New report warns that Kosovo’s progress in the early identification of groups and individuals at risk of radicalisation has been limited.
Kosovo faces significant problems in implementing its national counter-terrorism strategy, which relies heavily on early prevention and coordination between stakeholders, concluded a new report by BIRN Kosovo.
The report, “Challenges of Terrorism Prevention Mechanisms in Kosovo”, published on Tuesday, says Kosovo has made limited progress in the early identification of vulnerable groups and individuals at risk of radicalisation, as well as in the design and implementation of intervention measures to support these groups and individuals.
Xhelal Svecla, Kosovo’s Minister of Interior, stated that terrorism and right-wing extremism are challenges not only for Kosovo but also for other countries.
“Kosovo has taken responsibility for repatriating individuals from Syria and for rehabilitating and reintegrating them into society. One of the main pillars of our five-year 2023-2028 strategy is the inclusion of local mechanisms and civil society,” Svecla said.
“We have repeatedly experienced various attacks on institutions, officials, international personnel and the media in the four northern municipalities of Kosovo,” Svecla added, referring to last year’s armed attack by Serb gunmen in Banjska and this November’s attack on a water canal near Zubin Potok, which authorities called a terrorist attack.
The report highlights that key actors responsible for implementing the National Strategy on Preventing and Combatting Terrorism 2023- 2028 still lack a clear understanding of vulnerable groups at risk of radicalisation or a concrete understanding of the factors driving radicalisation.
According to the report, which is a product of surveys, fieldwork and documentation gathered over six months. there is also a lack of coordination and strategic messaging from central to local level regarding their obligations under the strategy.
Khalid Koser, founder and director of the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund, GCERF, highlighted the difficulties in early intervention.
“To find people at risk of radicalisation and recruitment early in the cycle and to intervene and provide better alternatives is an immensely difficult thing to do,” he said. “We all agree that early prevention is something difficult to achieve,” he added.
Report findings show that an institutional focus on religious extremism has left significant gaps in building the capacity to deal with right-wing extremism.
In recent years, Kosovo suffered several attacks carried out both by right-wing extremist groups and by Islamist extremist groups.
Kreshnik Gashi, author of the report and editor-in-chief at BIRN Kosovo outlet Kallxo.com, said Kosovo’s approach to civil society involvement in the strategy is unique.
“Kosovo is the first country in the region to allow civil society to monitor the counterterrorism strategy and actively participate in prevention and rehabilitation programmes for returning fighters,” Gashi said.
The report urges the National Coordinator to communicate strategic messages to the local level as soon as possible.
