MOSCOW, December 8. /TASS/. Law enforcement and intelligence officers have thwarted over 40 terrorist attacks in Russia in 2020, the National Antiterrorism Committee said in a statement on Tuesday following its joint meeting with the Federal Crisis Center.

According to the statement, Federal Security Service (FSB) Director Alexander Bortnikov, who chaired the meeting, pointed out that "the well-coordinated activities of law enforcement agencies made it possible to prevent 61 terror-related crimes, including 41 terrorist attacks."

As many as 49 militants, including eight ringleaders, were killed during counter-terrorism operations. "Thirty-six ringleaders, 162 militants and 591 terrorist accomplices were detained," the National Antiterrorism Committee added. Besides, law enforcement officers seized about 600 firearms, 134 homemade explosive devices, over 100,000 cartridges and more than 3,000 mines, grenades and other munitions.

"Fifty clandestine arms workshops were eliminated," the committee noted. Additional measures were taken to ensure the safety of crucial energy and transport facilities.

"At the same time, the meeting’s participants focused on threats coming from international terrorist organizations, including growing terrorist propaganda and recruitment attempts on social media and messaging services," the National Antiterrorism Committee pointed out. Efforts to stem the spread of terrorist ideas particularly involved state agencies and civil society institutions, namely youth organizations. They carried out over 210,000 preventive activities targeting youth.

The meeting’s participants also discussed additional measures to forestall terrorism expansion, improve the anti-terrorist protection of various facilities and enhance the effectiveness of preventive activities.