Un secretary general antonio guterres has warned that terrorists could exploit the corona pandemic for their own ends.
Psychosocial, economic and political tensions related to covid-19 had increased dramatically, guterres said monday (local time) at the opening of the united nations anti-terrorism week. "Terrorists must not be allowed to exploit these cracks and insecurities."
While it is too early to fully assess the impact of corona on terrorism, groups such as the islamic state (IS), al-qaeda, neo-nazis and white supremacists – advocates of racist ideologies of white supremacy – are known to seek to exploit local conflicts, government failures and grievances.
The pandemic has also exposed vulnerabilities to new and emerging forms of terrorism, such as the misuse of digital technology, cyberattacks and bioterrorism. Like the virus, terrorism knows no boundaries and can only be defeated together.
The united nations are still consulting until friday at the anti-terrorism week – virtually via video link because of the corona pandemic.