Friday 9 March: 14th European Day of Remembrance of Victims of Terrorism*

On Friday 9 March, the European Commission will organise a dedicated event in Brussels to mark the 14th European Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Terrorism. This event will bring together victims of terrorism, victim associations and first responders together with European and Member States' representatives, to share their stories and experiences.

The background:

The European Day of Remembrance of Victims of Terrorism was established after the Madrid Bombings in 2004. Each year since 2005, the European Commission remembers on this date the victims of terrorist atrocities.

Providing support to victims of crime, including victims of terrorist attacks, is an important part of the Commission's work to address all dimensions of the terrorist threat. The EU has put in place a strong legal framework to protect victims across Europe through the EU-wide compensation scheme, the Victims Rights' Directive and the Directive on Combatting Terrorism. In October 2017, Joëlle Milquet was appointed Special Adviser to President Jean-Claude Juncker for the compensation of victims of crime. Victims' support and rights are also at the heart of work carried out by the Radicalisation Awareness Network (RAN).

The event:

The remembrance event is taking place at the Centre Albert Borschette in Brussels and will be attended by Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship Dimitris Avramopoulos,Commissioner for the Security Union Julian King, French Minister of Justice, Ms Nicole Belloubet, Belgian Minister of Justice, Koen Geens and Spanish Under Secretary of the Ministry of the Interior Luis Aguilera Ruiz. The event starts at 9.15 and is open for journalists to attend, for registration please contact: Katarzyna.KOLANKO@ec.europa.eu.

The sources:

Joint Statement on the European Day of Remembrance of Victims of Terrorism 2017

*updated on Tuesday 6 March

AGENDA/18/1523