WASHINGTON
By Kasim ILERI
Secretary of State John Kerry said Thursday the U.S. will hold regional summits as a part of its efforts to fight extremists groups, particularly ISIL.
Kerry addressed the opening session of the White House Summit to Counter Violent Extremism, on its second day.
"In the months to come, we will have regional summits, and I'm sure we'll have other events, which will gauge the progress and measure the next steps" he said, noting that no one country will be able to respond to extremism unless there is global support.
Becasue extremist ideas may spread from different sources, Kerry said parents, teachers, politicians as well as the internet, media or political and socioeconomic conditions such as oppression, discrimination or poverty may lead some to resort to extremism.
Besides military action against terror groups, Kerry said the conditions that cause some to run into the arms of terror groups should also be addressed.
"You have to take the people off the battlefield," he said. "But you're kind of stupid if all you do is do that and you don't prevent more people from going to the battlefield."
America’s top diplomat also urged delegates to encourage and support opinion leaders to reach out to youths to prevent them from resorting to terrorism.
"We have to support the right people saying the right things all the time. That also means that we have to be crystal clear in separating what we oppose from what we should always be eager to defend," he said.
The youth should know there is a better way to serve God, to defend a community or speak for justice rather than resorting to extremism, Kerry noted, as he advocated for religious freedom, the right to peaceful descent and opposing bigotry in every form.
The U.S. is hosting delegates from more than 60 countries for the summit that highlights community-led efforts that can prevent terror group recruitment and infiltration.
The summit comes as the U.S. is in the midst of a fight against ISIL that has recruited more than 20,000 militants across the world.
