Three times more Romanians reported possible terrorist activities in 2015

More than 13,800 citizens have reported possible terrorist activities in 2015, the number being three times higher than in 2014, according to data from the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI), based on the number of calls made at the free AntiTerorist number. The growth was registered in the context of the terrorist attacks in Paris in January and November 2015. The citizens reported online Islamist extremist propaganda, suspicious behavior, and aspects they found to be relevant in the context of the migrant inflow from conflict zones such as Syria to Europe. Some also reported about people interested in trading radioactive materials, reports local Mediafax. However, only 58 of the 13,875 calls gave potentially relevant clues for counterterrorism. In 20 of these cases, the SRI decided to take a closer look and start investigations based on the callers' reports. Most of the calls were made by men, according to SRI. In all cases, the caller’s identity is protected. The free anti-terrorist number has been available since 2004 and is “a complementary tool that helps prevent manifestations of terrorism, including those that support them (propaganda, proselytism, radicalization, financing, logistics), and also offers a new opportunity to receive post-factum data on terrorist incidents or crises,” according to SRI data. The Tunisian killed by the police in Paris shooting sought asylum in Romania. Jordanian citizen suspected of jihadist propaganda, banned from Romania for 15 years. Prosecutors: Romanian detained for jihadist propaganda, willing to sacrifice his life for ISIS Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com