Qatar became the first country in the Middle East to brief the UN Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee on November 21, 2024. The State of Qatar reported to the Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) on its actions to counter terrorism since the Committee’s inspection visit in 2020. Since 2005, the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED), working on behalf of the CTC, has performed 21 assessment visits to 10 Member States in the Middle East.
According to the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee of the Security Council, Qatar is the first nation in the region to brief the CTC following an inspection visit and the 12th Member State worldwide, reflecting its dedication to transparency, international collaboration, and good practices. Ambassador Alya Ahmed Saif Al-Thani, Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations in New York, unlocked the briefing. He expressed Qatar’s commitment to an arrangement with the United Nations counter-terrorism architecture, citing its strong support to CTED and other UN bodies.
Faisal bin Abdullah Al-Henzab, Special Envoy of the Minister of Foreign Affairs and member of Qatar’s National Counter-Terrorism Committee, embroidered on Qatar’s strategy for combating terrorism, concentrating on prosecuting foreign terrorist soldiers and promoting international judicial cooperation; supporting oversight of non-profit organizations with a risk-based, transparent, and rights-attentive approach; promoting human rights, refugee protections, and access to justice, including juvenile justice and witness protection frameworks and enhancing data security and digital evidence control, along with observation with UN sanctions and updates to counter-terrorism legislation.
Further, together with other nationwide counter-terrorism officials, Ambassador Faisal Abdullah Al-Henzab offered Qatar’s success in securing major occasions, using the 2022 FIFA World Cup as a benchmark for enforcing robust security measures. They unleashed their readiness to share Qatar’s background and expertise in event security with the global community.
Assistant Secretary-General Natalia Gherman, Executive Director of CTED, admitted Qatar’s commitment to execute the Committee’s recommendations and to handle emerging threats, as well as Qatar’s active arrangement with CTED. Members of the Committee also welcomed the briefing and praised Qatar for the measures it had taken to enforce the Committee’s recommendations.
