Department of Political Affairs

Terrorism

The unanimous adoption of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy in September 2006 was a major milestone for the Organization, a sign that Member States were moving towards a sense of common purpose and strategic framework in defeating a global threat.

The Department of Political Affairs has been an active participant since that time in the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force (CTITF), a group composed of 30 UN entities plus Interpol, and dedicated to the coordination and coherence of UN counter-terrorism efforts particularly on supporting Member States in implementing the Strategy in all of its dimensions. The General Assembly approved the institutionalization of CTITF in 2009 with the establishment of a CTITF Office within DPA. DPA also chairs CTITF Working Group on conflict prevention and resolution.

Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) Department of Political Affairs (DPA) Department of Public Information (DPI) Department of Safety and Security (DSS) Executive Office of the Secretary-General (EOSG) Expert Staff of the 1540 Committee International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)

International Maritime Organization (IMO) International Monetary Fund (IMF) International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) International Organization for Migration (IOM) Monitoring Team of the 1267 Committee Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Office for Disarmament Affairs (ODA) Office of Legal Affairs (OLA) Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Office of the Special Adviser on Africa (OSAA) Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights While Countering Terrorism

United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (AOC) United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) World Customs Organization (WCO) World Bank World Health Organization (WHO)

 

Members of the CTITF contribute to UN counter-terrorism efforts according to their specific organizational mandates. Collectively, the CTITF has been playing a central role in sharing information and harnessing existing comparative advantages to advance the counter-terrorism agenda within the UN system.

The CTITF has identified areas of work where implementation of the Strategy requires cooperation across several entities, where the UN can provide added value, and where there is a geographically broad-based demand for assistance from Member States. The work in these cross-cutting areas is organized and managed by CTITF Working Groups. At present, there are eight Working Groups:

• Preventing and resolving conflicts
• Supporting and highlighting victims of terrorism
• Preventing and responding to WMD attacks
• Tackling the financing of terrorism
• Countering the use of the internet for terrorist purposes
• Strengthening the protection of vulnerable targets
• Protecting human rights while countering terrorism
• Border management related to counter-terrorism

In addition, there is an initiative on Integrated Assistance for Countering Terrorism (I-ACT), and projects on countering the appeal of terrorism.

For further details of CTITF’s activities, products and reports, please visit its website.

 

 

Newsletter

Download the CTITF Newsletter 'The Beam', January-April 2011 (PDF, 4.5 MB)