Roundup: Russian security services enhance domestic anti-terror operations in 2015

Russian Federal Security Service on Tuesday made a security report wrapping up the general security situations in the country.

Active measures against terrorism have reduced the number of terrorist crimes by 2.5 times "both across the country and in the North Caucasus region," said Alexander Bortnikov, head of Russian Federal Security Service.

He reported that in 2015, 156 militants including 36 chieftains were killed, while more than 770 bandits and their accomplices were detained and 30 terrorist-related crimes prevented.

Moreover, 20 armed group leaders in North Caucasus who swore loyalty to Daesh (Islamic State in Arabic) have been neutralized in 2015.

"To date, more than 2,900 Russians suspected of involvement in the activities of international terrorist organizations in Syria and Iraq have been identified," Bortnikov noted.

"Among them, 198 have been eliminated during overseas combat missions; 214 returned to Russia and were under tight control of law enforcement agencies; 80 were convicted and 41 arrested," Tass news agency quoted Bortnikov as saying.

"The investigative bodies also opened criminal cases against more than 1,000 Russian citizens suspected of taking part in combat actions outside the country."

According to Bortnikov, Russian intelligence agencies in 2015 managed to prevent more than 100 Russian citizens from joining militants in the Middle East.

"Considerable attention of federal and regional authorities has been paid (this year) to prevent young people from leaving Russia to join the fighting in the Middle East military conflicts, especially youth from the North Caucasus, the Volga and the Southern federal districts."

According to Bortnikov, there is a "persisting upward trend", especially among Russian young people, of persons with radical thoughts heading for conflicting areas.

Comprehensive measures are needed to change the situation, also to prevent militants' penetration into Russian territories, Bortnikov said.

"It is necessary to take additional measures to improve the efficiency of investigative work through migration and tourism channels," he specified, also urging to use established contacts with partners in the Commonwealth of Independent States and other countries.

Bortnikov noted that main terrorist threats in Russia, same as before, were linked to the activities of the armed groups in the North Caucasus.

A Russian expert, Azhdar Kurtov, has told Xinhua that security issues in North Caucasus are prominent as the region is geographically close to Syria, Iraq and Turkey, where radical groups are active, and the region has suffered from a relatively low level of social welfare compared to the European part of Russia.

Moreover, Bortnikov said that problems still exist in anti-terror tasks, as to cutting off resource supports to militants and intercepting terrorism and extremism spread via the Internet.

Over 1,600 legal entities and individuals are checked on suspicion of providing material assistance to the Daesh, while more investigations are underway, Bortnikov said.

Meanwhile, a protection system of domestic Internet space is created to prevent posting of terrorist and extremist materials. "Over 3,000 of such information resources were identified and blocked this year," according to Bortnikov. Enditem