On 9 June 2016, the Counter-Terrorism Committee of the Security Council organized an informal briefing on foreign terrorist fighters (FTF), inviting States either in or neighbouring conflict zones in the Middle East which are among the most affected by the phenomenon.
Almost two years after the adoption of resolution 2178 (2014) on stemming the flow of foreign terrorist fighters, and despite efforts of Member States to comply with its provisions, the threat remains.
“We urgently need to further explore ways to enhance our cooperation and coordination to prevent terrorists from disrupting our way of life and our freedoms and the targeting of innocent civilians,” Chair of the Counter-Terrorism Committee, H.E. Amr Abdellatif Aboulatta, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Egypt to the United Nations, explained his decision to hold a series of regional informal briefings for non-Council States.
From left to right: Deputy Head of the Assessment and Technical Assessment Office (ATAO), CTED; Deputy Executive Director of CTED; Chair of the Counter-Terrorism Committee; and Secretary to the Committee.
The Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) briefed on the third report () on the implementation by States of Security Council resolution 2178 (2014), as well as the Guiding Principles on foreign terrorist fighters as adopted in Madrid the previous year ().
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CTED briefing Member States.
Member States expressed their support for the work of the Committee and CTED, with a number of non-Council States highlighting concrete challenges, including in terms of foreign terrorist fighters returning to their State of origin. Participating delegations stressed the importance of resolutions 2178, 2253, and the Guiding Principles, as well as the need for capacity-building of Member States to stem the flow of foreign terrorist fighters. Tackling conditions conductive to the spread of terrorism, timely inter-state information-sharing, the need to address the FTF phenomenon through a comprehensive approach that engages a wide range of relevant stakeholders, effective border management, and a rule-of-law based approach were also emphasised.
“It is my hope that these meetings will promote interactive discussions on how we can work more effectively together and how the Committee and CTED can best assist Member States,” the Chair concluded.