Ambassador calls for concerted anti-terrorism efforts

Cairo, May 21 (BNA): Bahrain’s Ambassador to Egypt and its Permanent Representative to the Arab League Shaikh Rashid bin Abdulrahman Al Khalifa has called for concerted international efforts to counter extremist ideologies and terrorism which pose a serious threat to the region and the world. He was speaking on behalf of Arab countries –as Bahrain is the current president of the Arab League- at the joint meeting with the ambassadors of the Permanent UN Security Council member states, held today at the Arab League’s premises, in the presence of the Arab League Secretary-General Dr. Nabil Al-Araby and Egypt’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Amr Abu Al-Ata. The meeting is a good opportunity to share visions and ideas and coordinate regional and international stances vis-à-vis pressing issues, Shaikh Rashid said while addressing the audience, noting that global peace and security are currently facing serious and dangerous challenges amid the spread of terrorist militias and groups at the expense of the national State. He explained pointed out to extremists’ attempts to impose fascist ideologies in the region, paving the way for discrimination, sectarianism, violence and intolerance, citing in this regard the Arab participation in the International Alliance to Combat Terrorism and the outcomes of the International Conference on Combating the Financing of Terrorism, hosted by the Kingdom of Bahrain in November, as well as other effective Arab actions to counter and eradicate the phenomenon and the ideologies and practices related to it. "Terrorism represents a threat to our shared values, and undermines our stability and development. At the same time, we are suffering from the issue of state-sponsored terrorist militias as a country in the region provides arms, funding and training for terrorist groups, which requires a deterrent international effort to stop threats to regional and global security," he said." The ambassador warned against leaving pending Middle East issues without a viable and comprehensive solution, noting that they may become more sophisticated and their repercussions may go beyond the region and affect the entire world. Tackling the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian lands, Shaikh Rashid asserted that the Arab Peace Initiative, which was capable of solving the long-dated conflict, was rejected by the Israeli side, which thwarted the Arab efforts to reach just and comprehensive peace in the region. In this regard, the ambassador hailed the French President Francois Hollande’s call to hold a international peace conference to resume negotiations and implement the two-state solution. The ambassador highlighted another challenge, which is the disintegration and collapse of the national state institutions in the region and the entry of armed terrorist groups to them, citing the situation in Libya and Somalia where those groups took advantage of the institutional vacuum to expand their influence and carry out their terrorist acts. Shaikh Rashid also tackled the issue of migrants and refugees, stressing that it has become a new challenge to the human conscience. He highlighted the efforts of many Arab countries to host many refugees and provided huge financial resources to alleviate their suffering. He expressed hope that the joint meeting would come up with a permanent mechanism to continue coordination and follow-up between the two sides for the best interests of the Middle East region and the world.