Briefing from the Chairs of the Counter-Terrorism Related Committees
Tomorrow morning (14 November), the Security Council will convene for the annual open briefing on the work of its counter-terrorism-related committees. The expected briefers are Ambassador Vanessa Frazier (Malta), chair of the 1267/1989/2253 Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/Da’esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee; Ambassador Amar Bendjama (Algeria), chair of the 1373 Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC); and Ambassador Andrés Montalvo Sosa (Ecuador), chair of the 1540 Committee. Each chair will deliver a briefing on the work of their respective committees. Unlike previous years, a joint briefing will not be delivered on behalf of the three chairs.
1267/1989/2253 ISIL/Da’esh and Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee
In updating Council members on the work of the 1267/1989/2253 ISIL/Da’esh and Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee, Frazier is expected to cover the activities pursued by the committee and the evolving threat posed by ISIL, Al-Qaida, and their affiliates.
She is likely to refer to the adoption of resolution 2734 of 10 June, which extended the mandates of the 1267 Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team and the Office of the Ombudsperson for another three years, until June 2027. Resolution 2734 included a new operative paragraph which recognises that acts involving sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) may be eligible for designation under existing listing criteria when such acts are used by ISIL, Al-Qaida, or their associates as a tactic of terrorism. It also incorporated new language encouraging information exchange between relevant UN entities regarding measures to curb SGBV and requesting the Monitoring Team to discuss human trafficking and sexual violence in its consultations with member states. (For more information on the negotiations concerning resolution 2734, see our 10 June What’s in Blue story.)
Frazier is expected to discuss the findings of the latest report of the Monitoring Team, which was issued on 22 July. According to the report, there is heightened concern among member states regarding the threat posed by terrorist groups based in Afghanistan, particularly the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant–Khorasan (ISIL-K)—ISIL’s Afghan affiliate—and Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Regarding ISIL’s activities in Africa, the report says that contiguous territorial gains by ISIL affiliates in the Sahel have continued to threaten regional security and stability and notes that groups in West Africa have improved their coordination. It also mentions the use of new and emerging technologies by listed terrorist groups, including anonymity-enhanced cryptocurrencies, 3D printing, and unmanned aerial systems (UAS), noting that exploitation of these technologies could enable evasion of the measures imposed by the 1267/1989/2253 ISIL and Al-Qaida sanctions regime.
1373 Counter-Terrorism Committee
Bendjama is likely to highlight the overall terrorist threat landscape during his briefing on the work of the CTC. He is also expected to focus on three key areas of the CTC’s work: assessment of member states’ efforts to implement the Council’s counter-terrorism resolutions; facilitation of technical assistance to member states and the role of the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) in this regard; and promotion of member states’ implementation efforts.
Bendjama may also refer to the ongoing negotiations regarding the development of the non-binding guiding principles referred to in the Delhi Declaration. (Adopted during a special meeting of the CTC held in India in October 2022, the Delhi Declaration expressed an intention to develop a set of non-binding guiding principles to assist member states with countering the threat posed by the use of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes.) CTC members have agreed to divide the non-binding principles into three documents covering different topics: UAS; new means of financing terrorism, and information and communication technologies (ICTs). The non-binding guiding principles on UAS were issued on 26 December 2023. At the time of writing, negotiations regarding the non-binding guiding principles on new means of financing terrorism are ongoing, while negotiations concerning the ICT principles have not formally begun.
1540 Committee
Montalvo is expected to highlight the important role that resolution 1540 plays in the global non-proliferation architecture. (Adopted in 2004, resolution 1540 aims to prevent non-state actors from obtaining access to weapons of mass destruction and encourages enhanced cooperation in this regard.) He may refer to the importance of voluntary national implementation action plans, which are intended to help member states identify their priorities for implementing resolution 1540. During last year’s annual briefing from the chairs of the counter-terrorism related committees, Montalvo said that 38 states had submitted a total of 47 national implementation plans to the 1540 Committee.
Montalvo is also likely to cover the committee’s outreach activities, such as the open briefing for member states mandated by resolution 2663 that was held on 9 and 10 October. (Resolution 2663 was adopted on 30 November 2022 and renewed the 1540 Committee’s mandate for ten years.)
