UN Security Council plans to suppress foreign extremist fighters

The U.N. Security Council plans to demand countries "prevent and suppress" the recruitment and travel of foreign fighters to join extremist militant groups like Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) by ensuring it is considered a serious criminal offence under domestic laws.

The United States circulated a draft resolution late on Sept. 8, obtained by Reuters, to the 15-member Security Council and hopes it can be unanimously adopted at a high-level meeting chaired by U.S. President Barack Obama on Sept. 24.

U.N. diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the council was likely to reach agreement on a resolution. A U.S. official said there appeared to be consensus among council members on how to tackle foreign extremist fighters.

The draft resolution is under Chapter 7 of the U.N. Charter, which makes it legally binding for the 193 U.N. member states and gives the Security Council authority to enforce decisions with economic sanctions or force. However, the draft text does not mandate military force to tackle the foreign fighter issue.

The draft "decides all States shall ensure their domestic laws and regulations establish serious criminal offenses sufficient to provide the ability to prosecute and to penalize in a manner duly reflecting the seriousness of the offense."

It would compel countries to make it illegal for citizens to travel abroad, collect funds or facilitate the travel of other individuals abroad "for the purpose of the perpetration, planning, or preparation of, or participation in, terrorist acts, or the providing or receiving of terrorist training."
 
It decides countries "shall, consistent with international human rights law, international refugee law, and international...