UNOFFICIAL TRANSLATION

Check against delivery

At the outset, I would like to thank you, Madam President, for convening this important and urgent meeting. We also thank Mr. Vladimir Voronkov, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism, for his valuable and comprehensive briefing.

Madam President,

The UAE strongly condemns the terrorist attacks carried out by Daesh against al-Sina’a prison in Al-Hasakah Governorate. These attacks have caused nearly 45,000 people to be internally displaced, including many women and children. It also led to casualties and the destruction of infrastructure, which exacerbates the humanitarian and security situation in Syria. We also express our great concern about the use of children as human shields by Daesh, in a blatant violation of international law.

Despite the failure of Daesh to take over the prison, these recent attacks reinforce the notion that our fight against Daesh continues and that we should continue to build on the tangible progress made by the international community against Daesh in Syria and Iraq. We again emphasize the need to cut off Daesh’s funding sources, drain its military capabilities, and put an end to the recruitment of fighters, as well as the spread of extremist rhetoric. It is also necessary to continue to challenge the methods it develops and the strategies it uses, such as launching attacks against prisons, in an effort to re-establish its influence.

The UAE will spare no effort in combatting terrorist groups around the world, whether it is Daesh or other terrorist groups, in accordance with international law. As we have recently witnessed, terrorist threats have reached very dangerous levels in our region, especially in terms of terrorist groups’ use of advanced technology and weapons to target civilians and civilian infrastructure, as it happened in my country recently.

These challenges require concerted international efforts and working together diligently and jointly to prevent extremism and counter terrorism to eliminate it completely, whether in Syria or abroad, to maintain regional and international peace and security.

In conclusion, Madam President, we stress the importance of achieving sustainable stability and security in Syria, in a manner that would fulfil the Syrian people’s aspirations and provide them with a safe and stable homeland free of extremism and terrorism.

Thank you.