The Urgency of Fighting Terrorism - Research Paper Example

? Externship’s Final Paper Submitted by: ID: Submitted The urgency of fighting terrorism, particularly terrorism financing, has drew mostof the attention of the Qatari government because of the severity of this crime and its unfavorable effect on its national economy. Even the international community has made major attempts to fight terrorism, as shown in the many policies, strategies, and preventative measures implemented at the global arena. Qatar has long been accommodating banished Islamic terrorists and extremist missionaries from Lebanon, Chechnya, Algeria, and the occupied territories.1 These terrorists are using up domestic security resources that could otherwise be spent in looking into growing threats and can lead to political hostility in Qatar, just like what happened in 2004, when Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev, a Chechen leader, was murdered in Doha. Fanatic missionaries like Sheikh Youssef al-Qaradawi provoke the hatred of the Qatari people of the support the Qatari government gives to American policy and involvement in Israel.2 Banished Saudi Salafist associated with the Qatari elites were accommodated in Qatar and accepted into religious organizations and the Interior Ministry after the raid on Mecca’s Grand Mosque in 1979. Sheikh Abdallah bin Khalifa al-Thani, the previous Interior Minister, was assigned from the Wahhabi group inside the Qatari institution.3 Even though Sheikh Abdallah was removed from his post, this group is still rooted among Qatari security officers. Salafists are being removed from the Interior Ministry or are being weakened by newly formed security organizations like the Internal Security Forces and the State Security Agency.4 As this effort continues, these organizations may become effective in fighting terrorism activities. The major sources of terrorism in Qatar are not likely to weaken in the near future, or after economic and political liberalization, implying that oppressive policing strategies will be the primary method used to stop terrorism. With the Interior Ministry ruled by Sheik Abdallah bin Nasser bin-Khalifa al-Thani, one of the supporters of the emir, and the Internal Security Forces and the State Security Agency directly under the emir, Qatar’s internal security is expected to be sufficiently supported and funded in the near future.5 The intelligence agency of Qatar is fast restructuring to fight terrorism, reporting satisfactory effectiveness in the investigation and prosecution of two Russians suspected of killing Yandarbiyev. Qatar will get substantial security support from Western countries if the new security agencies successfully accomplish their readjustment effort.6 Still, threat of terrorism continues to be a major problem. Al-Qaeda has terrorized Western people in Qatar. The Australian government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) even warned tourists “to exercise a high degree of caution in Qatar”7 because of serious terrorist threats. The DFAT said they were informed of plans to terrorize several individuals and groups in Qatar. On the 19th of March 2005, a suicide car bombing in Doha took the life of a British individual and wounded several other individuals.8 On the 17th of March 2005, the Saudi leader of Al-Qaeda, Saleh al-Oufi, declared a war on terrorists in Qatar and in other nations like Oman and Bahrain. However, the March 19 incident was not surprising. More terrorist attacks are likely to occur and concentrated on easy targets like emigrants.9 The Al-Qaeda in the Arab region is definitely trying to terrorize the Gulf States. The United States is still trying to improve counterterrorism collaboration with the government of Qatar. Working with U.S. officials on counterterrorism is still in progress, and Qatar approved firm counterterrorist finance (CTF) policy.10 However, Qatari attempts to fight terrorism, especially terrorist financing, beyond its boundaries by charitable groups and private organizations were generally unsuccessful in terms of established global criteria. Qatar’s elites retained political connections with the heads of Hizballah and Hamas.11 By means of a strict support, financing, and visa process, Qatar generally rejected access to and expelled emigrants suspected of radical sentiments, and watched for fanaticism in its people. Qatari officials have stated that they will enhance biometric aspects on the identification cards of Qatari residents in the coming years.12 The Qatari government gave the U.S. strong counterterrorism support in 2004, expanding its bilateral cooperation it has sustained since the 11th of September 2001. No incident of terrorism took place in Qatar in 2004, and the security services of the country had a number of achievements against terrorist activities.13 Qatar endorsed the Combating Terrorism Law in March. The law classifies terrorism and terrorist activities, provides certain sanctions for terrorist offenses to include capital punishment, presents strategies against terrorist financing, and provides the government extensive power to take measures against terrorism. The law includes established laws like anti-money laundering law, law on weapons, judicial law, criminal procedures policy, and Qatar’s penal code.14 In March, the Qatari government endorsed another law to set up the Qatar Authority for Charitable Works, which checks every national and global charitable project. The Secretary General of the Authority monitors global fund transfers by charitable organizations. The agency has the main duty of checking foreign humanitarian, developmental, and charitable activities, and of reporting yearly to relevant Government agencies on the situation of all activities.15 The agency was in the middle of creating specific steps to exercise greater power over local activities of charities. The Qatari government assigned an al-Thani family member in October as head of its financial intelligence unit (FIU).16 The FIU is tasked to assess every financial transaction statement, look at suspicious financial transactions, and make sure that every Government agency has protocols and guidelines to guarantee appropriate supervision of financial activities.17 The security services of Qatar performed strict supervision of immigration and thorough checking of potential terrorist activities. Although counterterrorism collaboration is still strong, the U.S. kept on trying to enhance partnership with the Qatari government on political involvement and information sharing. Partnership with U.S. officials on counterterrorism kept on growing. The Financial Information Unit of Qatar is located in the Qatar Central Bank.18 National banks team up with the FIU and the Central Bank on anti-money laundering and counterterrorism finance concerns, and bank authorities went to U.S.-funded conventions.19 Qatar was the only Gulf nation with an Attorney General (AG) as of December 2007. The AG autonomously supervised and monitored public prosecutions and assigned lawyers in the Public Prosecutors Office. The post of the AG was formed in 2002 and sustains a National Security Office assigned to prosecutions under the Combating Terrorism Law of 2004.20 Before the formation of an independent AG position, most public prosecutors were not qualified attorneys, but top-level police officials. Qatar was the only nation in the region with a public prosecutor exchange agreement with the United States Department of Justice.21 Several Qatari lawyers from the office of the Public Prosecutor went to a two-week exchange in November; the two-week exchange focused on monitoring U.S. federal lawyers in New Hampshire and Boston, and learning financial offenses at the Public Prosecutors Training Academy Federal Advocacy Center at the University Of South Carolina School Of Law.22 The U.S. and Qatar were already talking about a non-mandatory memorandum of understanding (MoU) concerning judicial support and partnership between the two countries. The MoU would enable these two countries to reinforce judicial partnership and to share information and findings for the purpose of prosecution.23 The U.S. government has given counterterrorism and law enforcement seminars under different projects, such as the Antiterrorism Assistance (ATA) project of the State Department. The seminars and exchanges had a favorable impact in sustaining a strong relationship with the law enforcement organizations in Qatar and enhancing their capacity to prevent, interrupt, and beat terrorism in the country.24 Yet, this capacity should be thoroughly assessed and tested. The Reflection My internship at the public prosecution office of the state of Qatar was an excellent exposure to the world of national and global litigation and its contribution to the fight against terrorism. During my internship I met and became acquainted with experts involved in Qatari and international law. I was very fortunate to talk with these lawyers in a normal way that gave me a chance to learn a lot of things about their jobs and the problems and concerns they handled. The public prosecution office has been a pioneer and a trendsetter in the attempt to employ courts as an instrument in the war on terrorism. The most important quality the agency has is the commitment and ingenuity of its interns and lawyers. Since the agency is quite small, and since numerous of the concerns it addresses are new, an intern at this agency can contribute much. I was assigned to major projects such as writing a note on a Qatari law that could bring in new possibilities of litigation for the agency, writing reports or statements, and interviewing petitioners in a current proceeding. Such projects made my internship very interesting. Besides the job itself, the employees made my internship an exciting and fulfilling experience. They were accommodating and enthusiastic of the tasks we carried out. The agency also gave us the opportunity to learn from interesting lectures and instruction given by attorneys, national security professionals, and public authorities, besides a visit to the south of Qatar, which was both thrilling and informative. Overall, I had an educational and incredible experience at the public prosecution office, and I would definitely recommend this agency to all those who want to learn more about counterterrorism and Qatari national security. I can definitely say that I was lucky enough to become an intern at the public prosecution office. The lawyers in that agency are exceptionally knowledgeable, decent, and superb to work for. I was given the chance to deal with cases related to general offenses, corruption, and terrorism. This gave me a chance to go to court proceedings practically every day, write statements that were sent to defense lawyers and judges, write legal letters, study litigation, and interview witnesses before the trial. The lawyers in the agency willingly gave comments on all the tasks I performed and were ready to provide assistance, guidance, and mentoring. The agency also created daily brainstorming with the staff so we could learn from one another. To conclude the internship, the agency even arranged a meeting with Qatari litigation experts and top lawyers working on counterterrorism. My experience at the public prosecution office was both rewarding and motivating. Not only was I given the chance to acquire a profound knowledge of the Qatari legal system, but I was also given the chance to deal with distinctively Qatari problems, like terrorism, that matched my personal interests. The internship enhanced my immature legal abilities and knowledge, as I was pushed to go outside personal comforts to develop original arguments to strengthen particular legal standpoints. Furthermore I was able to enhance by writing abilities significantly by being involved in terrorism-related programs with international importance. The assistance and supervision I obtained from the people of the public prosecution office was remarkable. The internship confirmed my passion in dealing with terrorism-related issues and gave priceless experience. Works Cited Blanchard, C. Qatar: Background and U.S. Relations. New York: DIANE Publishing, 2011. Print. Oxford Business Group. The Report: Emerging Qatar 2007. Washington, DC: Oxford Business Group, 2007. Print. State Department, Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism. Country Reports on Terrorism 2004. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 2004. Print. USA International Business Publications. Global Terrorism Organizations Yearbook. Washington, DC: International Business Publications, 2002. Print. Read More