SECURITY COUNCIL ___________________ Check Against Delivery ___________________ Statement by Ambassador Daniel Carmon Deputy Permanent Representative “Threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts” United Nations, New York 19 March 2008 Mr. President, Allow to me to congratulate you on your able stewardship of the Council this month, and thank you for convening this important debate. My delegation wishes to welcome the Executive Director of CTED, Mr. Mike Smith, and thank him for his informative briefing and for all his efforts in reviewing the organisation of the Directorate and its methods of work. Israel views the Counter-Terrorism Committee and its Executive Directorate as foundational pillars of the United Nations system to help Member States deal with the scourge of terrorism. As such, we strongly support the work of the CTC and CTED. Earlier this year, the CTC endorsed the revised organisational plan for CTED, which will serve to strengthen CTED and improve its operations. As Mr. Smith noted in his briefing, CTED today spends less time focusing on whether states understand the threat of terrorism and more on assessing their capacities and capabilities. In this respect, CTED plays a crucial role as a facilitator between donor and recipient countries on technical support and assistance. We believe, however, that more can be done to support those states who demonstrate the will and desire to upgrade their capacities, but who lack the capabilities to do so. Constructive relations with donor and recipient countries and a practical focus on capabilities and needs are paramount to the success of CTED and the CTC. Israel, for its part, supports these efforts and is poised to provide assistance. As my delegation has previously noted, the Preliminary Implementation Assessment will be useful in evaluating Member States’ capabilities. We wish to stress that follow up and review is crucial to the process. The PIA must move beyond the paper to concrete and practical action. Israel looks forward to reviewing its own PIA, and seeing how the assessment can be integrated into our national counter-terrorism strategies. Israel also welcomes the need for CTED to participate in the work of the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force, established to assist Member States in their implementation of the Global Strategy. The unanimous adoption by the General Assembly of the Global Strategy gave it a universal mandate and marks an important achievement for the international community. The challenge, however, remains in how the Strategy’s commitments are translated into concrete action to prevent terrorist acts and prosecute and punish those who carry them out. Mr. President, The Strategy and Task Force are also fundamental in reminding us that terrorism has real consequences and grave effects on civilians, the primary target and victims of terrorism. While our debate this morning focuses on the technical aspects of countering terrorism, we surely cannot forget the heavy price we all pay when terror strikes in the heart of our cities and towns. Every victim has a name, and each victim has his or her own story. We cannot forget the human dimension – the “face”, so to speak, of the victims – even when discussing technical aspects of countering terrorism. Israel is a country that has been forced to live under the threat of terrorism since inception. The vast majority of Israelis have firsthand knowledge of the devastating effects of terrorism. In fact, practically no family in Israel has been immune to terrorism, whether it be a loved one or friend, neighbor or coworker, who was stolen away by a cruel, heartless, and crushing act of terrorism. Beyond this, terrorism has disrupted and devastated daily life, as civilians must constantly live in fear of the next attack. Sadly, still today, Israelis feel the threat of terrorism everyday and everywhere, whether it be to our North or our South, and even in the heartland of our country, as seen less than two weeks ago in the devastating and ruthless terrorist attack at the Mercaz Harav seminary in Jerusalem, where eight boys were coldly murdered by a terrorist. We were disappointed, Mr. President, that despite your efforts and those of many others, the Council was unable to condemn this heinous terrorist attack. Over the years, Israel has learned how to confront terrorism – a global phenomenon that has unfortunately become known to many nations around the world. There are various tools available to confront terrorism, in addition to the venues we are discussing today. The Israeli experience has shown that there is great value and importance to the work of local authorities, national agencies, and individuals on the ground, not only in preventing and responding to attacks and treating the victims, but more so in refusing to allow terrorism to derail and hijack our daily life. While Israel has experienced terrorism as a specific threat, it has been noted, time and again, that terrorism knows no geographical boundaries or limitations, and transcends borders and nations. Hence, it is incumbent on all states to adhere to their obligations under international law, including those relevant resolutions adopted by the Council, in particular resolution 1373, which calls on states to enforce their borders, prevent the movement of terrorists, and refrain from supporting terrorists or their activities. Despite the real urgency and need for states to implement resolution 1373, it is alarming that some Member States of this world body are not only negligent in shouldering their responsibilities, but more so actually host, support, and sponsor terrorism. Surely, the international community must impress on all states the need to end such behavior. There can never be any justification for terrorism, and any attempt to explain or excuse it should be condemned. Mr. President, Israel remains poised and ready to continue working with the CTC and CTED to advance its objectives and improve its cooperation and engagement with the Member States of the United Nations. We welcome the extension of the mandate, and are confident that CTED’s revised organizational plan will contribute to this effort, and situate it in a central position to assist Member States in combating the global scourge of terrorism. Thank You.   1