Chapter 4 The International Framework to Combat Terrorism: An Overview T he notion of terrorism is not new. Already in the 1930s, the League of Nations attempted to draw up anti-terrorism conventions. Throughout the twentieth century, domestic liberation movements across the globe frequently resorted to tactics of terror in the pursuit of self-determination. The current legal framework Thirteen global conventions have been adopted under the auspices of the UN, or its agencies, to combat specific aspects of terrorism. These have tended to be in response to a particular event or atrocity. They are:43 • Convention on Offences and Certain Other Acts Committed on Board Aircraft, 1963; • Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Seizure of Aircraft, 1970; • Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Civil Aviation, 1971; • Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes against Internationally Protected Persons, including Diplomatic Agents, 1973; • International Convention against the Taking of Hostages, 1979; • Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material, 1980; • Protocol on the Suppression of Unlawful Acts of Violence at Airports Serving International Civil Aviation, supplementary to the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Civil Aviation, 1988; • Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation, 1988; • Protocol for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Fixed Platforms Located on the Continental Shelf, 1988; • Convention on the Marking of Plastic Explosives for the Purpose of Detection, 1991; • International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings, 1997; • International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism, 1999; • Convention on the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, 2005. Each of these treaties, once ratified by a state, imposes slightly different obligations. As a general rule these include: • establishing their jurisdiction over the offences described; • making the offences punishable by appropriate penalties; • taking alleged offenders into custody; • prosecuting or extraditing alleged offenders; • co-operating in preventive measures; and 43 For a full explanation of each treaty see http://www.unodc.org/unodc/terrorism_conventions.html. 34 Countering Terrorism, Protecting Human Rights