Recent revelations made by Vicki Huddleston, the former American ambassador to Mali, concerning ransom payments for hostages paid by some European countries have caused a stir about terrorism financing.

Ransoms have been categorically rejected by the Algerian government, which seeks to rein in terrorism in through coercive measures. In an attempt to keep the focus on this increasingly recurrent challenge, Algeria recently called on all member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to commit to not give in to terrorist blackmail, including by paying ransom in exchange for hostages.

This was among the proposals made during the preparatory meetings of the OIC summit, held in Cairo on Feb. 6 and 7. Algeria's authorities stubbornly defended the idea of deploying "more efforts at the regional and international levels to prevent the payment of such ransoms." The fight against terrorism and organized crime has produced significant results on the ground in Algeria. Terrorism is residual in Algeria, but remains a threat to society and its structures.

The non-payment of financial compensation is a fundamental principle that Algeria has defended since the outbreak of terrorism in the 1990s. It remains determined to continue its efforts in cooperation with partners in the United Nations, in the hopes of criminalizing this evil practice.