Dutch push intelligence sharing after missed signals in Paris

The Netherlands called on Monday for greater sharing of intelligence data, including lists of suspected foreign fighters and their banking details, at a gathering of global counter-terrorism officials. The Dutch, who hold the rotating European Union presidency, circulated a draft outlining the objective to roughly 250 delegates of the Global Counter Terrorism Forum (GCTF) and the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL meeting in The Hague, Foreign Minister Bert Koenders said. Several of the Paris attackers, who killed 130 people with guns and suicide vests, had been on the radar of authorities in various countries, providing opportunities to stop them.

There has to be the confidence and the trust between the agencies to ensure that it is not only the general knowledge but precise names, the precise travel plans, the precise credit cards.

Foreign Minister Bert Koenders

Turkish authorities detained suicide bomber Brahim Abdeslam and deported him to Belgium months before the attacks, warning that he had been “radicalized” and was suspected of wanting to join Islamic State fighters in Syria. One example is the failure to effectively share lists of suspects whose assets have been frozen, making it possible for someone blacklisted to drive across the border and use their bank cards in a neighboring country. Another problem is that not all countries provide data or use information made available through systems at Europol and Interpol.

Politics Paris terror