The nexus between human trafficking and terrorism

Open briefing of the Counter-Terrorism Committee on

“The nexus between international terrorism and transnational

organized crime”

Monday, 8 October 2018, New York

Ms. Delphine Schantz, CTED Senior Legal Officer

Presentation overview

Links with transnational

organized crime

Human trafficking as a tactic of

terrorism and a source of terrorism

financing

CTED’s mandate pursuant to

UNSCRs 2331 (2016) and 2388

(2017)

CTED’s project on “Identifying and

exploring the nexus between HT, T and TF”

Recommendations

Why talking about HT in relation to the Terror/Crime Nexus ?

❖ Several UNSCRs underscore the concern that terrorist groups benefit from organized crime-related

activities, including HT.

❖ HT is one of the most profitable activities of organized crime. It generates annual profits of around $150

billion.

❖ Even though the HT/TF nexus is difficult to demonstrate, HT could represent a highly opportunistic

source of revenue for terrorists.

❖ The SG has also underscored that terrorism is increasingly interlinked with international organized

crime and the trafficking of people, drugs, arms and corruption.

❖ There are some instances demonstrating that the nexus is not only theoretical but also concrete.

Example of links with organized crime

In Libya, patterns of sexual violence

(encompassing HT) perpetrated by

smugglers, traffickers and hybrid criminal-terrorist networks,

have been well documented

On 7 June 2018, the SC Committee

established pursuant to UNSCR 1970 added six leaders of criminal

networks – responsible for HT and people

smuggling in Libya – to its Sanctions List

In the narrative summary of the

reasons for listing Ahmad al-Dabbashi, it is explained that his

clan and militia “cultivate relationships

with terrorist and violent extremist

groups”

His clan and militia “have long-standing links with ISIL and its affiliates” and “several ISIL operatives have been in their ranks”

The nexus between HT&T

▪ Strategic use of human trafficking-related activities to

➢ Spread terror and advance ideology

➢ Intimidate populations and decimate communities

➢ Institutionalize sexual violence and slavery

➢ Incentivize and bolster recruitment

▪ Human trafficking-related activities can also constitute an opportunistic source of revenue

➢ Captives sold in open slave markets or through online auctions

➢ Captives used as instruments to perform support/servitude roles

➢ Captives used as means to secure ransom/rescue payments

CTED’s ACTION ❖ In accordance with UNSCR 2331 (2016), since March 2017, CTED has included elements related to

human trafficking in its country assessments.

❖ Through its follow-up and recommendations, CTED aims to sensitize Member States on the issue of

human trafficking committed in support of terrorism, including financially.

❖ UNSCR 2388 (2017) encourages Member States to increase efforts to collect, analyze and share data

relating to financial flows associated with human trafficking and the extent and nature of financing of

terrorism through this crime and to provide CTED and the Monitoring Team with relevant information

pertaining to those linkages.

❖ As of January 2018 CTED is member of the Inter-Agency Coordination Group against Trafficking in

Persons (ICAT).

❖ CTED was part of the project team of the FATF/APG typology report on “Financial flows from human

trafficking”.

CTED’s Project on HT&T

Outreach to MS, international and regional organizations, academia

Report aimed at highlighting the main outcomes of the study

Findings will contribute to the SG report pursuant

to UNSCR 2388

As limited information has been collected so far, CTED has

undertaken a project aimed at identifying and exploring the

nexus between human trafficking, terrorism and its financing

Questionnaire

➢ In an effort to collect reliable data, CTED

produced and disseminated an ad hoc

questionnaire

➢ As of 8 October 2018, CTED has received 45

completed questionnaires

➢ The questionnaire is divided in 4 sections

▪ The threat

▪ Legal framework

▪ Operational measure

▪ Good practices

Main challenges

Overlaps between different

phenomena

Lack of relevant/substantive

information

Difficulty in collecting evidence

ImpunityLack of capacity/expertise/awareness

Lack of domestic inter-agency coordination/mechanism

Not a significant source of revenue for

terrorists

Some findings (I)

Human trafficking-related activities would

be still on-going in conflict zones

In Iraq 3,117 ISIL captives remain missing

Increase in acts of sexual violence

Acts of abduction and forced recruitment have continued

In February 2018 ISWAP kidnapped 111 schoolgirls from the town of Dapchi

Some findings (II)

▪ Systematic use of deceptive strategies based on employment/education opportunities or

promises of a better life

➢ Women have been promised work opportunities but their salaries have been paid directly to

Al-Shabaab.

➢ 9 women were forcibly taken to Iraq by their husbands. They delivered 45 children in total

within a short period of time.

▪ MS were able to collect some data on the use of human trafficking as a tactic of terrorism

while the majority of them affirmed to lack information on the financial-related aspect of the

issue

Initial recommendations

▪ Raise awareness regarding the possible use of human trafficking both as a tactic of terrorism and as an

opportunistic source of revenue for terrorists.

▪ Consider listing individuals involved in human trafficking who may meet the 1267/1989/2253 Committee’s

designation criteria.

▪ Consider also involvement in human trafficking to finance terrorism be grounds for the designation of a

person/entity pursuant to the asset-freezing mechanism established by States pursuant to UNSCR 1373 (2001).

▪ Human trafficking should be examined as a potential money-laundering/terrorism-financing risk within the

national risk assessment framework.

▪ Enhance cooperation/information-sharing mechanisms between domestic bodies respectively responsible for

the investigation of human trafficking, terrorism, money-laundering and terrorism financing.

▪ Conduct parallel financial investigations in all human trafficking related cases: it appears in fact that the financial

aspect of such crime is not systematically addressed.

Thank you for your attention

For more information, please visit:

www.un.org/en/sc/ctc