day scientific forum on “The role of the Internet in combating terrorism and extremism” was launched on behalf of Prince Muhammad Bin Naif Bin Abdul Aziz, Assistant Minister of Interior for Security Affairs, by Prince Bandar Bin Abdullah Bin Mishary, Director of the National Information Center at the Ministry of Interior, Monday. The forum is being organized by the Naif Arab University for Security Sciences (NAUSS) in cooperation with the Ministry of Interior, the terrorism combating team at the UN, the Scientific Center for Countering Terror in the US and the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The venue of the forum is NAUSS headquarters in Riyadh. In a speech on the occasion, Prince Bandar said the Kingdom under the leadership of King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, has made significant gains in combating terrorism and extremism. These accomplishments include preempting operations and rectifying social misconceptions. The Kingdom's achievements have been an example to many countries, he added. He said the anti-terror agencies have been able to foil about 220 terrorist operations. This confirms that terrorism is hostile to Islam, the nation and the Ummah. The Kingdom has accorded special attention to terrorism issues and organized an international conference in 2005 that produced important recommendations that laid the foundations for joint global measures to combat terror. In addition, the Council of Arab Ministers of Interior and Justice approved the Arab Agreement for Combating Terrorism in 1998, which is unprecedented in the whole world. He stressed that the Kingdom is proud of the manner in which its security is viewed in the Islamic, Arab and international world. Prince Bandar said there are very few scientific studies on the use of the Internet in combating terrorism. This means there is a need to support researchers who can conduct research and analysis so that future decisions can be based on scientific and professional grounds. In his speech, Dr. Abdul Aziz Bin Saqr Al-Ghamdi, President of NAUSS, said terrorism in all its forms has nothing to do with Islam. The acts of terrorists are distorting the image of Islam and other religions, whether in the Arab world or elsewhere. Muslims are the most likely victims of terrorism in the world, he said. Al-Ghamdi said the forum would focus on several topics on the use of the Internet for terrorism purposes, how to combat recruitment and dissemination of terrorist ideology via the Internet; and the efforts required of civil society, the private sector and the media to combat this phenomenon. There would also be discussion on efforts to spread awareness on the negative aspects of Internet use; and the work to boost cooperation and unify global, regional and local efforts to combat terror in all forms. Meanwhile in their speeches, Ambassador Dr. George Birglin, counter-terror coordinator at the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Richard Barrett, Head of the UN team for combating terror; and Alistair Miller, Director of the World Center for Combating Terrorism lauded the accomplishments made by the Kingdom in combating terror. They stressed the need for international cooperation in combating terror. They also praised the efforts of NAUSS in this connection. The deliberations of the forum started with discussion of a number of scientific papers on the spread of extremism and violence via the Internet. In the second session, papers were discussed focusing on determining the problem, its dimensions, history, goals, patterns and contents in digital records and their applications presented by a group of experts from American, Canadian and European universities. In the third session, the participants discussed working papers on plans to combat terror, including strengths and weaknesses, terrorism channels, uncovering facts and highlighting the plight of victims to show the effect of terrorism.
