Fight against terrorism must follow international law, Vatican says

Published: 2003-10-15

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The fight against global terrorism must be carried out according to international law, a Vatican representative told a meeting of European anti-terror experts. Any attempt to go outside legal means eventually would delegitimize and weaken the fight against terrorism, said Archbishop Giuseppe Leanza. He addressed the 25th conference of the justice ministers of Council of Europe countries in Sofia, Bulgaria, Oct. 10. Archbishop Leanza said Pope John Paul II has made it clear that the church views terrorism as a "crime against humanity" and believes that it can only be eradicated through international cooperation at the criminal, political and economic levels. "In your report, you have underlined a fundamental point: the necessity that the repression of terrorism be carried out in the total respect of international norms as regards human rights," the archbishop said. He said that in the fight against terrorism, as in other areas, "the end does not justify the means."

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