01 February 2023
Council of Europe ¦ Adoption of new Counter-Terrorism Strategy for 2023-2027
Countering Contemporary Terrorism in Europe: Council of Europe Strategy 2023–2027
The Council of Europe’s Counter-Terrorism Strategy 2023–2027 sets out a comprehensive and rights‑based blueprint for confronting the complex, shifting terrorist landscape across Europe. Building on the 2018–2022 Strategy, the new framework was developed by the Committee on Counter-Terrorism (CDCT) and approved in late 2022 to respond to notable changes:
- the decline of territorially based, centrally directed groups in the Middle East;
- the rise of “post‑organisational” terrorism driven by lone actors and small cells;
- the rapid growth of violent far‑right attacks; the persistent though varied risks posed by foreign terrorist fighters (FTFs); and
- the expanding misuse of modern technologies for recruitment, coordination, propaganda and attack execution.
The Strategy is structured around three mutually reinforcing pillars — Prevention, Prosecution and Protection — each anchored in human rights and rule of law standards.
Prevention focuses on understanding drivers of radicalisation and disrupting recruitment, financing and online propaganda.
Prosecution aims to ensure effective, lawful investigation and evidence use — including evidence from conflict zones and e‑evidence — so perpetrators are brought to justice.
Protection covers safeguarding individuals, communities and critical infrastructure, supporting victims and enhancing emergency and post‑attack responses.
Across these pillars, analysis and cross‑border cooperation are central: the Strategy both synthesises recent Council of Europe outputs (recommendations, guidelines, tools and good‑practice collections) and identifies concrete future actions to fill gaps exposed by the changing threat environment.
Key trends the Strategy addresses
Post‑organisational terrorism
The CDCT highlights a paradigm shift toward decentralized, ideologically inspired attacks carried out by unaffiliated lone actors or small networks. These actors favor soft targets and low‑cost weapons — vehicles, knives, improvised devices — often leveraging online platforms for inspiration, operational advice, livestreaming and publicity. That trend complicates detection and legal qualification of offences and demands new preventive, investigative and prosecutorial tools.
Violent far‑right and other ideologies
Violent far‑right terrorism has become a major concern, with attacks and plots increasing in several Western jurisdictions. Its organizational model often embraces leaderless resistance and fluid, transnational online ecosystems that blur traditional group boundaries. The Strategy recognises that other ideological currents (violent far‑left, misogynistic or conspiratorial movements) can intersect and amplify risks, and that legal regimes and investigative approaches must be adapted to these varied drivers.
Technological misuse
The rapid spread of digital platforms, encrypted and niche services, gaming communities and emergent virtual spaces (e.g., virtual reality environments) has expanded terrorists’ operational and recruitment options. Migration to less‑regulated platforms, livestreamed attacks, 3D‑printed weapons and digital finance tools require strengthened public–private cooperation, improved evidence handling and harmonised legal responses to e‑evidence and online harms.
Foreign terrorist fighters and conflict‑zone evidence
The return, relocation or uncertain fate of FTFs remains a priority. The Strategy promotes practical frameworks to use evidence from conflict zones in criminal proceedings while safeguarding human rights and intelligence integrity. It also confronts legal complexities arising from overlaps between counter‑terrorism law and international humanitarian law when alleged crimes occur in armed conflict contexts.
Victims, gender and children
The Strategy broadens the notion of victims beyond direct casualties to include families, children affected by recruitment or exposure, and other groups suffering long‑term consequences. There is particular emphasis on gender‑ and age‑sensitive disengagement and reintegration programmes for women and children, as well as victim support services and compensation mechanisms.
Concrete outputs and planned activities
The Strategy’s action plan outlines targeted deliverables:
- new recommendations and guidelines (e.g., on protecting children, using conflict‑zone information, and assessing risk for indicted/convicted terrorists),
- tools for risk screening and deradicalisation, and
- proposals to update the legal definition of terrorism across Europe.
Priority activities include
- analytical reports on drivers of violent extremism,
- instruments to counter online promotion of terrorism,
- measures to disrupt firearms and explosives trafficking,
- guidance on the prosecutorial use of e‑evidence and OSINT, and
- best‑practice resources for victim support and emergency response.
Cooperation with UN bodies, Europol, Eurojust, Interpol, FATF/MONEYVAL and tech‑industry initiatives is foregrounded, as is enhanced public–private collaboration to keep pace with technological change.
Human rights and rule of law as central constraints
The Strategy repeatedly underscores that all counter‑terrorism measures must comply with human rights obligations and preserve due process and proportionality. It stresses that prevention, prosecution and protection efforts should avoid arbitrary or discriminatory practices, ensure judicial oversight, and safeguard victims’ rights. That principle underpins initiatives to harmonise evidence standards, manage dual legal questions arising from armed conflict, and review domestic counter‑terrorism laws to ensure they remain effective and rights‑compliant.
Dive deeper
- Council of Europe ¦ Council of Europe adopts new counter-terrorism strategy for 2023-2027 ¦ Link