On 7 March 2017 EU ministers approved a set of new measures which will update and extend the tools available to Member States to respond to the evolving threat of terrorism.

The new Directive will enable law enforcement and judicial authorities in the EU to be better-equipped to act to prevent and prosecute individuals planning terrorist activities. In doing so, the EU is providing authorities with a new set of preventative tools needed to adapt to the changing nature of terrorism. The new rules criminalise a series of acts across the EU, such as undertaking terrorist training or travelling for terrorist purposes, as well as organising or facilitating such travel.

“With this agreement, the EU is now better-equipped to meet the challenge of the evolving terrorist threat. Terrorism knows no borders, but the message is now clear: foreign fighters, whether they travel to, from or within the EU, will be stopped. But security without the respect for fundamental rights is unacceptable. That is why the new rules also strengthen victims’ rights and include safeguards to individual freedoms,” – said Owen Bonnici, the Maltese Minister for Justice, Culture and Local Government.