Eurojust - United States - Genocide Network / Meeting on Battlefield Evidence: Outcome report

Opening remarks and updates on developments at EU level Opening remarks The President of Eurojust, the Chief of the Counterterrorism Section at the US Department of Justice, the Head of the Genocide Network Secretariat and the Chair of the Eurojust Counter-Terrorism Team extended a warm welcome to all participants in the meeting. [...] Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs The representative of the Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs (DG HOME) emphasized the paramount importance of the prosecution of FTFs to safeguard security and the rule of law. [...] In the French context, the use of battlefield evidence is facilitated by the principle of freedom of proof set out in the Code of Criminal Procedure. [...] Focusing in particular on FTF cases, the speaker explained that the North Macedonian Criminal Code, as amended in 2014, allows for the prosecution of various criminal activities, be it the direct participation in the fighting in Syria in the ranks of a terrorist organisation, propaganda activities carried out through social media for the purpose of recruiting terrorist fighters or the provision of. [...] • The use of witness statements collected in the context of conflict situations can be challenging, due to the difficulty in testing the reliability of the evidence.