Azerbaijan, Baku / corr Trend K.Ramazanova / The people who died in New York, Pennsylvania and Washington were victims of a new form of terrorism - striking with unprecedented viciousness and on an unprecedented scale, Terry Davis, the Council of Europe Secretary General, stated on 11 September in connection with the 6th anniversary of the horrible terrorist attacks committed on 11 September 2001.
"We have since witnessed attacks throughout the world including Europe. The recent arrests in Denmark and Germany are a dramatic reminder that the terrorist threat is virtually everywhere and as great as ever before," the Secretary General said.
"Our Governments have a duty to do everything they can to protect the public from the terrorist threat. But they must also stay within the law, and for the member states of the Council of Europe this includes respect for the European Convention on Human Rights. Crossing this boundary plays into the hands of terrorists because it levels the field between right and wrong and helps terrorists to enlist new recruits and broaden their support," Davis stressed.
For decades, and especially since 2001, the Council of Europe has worked to reinforce the collective capacity of its member states to fight terrorism and at the same time respect human rights. In Europe we know that this is not only a moral imperative, but a precondition for effective and ultimately successful fight against terror, he added.