April 30, 2001. Copyright 2001. Graphic News. All rights reserved.

Casualties from terrorism on rise worldwide 

LONDON, April 30, Graphic News: There was a 75 percent increase in the number of people killed worldwide by ÒterroristÓ operations last year, with Asia the continent with the highest number of victims, according to ÒPatterns of Global Terrorism 2000,Ó compiled by the U.S. State Department.

The report said the casualty toll for the year was 405 killed and 791 wounded, against 233 and 706 in 1999.

Once again Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Sudan and Syria were listed as state sponsors of international terrorism. However, the State Department is engaged in ongoing discussions with North Korea and Sudan on steps they could take to get out of the terrorism business and off the list.

The report listed the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) among 28 designated Òforeign terrorist organizationsÓ whose assets Washington freezes and whose members cannot obtain U.S. visas. U.S. sanctions against the IMU began in September.

It added the Colombian paramilitary group, the AUC, and the main rebel group in Sierra Leone, the RUF, to a category of Òother terrorist organizationsÓ against which the United States does not impose any legal sanctions.

Cuba and North Korea were on the list mainly for providing safe haven to groups which have been inactive for years.

It said Iran was the most active of the seven states, providing increasing support to groups such as Hizbollah in Lebanon and the Palestinian groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad. Iran says the groups legitimately resist Israeli occupation.

Hinting at the possible future inclusion of Pakistan and Lebanon, the report said that the United States was increasingly concerned about reports of Pakistani support for Kashmiri groups and that the Lebanese government had been unresponsive to requests for the trial of people suspected of attacking U.S. citizens and property.

There were 423 international terrorist attacks last year, an increase of 8 percent from the 392 attacks recorded during 1999. The main reason for the increase was an upsurge in the number of bombings of a multinational oil pipeline in Colombia by two terrorist groups there. The pipeline was bombed 152 times, producing in the Latin American region the largest increase in terrorist attacks from the previous year, from 121 to 193. 

Western Europe saw the largest decrease -- from 85 to 30 -- owing to fewer attacks in Germany, Greece, and Italy as well as to the absence of any attacks in Turkey. 

The number of anti-U.S. attacks rose from 169 in 1999 to 200 in 2000. Nineteen U.S. citizens were killed -- 17 of them were sailors who died in the attack against the USS Cole on October 12 in the Yemeni port of Aden.

/ENDS

The report is available on the Internet at www.state.gov/s/ct/rls/pgtrpt/2000/

Sources: Reuters, U.S. Department of State