Jurisdiction, Extradition and Mutual Legal Assistance against Cyber Terrorism

Abstract

Cyber terrorism poses a significant global threat, exploiting the anonymity and transnational nature of cyberspace to conduct attacks that transcend geopolitical borders. The complexity of combating cyber terrorism is exacerbated by jurisdictional ambiguities, making the identification, extradition, and prosecution of offenders challenging. This paper explores the principles of jurisdiction, extradition, and mutual legal assistance (MLA) as they relate to cyber terrorism, highlighting the need for coherent international legal frameworks to address jurisdictional conflicts and gaps in procedural laws. It examines traditional principles of territorial, extraterritorial, and nationality jurisdiction, as well as emerging mechanisms like MLA, and underscores the importance of international cooperation to ensure effective prosecution and deterrence of cyber terrorism. The paper concludes by advocating for the establishment of a multilateral criminal law convention to provide uniform standards for handling cyber terrorism cases, thereby enhancing global legal coherence and cyber deterrence.