United Nations Security Council Resolution 2161 – Threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts

Resolution 2161 (2014)

The Security Council,

Recalling its resolutions 1267 (1999), 1333 (2000), 1363 (2001), 1373 (2001), 1390 (2002), 1452 (2002), 1455 (2003), 1526 (2004), 1566 (2004), 1617 (2005), 1624 (2005), 1699 (2006), 1730 (2006), 1735 (2006), 1822 (2008), 1904 (2009), 1988 (2011), 1989 (2011), 2083 (2012), and 2133 (2014) and the relevant statements of its President,

Reaffirming that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations constitutes one of the most serious threats to peace and security and that any acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable regardless of their motivations, whenever and by whomsoever committed, and reiterating its unequivocal condemnation of Al-Qaida and other individuals, groups, undertakings and entities associated with it, for ongoing and multiple criminal terrorist acts aimed at causing the deaths of innocent civilians and other victims, destruction of property and greatly undermining stability,

Reaffirming that terrorism cannot and should not be associated with any religion, nationality or civilization,

Recalling the Presidential Statements of the Security Council (S/PRST/2013/1) of 15 January 2013 on threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts and (S/PRST/2013/5) on peace and security in Africa,

Reaffirming the need to combat by all means, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and international law, including applicable international human rights, refugee and humanitarian law, threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts, stressing in this regard the important role the United Nations plays in leading and coordinating this effort,

Recalling its resolution 2133 (2014) and the publication by the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF) of the “Algiers Memorandum on Good Practices on Preventing and Denying the Benefits of Kidnapping for Ransom by Terrorists”, strongly condemning incidents of kidnapping and hostage-taking committed by terrorist groups for any purpose, including with the aim of raising funds or gaining political concessions, expressing its determination to prevent kidnapping and hostage-taking committed by terrorist groups and to secure the safe release of hostages without ransom payments or political concessions, in accordance with applicable international law, calling upon all Member States to prevent terrorists from benefiting directly or indirectly from ransom payments or from politic al concessions and to secure the safe release of hostages, and reaffirming the need for all Member States to cooperate closely during incidents of kidnapping and hostage -taking committed by terrorist groups,

Stressing that terrorism can only be defeated by a sustained and comprehensive approach involving the active participation and collaboration of all States, and international and regional organizations to impede, impair, isolate and incapacitate the terrorist threat,

Emphasizing that sanctions are an important tool under the Charter of the United Nations in the maintenance and restoration of international peace and security, and stressing in this regard the need for robust implementation of the measures in paragraph 1 of this resolution as a significant tool in combating terrorist activity,

Reminding all States that they have an obligation to take the measures described in paragraph 1 with respect to all individuals, groups, undertakings and entities included on the Al-Qaida Sanctions List, regardless of the nationality or residence of such individuals, groups, undertakings or entities,

Urging all Member States to participate actively in maintaining and updating the list created pursuant to resolutions 1267 (1999), 1333 (2000) and 1989 (2011)(“the Al-Qaida Sanctions List”) by contributing additional information pertinent to current listings, submitting delisting requests when appropriate, and by identifying and nominating for listing additional individuals, groups, undertakings and entities which should be subject to the measures referred to in paragraph 1 of this resolution,

Reminding the Committee established pursuant to resolutions 1267 (1999) and 1989 (2011) (“the Committee”) to remove expeditiously and on a case-by-case basis individuals, groups, undertakings and entities that no longer meet the criteria for listing outlined in this resolution,

Recognizing the challenges, both legal and otherwise, to the measures implemented by Member States under paragraph 1 of this resolution, welcoming improvements to the Committee’s procedures and the quality of the Al-Qaida Sanctions List, and expressing its intent to continue efforts to ensure that procedures are fair and clear,

Welcoming the establishment of the Office of the Ombudsperson pursuant to resolution 1904 (2009) and the enhancement of the Ombudsperson’s mandate in resolutions 1989 (2011) and 2083 (2012), noting the Office of the Ombudsperson’s significant contribution in providing additional fairness and transparency, and recalling the Security Council’s firm commitment to ensuring that the Office of the Ombudsperson is able to continue to carry out its role effectively, in accordance with its mandate,

Welcoming the Ombudsperson’s biannual reports to the Security Council, including the reports submitted on 21 January 2011, 22 July 2011, 20 January 2012, 30 July 2012, 31 January 2013, 31 July 2013, and 31 January 2014,

Welcoming the fourth review in June 2014 by the General Assembly of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy (A/RES/60/288) of 8 September 2006 and the creation of the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force (CTITF) to ensure overall coordination and coherence in the counter-terrorism efforts of the United Nations system and the Report of the Secretary-General of 14 April 2014 on activities of the United Nations system in implementing the Strategy (A/68/841),

Welcoming the continuing cooperation between the Committee and INTERPOL, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, in particular on technical assistance and capacity-building, and all other United Nations bodies, and encouraging further engagement with the CTITF to ensure overall coordination and coherence in the counter-terrorism efforts of the United Nations system,

Recognizing the need to take measures to prevent and suppress the financing of terrorism and terrorist organizations, including from the proceeds of organized crime, inter alia, the illicit production and trafficking of drugs and their chemical precursors, and the importance of continued international cooperation to that aim,

Recognizing the need for Member States to prevent the abuse of non-governmental, non-profit and charitable organizations by and for terrorists, and calling upon non-governmental, non-profit, and charitable organizations to prevent and oppose, as appropriate, attempts by terrorists to abuse their status, while recalling the importance of fully respecting the rights to freedom of expression and association of individuals in civil society and freedom of religion or belief, and noting the relevant recommendation and guidance documents of the Financial Action Task Force,

Recalling its decision that States shall eliminate the supply of weapons, including small arms and light weapons, to terrorists, as well as its calls for States to find ways of intensifying and accelerating the exchange of operational information regarding traffic in arms, and to enhance coordination of efforts on national, subregional, regional and international levels,

Expressing concern at the increased use, in a globalized society, by terrorists and their supporters, of new information and communications technologies, in particular the Internet, to facilitate terrorist acts, as well as their use to incite, recruit, fund or plan terrorist acts,

Expressing concern at the flow of international recruits to Al-Qaida and those groups associated with it, and the scale of this phenomenon, and reiterating further the obligation of Member States to prevent the movement of terrorist groups, in accordance with applicable international law, by, inter alia, effective border controls, and, in this context, to exchange information expeditiously, improve cooperation among competent authorities to prevent the movement of terrorists and terrorist groups to and from their territories, the supply of weapons for terrorists and financing that would support terrorists,

Noting with concern the continued threat posed to international peace and security by Al-Qaida and other individuals, groups, undertakings and entities associated with it, and reaffirming its resolve to address all aspects of that threat,

Noting that, in some instances, certain individuals, groups, undertakings and entities that meet the criteria for listing set forth in paragraph 2 of resolution 2082 (2012) or other relevant sanctions resolutions may also meet the criteria for listing set forth in paragraph 2 of this resolution,

Noting the efforts of the Secretariat to standardize the format of all United Nations sanctions lists to facilitate implementation by national authorities, and encouraging the Secretariat, with the assistance of the Monitoring Team, as appropriate, to continue its work to implement the data model approved by the Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee,

Acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations,

Adopted by the Security Council at its 7198th meeting, on 17 June 2014.