Across The RegionDepartments

Singapore: Interpol taps local officer to lead regional site

A Singapore Police Force officer is now the leader of Interpol’s new Regional Counter-Terrorism Node (RCTN), The Straits Times newspaper reported in July 2019.

The officer, whose rank and name were not 
 released, will work with police units across the Indo-Pacific region, encouraging them to share information and intelligence regarding terrorist activities. 

“The police officers from the region know the region best,” said Tim Morris, Interpol’s executive director of police services, according to The Straits Times. “Interpol needs to use their expertise, knowledge and experience, not only to help the fight against terrorism within the region, but also [to find out] how it impacts other regions around the world, whether it be Europe, West or East Africa, or even Latin America.”

Interpol enables police in 194 member countries to share information and work together to fight international crime. It manages 17 police databases with information on crimes and criminals, accessible in real time to countries.

Interpol chose Singapore as the site of its RCTN because Singapore is an important security hub in the region, Morris said.

Interpol has similar nodes operating in East Africa and West Africa. The Singapore location was slated to begin with six officers, including the Singapore Police Force officer in charge. Each officer, according to The Straits Times, brings a different skill in fighting terrorism to the team.

“Interpol believes such a network is important if police forces around the world are going to be connected in an effective way to fight terrorism,” Morris said.  FORUM Staff

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Back to top button