europe and North America were carried out by refugees, international study shows

Only 5 per cent of all successful terrorist attacks in Europe and North America over the past three years were carried out by refugees or asylum seekers, a recent study suggests.

Fear thy Neighbour, a study by the Institute for International Studies in Italy, said that of the 51 attacks since ISIL swept through Iraq and Syria in June 2014, 73 per cent of attackers were citizens of the country where the attack took place.

Another 14 per cent were either residents or legitimate visitors from neighbouring countries.

“As we know, today migrants – and Muslim migrants, in particular – are often victims of prejudices and negative stereotypes,” the institute’s Dr Francesco Marone said.

“So it is not entirely surprising that migration is also associated with terrorism, despite relatively few examples for this possible link. The threat is to a large extent home-grown and domestic.”

Most of the attacks took place in France, which had 17, with 16 in the US, six in Germany, four in the UK and three each in Belgium and Canada, and one in Denmark and Sweden.

That brings the number of attacks to 32 in Europe, or 63 per cent, and 19 in North America, causing 395 deaths and 1,549 injuries.

“Terrorism and mass migration are two distinct and very different challenges that Europe face,” Dr Marone said.

“In our work, we found little evidence of a direct link between these two phenomena.

“Our report shows that, compared to attackers who were citizens, legal residents or visitors from neighbouring countries, those who were residing illegally in a country or came from abroad is small.”

In a discussion yesterday on the evolution of militant terrorism in Europe, he said lack of social and economic integration was a serious problem.

“But we show that the levels of radicalisation are uneven throughout Europe and are not automatically associated with the levels of integration,” Dr Marone said in the online forum Security Debate Plus, moderated by Abu Dhabi’s counter-extremism think tank Hedayah, among others.

“Several radicals and terrorists in Europe have no link with a specific country or a specific local conflict. They belong to a global jihadist movement.

“Our idea is that in many cases between the individual and society, the role of networks and small groups is crucial,” Dr Marone said. “Personal relations, including family ties, are often very essential.

“Let’s think about the presence of the many brothers in terrorist cells from the Boston Marathon, to Charlie Hebdo, the Bataclan attack and Barcelona.”

The study notes that 8 per cent of terrorist attacks were carried out by people acting under direct orders from ISIL’s leadership, while 26 per cent were committed by people with no connections at all to ISIL or other groups, but were inspired by their message.

Most, 66 per cent, were carried out by people who had some form of connection to ISIL or other groups but acted independently.

And although ISIL appears to be waning and its fall nears, Dr Marone said it seemed probable that the cause of global extremism would survive the group and continue to represent a threat to the West.

“ISIL with its ‘state’, has represented a formidable catalyst for jihadist mobilisation in Europe and in the world,” he said.

Experts call it one of the most urgent problems facing the world today.

“Over the past months we’ve had some good success in driving Daesh out of Syria and Iraq, but let’s not fool ourselves,” said Jamie Shea, of Nato.

“We know that this is a very flexible type of organisation that has already turned up in Afghanistan, Libya, increasingly in Yemen, Somalia and Nigeria, so we know it has a very adaptable business model.

“Even if it’s been defeated on the battlefield, a considerable propaganda capability on social media has driven many lone wolves into attacks.”

Over the past months we’ve had some good success in driving ISIL out of Syria and Iraq, but let’s not fool ourselve JAMIE SHEA Nato