The 116th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union,

Recalling the resolutions on combating terrorism adopted by the United Nations General Assembly, by the United Nations Security Council, in particular resolutions 1700 (2006) and 1723 (2006), and by the IPU at its 108th (Santiago de Chile, 2003), 111th (Geneva, 2004) and 115th Assemblies (Geneva, 2006),

Reiterating its strong condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, as it constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security,

Welcoming all international efforts conducted under United Nations auspices to counter and combat terrorism, including measures to prevent, combat and eliminate financing of terrorism and cross-border funding,

Reaffirming the fundamental importance of multilateralism and international cooperation, as well as the central role of the United Nations, in combating terrorism, its root causes and its financing, including cross-border funding,

Stressing the need to create conditions conducive to the elimination of terrorism,

Noting that providing illicit funds allows and enables terrorist organizations and terrorists to carry out attacks, procure arms and ammunition, provide monetary support to other terrorists and attract recruits for terrorist activities,

Believing that terrorism constitutes a gross violation of human rights, in particular the right to freedom and security, as well as an obstacle to the free functioning of institutions and socio-economic development, as its aim is to destabilize States,

Determined to take the measures listed below, and reaffirming that the defence and protection of human rights for all and primacy of the law are key components of the struggle against terrorism, and that effectively fighting terrorism and protecting human rights are not conflicting but rather complementary and synergistic objectives,

Reaffirming that the States must ensure that all measures taken to combat terrorism are in line with their obligations under international law, in particular international human rights law, international refugee law and international humanitarian law, and underscoring the need to uphold and protect the rights of the victims of terrorist acts,

Convinced that terrorism cannot and should not be associated with any religion, nationality, civilization or ethnic group,

Recalling further the demand made by the 115th IPU Assembly that all States must prevent banks, organizations or other entities within their territories or jurisdiction from funding or encouraging terrorist activities or lending any kind of support to terrorists or terrorist organizations,

Affirming the important role of parliaments in facilitating government efforts to combat terrorism, its root causes and its financing, including cross-border funding,

Deeply concerned that some terrorist groups are known to be receiving funds directly from sponsoring States, and that such groups receive funds through non-traditional channels,

Alarmed that the continued presence of foreign forces in Iraq has further worsened social, political and economic conditions, created fertile ground for the growth of terrorism and caused ethnic conflicts in Iraq which may have spilled over to the region and the rest of the world,

Reaffirming also that the United Nations must assume a leading role in helping Iraq to promote national reconciliation, peace, democracy and cooperation in that country, including in respect of the withdrawal of foreign forces,

1. Reiterates its condemnation of acts of terrorism in all their forms and manifestations, as they constitute one of the most serious threats to international peace and security;

2. Calls upon States to adhere to all relevant United Nations resolutions, conventions and international agreements and to initiate measures to prevent, combat and eliminate terrorism in all its manifestations and forms;

3. Encourages all national parliaments to strengthen their legal systems, in accordance with the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism, which was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in December 1999;

4. Emphasizes the need for States to take all essential steps to block funding for and discourage terrorist activities, and not to lend any kind of support, moral or material, to terrorists or terrorist organizations in their territories;

5. Encourages governments to strengthen existing counter-terrorism cooperation, enhance cooperation on law enforcement, intelligence, legal frameworks and prevention of transborder terrorist movements, counter radicalization and prevent terrorist access to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear weapons;

6. Renews its commitment to encourage governments to meet the terrorist threat with coordinated and targeted policies and measures, at the national, sub-regional, regional and global levels, particularly in the key areas of law enforcement, information sharing and strengthening legal frameworks;

7. Urges governments, regional organizations and other multilateral organizations to promote understanding between and within faiths, cultures and civilizations through dialogue;

8. Expresses deep concern at the continued escalation of violence and terrorist attacks in Iraq, in particular against innocent civilians; strongly condemns these attacks and reaffirms its full support for Iraq in countering terrorist activities;

9. Stresses the importance of establishing a propitious environment for countering the spread of terrorism in Iraq;

10. Reiterates the need immediately to promote national reconciliation in Iraq;

11. Further strongly demands the immediate withdrawal of all foreign forces currently in Iraq, and calls for, where necessary, the deployment of a peace-keeping force under the auspices of the United Nations to which Muslim countries may contribute;

12. Recognizes that more individual and collective efforts are needed to address violence, terrorist propaganda and other vectors of terrorism; in this regard, stresses the need to develop strategies to counter incitement to terrorism and to help religious, community and other leaders counter the extremist ideologies and propaganda used by terrorist groups to justify their violent acts;

13. Recognizes also the need to strengthen the voice of moderation, inter alia through dialogue and cooperation among and between religious leaders, academics, media practitioners and other community leaders;

14. Encourages parliamentarians to facilitate the national legislative process for ratifying existing international conventions on terrorism;

15. Emphasizes the urgent need to establish effective legal, regulatory and administrative frameworks, in each State, for combating money-laundering and financing of terrorism;

16. Calls upon States to establish close cooperation in combating terrorism and its cross-border funding, particularly by having organizations in charge of the supervision and control of banks and financial institutions exchange information, in accordance with their respective legislation;

17. Urges States to establish close judicial cooperation in investigations, proceedings, extraditions, inquiries, international rogatory commissions on money laundering and funding of terrorism, in accordance with the relevant bilateral and multilateral agreements and with their respective domestic legislation;

18. Stresses the need for greater cooperation and coordination among international organizations such as the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and Interpol, to assist the States in complying with international norms and obligations to combat money-laundering as a means of financing terrorism;

19. Also urges the international organizations to provide any assistance the States may require in implementing the comprehensive international standards embodied in the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendations on money-laundering and terrorist financing;

20. Calls upon all parliaments to prevail upon their respective governments to use law enforcement tools effectively to prevent, investigate and prosecute terrorist financiers and dismantle terrorist funding networks on their respective territories;

21. Further calls upon parliaments to influence their respective governments to implement the measures set out in United Nations Security Council resolutions 1267 (1999) and 1373 (2001) to effectively eliminate terrorist financing;

22. Strongly recommends that the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism be rapidly concluded by the United Nations General Assembly, so as effectively to close the channels through which terrorist activities are funded;

23. Recognizes the need for governments to deal with transborder movements of individuals, weapons, funds and other related materials involved in terrorist operations and their supporting activities.

* The delegations of Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and the United Kingdom declared that they would not participate in the proceedings relating to the resolution as they considered its adoption in contravention to the rules. The delegation of the Republic of Korea said that it was taking the same position. The delegation of Japan indicated its opposition to the resolution.

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