Int'l cooperation needed to combat terrorism: experts

CANBERRA -- International cooperation is necessary in combating terrorism, said some experts in Australia in the wake of terrorist attacks in New Zealand and Sri Lanka.

"Terrorist groups will always find soft places that don't have a high degree of security as targets," said Dr. Rodger Shanahan, research fellow from the Lowy Institute.

"One of the key elements of the counter-terrorism fight is that you have to have excellent intelligence cooperation between countries, because it's a global problem," he told Xinhua in an interview.

His view was shared by Prof. Amin Saikal of political science at the Australian National University. Prof. Saikal said that governments have to be vigilant so as to ensure that no space was left for extremist groups to take advantage of.

"I think that is something that requires not just cooperation at national level, but also that of international level," he said. "The lesson for us is that we really have to work together."

Noting that modern terrorism is always transnational which rarely involves merely one nation, Prof. Greg Barton, a counter-terrorism expert at Deakin University, especially emphasized the challenge of social media in the interview.

"The dissemination of information, fake news and conspiracy theory, the formation of identity groups are some main challenges for security agencies to deal with," he said.

However, he admitted that evidence showed it was hard for nations and even domestic agencies to share intelligence timely and completely. "To cooperate and to trust each other are important," said Prof. Barton.

Terrorist attack in Christchurch of New Zealand on March 15 killed 50 people and injured many more. A month later, multiple explosions in Sri Lankan churches and hotels resulted in more than 250 deaths.