During a meeting, the Federal Council approved a decision in this regard, based on the federal intelligence law.

Until now, the Swiss ban on al-Qaeda and the Islamic State was governed by a law of December 12th, 2014.

However, on September 25th, 2015, the country’s Parliament also passed an intelligence regulation that gave the government the power to ban the activities of terrorist organizations.

The Federal Council exercised this right at the meeting, making it possible to “ensure the continuity of the punishability” of participation in and support for terrorist organizations, the Government stressed.

According to the Swiss authorities, the threat to internal security posed by terrorist groups in Bern is “very serious.”

According to al-Qaeda, as well as the Islamic State, Switzerland belongs to the Western world, which they consider to be opposed to Islam, and therefore represents a legitimate target for terrorist acts.

The authorities consider that the terrorists can also target the interests of other states considered by the jihadists as hostile to Islam or that play an important role in the international fight against terrorism.

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