Answer given by Ms Johansson on behalf of the European Commission
31.3.2022
The Commission is committed to protect citizens in the EU against any form of violent extremism, as stressed in the EU Security Union Strategy[1] and in the EU Counter-Terrorism Agenda[2].
The Commission supports Member States in facilitating exchanges on prevention of radicalisation and violent extremism. In this framework, at the end of 2020 Greece and Italy launched a ‘Project Based Collaboration’ to explore the challenges related to violent left-wing and anarchist extremism.
Germany, France, Spain, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Slovenia, Austria, the Netherlands and Lithuania joined this Project as well as European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol).
The Commission is aware of techniques to make available information on public figures with the intention of inciting violence against them.
Regulation (EU) 784/2021 addressing the dissemination of terrorist content online[3] enables Member States to ensure the swift removal of such content, including content inciting the commission of a terrorist offence or providing instruction on the making or use of explosives for the purpose of committing or contributing to a terrorist offences.
The Commission is also addressing violent extremist and terrorist content and illegal hate speech directly with the tech sector, within the EU Internet Forum[4] and through the EU Code of Conduct on illegal hate speech[5].
‘Antifa’ is not an organisation but the collective name used by various autonomous and often informal groups claiming to be anti-fascist. Directive (EU) 2017/541 on combating terrorism[6] provides for a definition of ‘ terrorist group’ in its Article 2(3).
The list of groups involved in terrorist acts, as defined in its Article 1(2), is drawn up according to the Council Common Position 2001/931/CFSP (Article 1(4))[7].
- [1] COM(2020) 605 final; https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52020DC0605&from=EN
- [2] COM(2020) 795 final; https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52020DC0795&from=EN
- [3] Regulation (EU) 2021/784 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2021 on addressing the dissemination of terrorist content online, OJ L 172, 17.5.2021, p. 79.
- [4] https://ec.europa.eu/home-affairs/networks/european-union-Internet-forum-euif_en
- [5] https://ec.europa.eu/info/policies/justice-and-fundamental-rights/combatting-discrimination/racism-and-xenophobia/eu-code-conduct-countering-illegal-hate-speech-online_en
- [6] Directive (EU) 2017/541 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2017 on combating terrorism and replacing Council Framework Decision 2002/475/JHA and amending Council Decision 2005/671/JHA, OJ L 88, 31.3.2017, p. 6.
- [7] Council Common Position of 27 December 2001 on the application of specific measures to combat terrorism (2001/931/CFSP), OJ L 344, 28.12.2001, p. 93.