*Qatar attaches great importance to eradicate terrorism and address its causes
*Qatar is keen to deprive terrorist groups of funding sources
*Need to address its root causes stressed

Qatar has reiterated its co-operation with various United Nations bodies related to the fight against terrorism.

This came in a speech delivered by the Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations, HE ambassador Sheikha Alia Ahmed bin Saif al-Thani, before the United Nations General Assembly on "Strengthening the Capacity of the United Nations System to Assist Member States in the Implementation of UN Counter-Terrorism Strategy".

In this context, ambassador al-Thani pointed to the financial contribution made by Qatar in support of the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force (CTITF), stressing the ongoing co-ordination to strengthen partnerships in capacity-building and launch of projects aimed at preventing violent extremism and addressing the root causes of terrorism.

Qatar attaches great importance to eradicate terrorism and address its causes, reaffirming in all forums its strong condemnation of the phenomenon regardless of its motivation, wherever and by whomever it is committed, she stressed.

Since the adoption of the United Nations counter-terrorism strategy, Qatar has been keen to fully implement its measures to address conditions conducive to the spread of terrorism, enhance international co-operation in the field of prevention and combating of terrorism and to fully comply with the international obligations of the UN Security Council relating to the fight against terrorism and its financing, ambassador al-Thani added.

Qatar is keen to strengthen bilateral co-operation to combat terrorism and deprive terrorist groups of funding sources, she said, referring to the bilateral agreements signed by Qatar, such as the recent Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United States against terrorism.

She stressed Qatar's keenness to continuously update its national laws and regulations related to the fight against terrorism and its financing to cope with any emerging terrorist challenges, adding that Qatar as a distinguished international partner in the joint international efforts to combat terrorism follows a comprehensive approach in dealing with the phenomenon in various military, financial and legal levels.

She also shed light on Qatar's role in strengthening these efforts by supporting technical capacity-building to prevent violent extremism leading to terrorism and its efforts to eliminate terrorism by addressing the causes leading to an environment conducive for terrorism such as security vacuum, injustice, tyranny, repression, marginalisation and discrimination.

In this regard, ambassador al-Thani stressed the importance of preventing terrorism, noting Qatar's initiative to hold General Assembly's meeting on the 'Prevention of Children and Young People from Violent Extremism' in June 2016.

Sheikha Alia praised the efforts of Qatar to prevent the threat of terrorism, pointing to the Silatech initiative, which aims to provide employment opportunities for young people in the region. The initiative covers more than 15 countries and has funded since its inception tens of thousands of projects run by young people at the request of international partners.

She also referred to Educate A Child (EAC) programme aimed at addressing the environment exploited by terrorists to recruit young people, by providing educational opportunities for children who have lost their right to education due to conflicts, wars and natural disasters.

Qatar pursues a comprehensive approach that involves the consolidation of a culture of peace, tolerance and dialogue among civilizations, cultures and religions, Sheikha Alia said, noting that Qatar hosts a range of leading intellectual and enlightenment centres in the region and also encourages freedom of expression and freedom of the press to contribute to countering any attempt to exploit the fight against terrorism as a pretext for political ends.

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