Publications

Guide on the Security of Major Sporting Events: Promoting Sustainable Security and Legacies - October 2021

  Major Sporting Events (MSEs) are collective celebrations of human achievements and a source of pride for those who participate in them or host them. In recent years, the range of countries which have been prepared to organize an MSE has extended across all continents. Satellite-supported live television has broadened the number of spectators to hundreds of millions of people. This allows an organizing country or city to place itself, as it were, on the mental map of global audiences. This, in turn, can bring increased tourism, new or improved infrastructure, foreign investments as well as other benefits to those countries which manage to successfully showcase a major sporting event. However, if the organization is below the standards expected by athletes and the public, this m...

Illicit Financial Flows and Asset Recovery in the Republic of Moldova. New Report in Romanian. September 2021

Organised crime produces significant amounts of illicit revenue and proceeds globally and in Europe. This report is part of the series of action oriented research on Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs) and Asset Recovery that the European Union and UNICRI are launching to shed light on the significant damage being caused to States as a result of unchecked IFFs, and on the significant value of prioritising the capture of illicitly-obtained assets linked to such IFFs. Organised criminal activity in Moldova largely reflects and aligns with regional patterns involving the scope, nature, and impact of such activity. This report, now available in Romanian, includes recommendations on how to improve mechanisms for the effective and efficient seizure and confiscation of assets linked to criminal act...

Illicit Financial Flows and Asset Recovery in Tunisia - August 2021

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) have launched an insightful study on Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs) and Asset Recovery. This study sheds light on the significant damage being caused to Tunisia as a result of unchecked IFFs, and on the significant value of prioritising the capture of illicitly obtained assets linked to such IFFs. Organised crime produces significant amounts of illicit revenues on a global level. Tunisia's economy suffers greatly from IFFs. It however ranks relatively low on criminality, with terrorism and its financing and human trafficking and smuggling being the most substantial criminal activities in the country. Among other consequences, terrorism has ...

Illicit Financial Flows and Asset Recovery in the Republic of Armenia - July 2021

  This report is part of a series of studies launched by the European Union (EU) and UNICRI in order to shed light on the significant damage being caused to States as a result of unchecked illicit financial flows, and on the significant value of prioritising the capture of illicitly-obtained assets. Organised crime produces significant amounts of illicit revenue and proceeds globally and in Europe. Despite the fact that the overall crime rate in Armenia is lower than many Western European countries, the country’s strategic location at the crossroads of Europe, the Middle East and Asia is attractive to organised criminal groups. Key areas of concern identified in this study include money laundering, drugs and human trafficking and corruption. Transparency to promote the integrity...

Illicit Financial Flows and Asset Recovery in the Republic of Azerbaijan - Available in Azerbaijani

    Combating organised crime and Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs), and recovering illicitly-obtained assets, requires multiple policy areas and transnational cooperation. Azerbaijan’s strategic position is particularly attractive to organised criminal groups motivated to carry out smuggling operations and other illicit activity. Azerbaijan’s crime areas of priority concern include drug trafficking, human trafficking and migrant smuggling, and the smuggling of counterfeit goods. In light of the above, the European Union (EU) and UNICRI have launched a series of studies shedding light on the significant damage being caused to States as a result of unchecked IFFs, and on the significant value of prioritising the capture of illicitly-obtained assets. The EU and UNICRI are com...

Countering Terrorism Online with Artificial Intelligence - An Overview for Law Enforcement and Counter-Terrorism Agencies in South Asia and South-East Asia

A Joint Report by UNICRI and UNCCT The integration of digital technologies into everyday life has increased at an extraordinary pace in South Asia and South-East Asia in recent years, with the use of social media by the regions’ notably young population surpassing the global average. While this trend offers a wide range of opportunities for development, the freedom of expression, political participation, and civic action, it also increases the risk of potentially vulnerable youths being exposed to terrorist online content produced by terrorist and violent extremist groups online. Additionally, given an established terrorist and violent extremist presence in South Asia and South-East Asia, law enforcement and counter-terrorism agencies in these regions are increasingly pressed to adapt t...

Summary Report of the Expert-level meeting "Emerging trends and recent evolution of the threat posed by ISIL/Al-Qaida inspired terrorism in Europe" - June 2021

A spotlight on the terrorist profile(s), incitement techniques, vulnerable targets and potential impact of COVID-19.   Our society continues to be confronted with an unprecedented level of diversified, constantly evolving risks and threats to international peace and security as well as to economic development and financial integrity. The outbreak of COVID-19 has clearly, dramatically, exacerbated existing vulnerabilities. Although recent developments and, notably, the pandemic outbreak, seem to have temporary shifted the focus of the international community and of the media in general mainly towards health-related issues, terrorism, in all its manifestations – and its underlying ideology – remains one of the most crucial threats. An absence of public attention has not ma...

НЕЗАКОННІ ФІНАНСОВІ ПОТОКИ ТА ПОВЕРНЕННЯ АКТИВІВ в Україні - Illicit Financial Flows and Asset Recovery in Ukraine - New Report in Ukrainian

Organised crime produces significant amounts of illicit revenue and proceeds globally. Ukraine has implemented numerous measures to combat corruption, organised crime and Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs) in the country, providing a positive example for the region. Despite this progress, Ukraine still deals with active criminal networks inside and outside the country and remains a transit country for traffickers and launderers. The principal criminal activities in Ukraine include illicit drug trafficking, human trafficking, exploitation of natural resources, illicit arms trafficking, cybercrime and tax evasion. Additionally, Ukraine faces Russian military aggression, which is causing a large economic burden; the conflict is perceived to be a contributing factor for organised criminal activ...

Les dynamiques du soutien et de la participation à l’extrémisme violent - Avril 2021

Les victimes engendrées par la violence armée au Mali ont été multipliées par quatre entre 2016 et 2019, et les jeunes sont parmi les plus touchés par la situation. Bien que de nombreuses initiatives aient été lancées pour prévenir et lutter contre l’extrémisme violent au Mali, il reste un manque de compréhension autour de l’interaction des facteurs qui conduisent les personnes –en particulier les jeunes– à soutenir l’extrémisme violent. Alors que l’impact socio-économique et psychologique nuisible du terrorisme continue d’affecter la vie des jeunes maliens, il est de plus en plus urgent de comprendre et de contrer efficacement les facteurs qui permettent aux groupes extrémistes d’opérer sur des sections de plus en plus vastes du pays.  À partir de données primaires recueillie...