Country Reports on Terrorism 2012

The Netherlands is implementing counterterrorism capacity building projects in Pakistan,
Yemen, Morocco, Algeria, Kenya, and Indonesia.
Countering Radicalization and Violent Extremism: The resilience of the Dutch population to
violent extremism is high. Radical efforts by political and religious leaders seemed to have little
effect on immigrant communities or on the general population as a whole. After completing the
2007-2011 Action Plan: Polarization and Radicalization, the Netherlands has shifted from a
broad, general, catch-all effort to a more narrowly focused, more localized approach.
Countering violent extremism is locally organized, instead of relying on national programs.
There have been no major communication efforts or public awareness campaigns, because of this
emphasis on specific locales. There is a view that national campaigns on violent extremism may
actually promote or attract extremism.
The national government serves in advisory and capacity-building roles. Local partners are
expected to build upon the knowledge and experiences generated in the past. National support of
the local approach is focused on identifying high-priority areas that are of interest to or might
host radicalized individuals, and developing specific plans and approaches. The NCTV develops
tools and training and offers them to local police departments, social workers, and other
stakeholders, both directly and through an online database.
Another focus for countering violent extremism is on lone actors and persons who travel to
combat zones. Systems are being built by local governments around these individuals. The
NCTV invests in information systems that combine reports and red flags from different parties in
order to distill signals about potential actions by violent extremists and to develop a tailored
approach. There are a handful of programs, administered to individuals, which focus on
disengagement and rehabilitation.
The Netherlands participates in the European Policy Planners Network on Countering
Polarization and Radicalization, which is occasionally attended by the United States.
NORWAY
Overview: Although the Norwegian Police Security Service considers violent Islamist
extremism the biggest threat to Norway, the July 2011 attacks in Oslo and Utoya, conducted by a
Norwegian violent extremist, have heavily influenced the Government of Norway’s approach to
countering terrorism. The report of the independent July 22 commission that was formed to
evaluate Norway’s handling of the attacks was issued in August and detailed a number of
preparedness and response failings. Partially in response to this, authorities have continued
focusing on new terrorism prosecutions, expanding efforts to counter violent extremism,
strengthening cyber security measures, and proposing legislative changes to penalize individual
terrorists (those not affiliated with groups). The government is also focusing on efforts to
criminalize terrorist training, to criminalize the possession of certain materials that may be used
by terrorists, and to increase surveillance tools for the Police Security Service. In the wake of
these attacks, the government has also continued to increase security measures at government
buildings and security for government officials.
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