About the GCTF

The Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF) is an informal, apolitical, multilateral counterterrorism platform. It is small, nimble, inclusive, and consensus-based. Its overarching mission is to reduce the vulnerability of people worldwide to terrorism by mobilizing expertise and resources to prevent, combat, and prosecute terrorist acts and counter incitement and recruitment to terrorism. 

The Forum brings together policymakers and practitioners from around the world to share experiences and expertise, and to develop practical, publicly available tools and strategies on how to prevent and counter the evolving terrorist threat. The GCTF is currently co-chaired by Egypt and the European Union. 

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What is the GCTF?

News

Placing education at the heart of preventing and countering violent extremism conducive to terrorism efforts

Placing education at the heart of preventing and countering violent extremism conducive to terrorism efforts

23 November 2023

Education as a universal value transcends cultures and contexts and can therefore be a vehicle in preventing and countering violent extremism (P/CVE) conducive to terrorism efforts and interventions. The GCTF Education and P/CVE Initiative, led by the European Union and Morocco, supported by the GCTF CVE working group, with Hedayah as implementing partner, Launched the GCTF Education and P/CVE Initiative which seeks to build on, improve and make more current the good practices and recommendations as shared in the Abu Dhabi Memorandum.

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GCTF Border Security and Management (BSM) Initiative - First BSM Exploratory Dialogue: Integrating and Promoting Human Rights and Gender-Sensitive Approaches

GCTF Border Security and Management (BSM) Initiative - First BSM Exploratory Dialogue: Integrating and Promoting Human Rights and Gender-Sensitive Approaches

14 November 2023

In a rapidly evolving world, the challenges of border security and management have become more complex than ever before. International terrorism, transnational crime, and the movement of foreign terrorist fighters have necessitated a comprehensive approach to safeguard borders. The GCTF Border Security and Management (BSM) Initiative Leads, Jordan, the United States and the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism organized the First BSM Exploratory Dialogue: Integrating and Promoting Human Rights and Gender-Sensitive Approaches.

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An interactive, two-day workshop including real-life simulations to improve national-level terrorist watchlisting and screening processes

An interactive, two-day workshop including real-life simulations to improve national-level terrorist watchlisting and screening processes

8 - 9 November 2023

Building on the success of previous workshops and engagements, the GCTF Foreign Terrorist Fighter (FTF) Working Group Co-Chairs, Jordan and the United States, organized a two-day, interactive workshop focused on raising awareness and helping put into action the recommendations shared in the GCTF Counterterrorism Watchlisting Toolkit with focus on the countries located in the Western Hemisphere.

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Sharpening insights of the complexities of reintegrating and rehabilitating returnees through interactive simulations

Sharpening insights of the complexities of reintegrating and rehabilitating returnees through interactive simulations

18 - 19 October 2023

The FTF Working Group, Co-Chaired by Jordan and the United States, with the support of the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) as implementing partner, arranged an in-person event where interactive simulations allowed practitioners and experts at the working-level to engage on the topic to uncover the challenges and dilemmas practitioners are faced with when reintegrating FTFs and their family members into their local communities.

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Activities

The Foreign Terrorist Fighters Working Group - Plenary Meeting: Improving International Collaboration to Address the Foreign Terrorist Fighter Phenomenon

The Foreign Terrorist Fighters Working Group - Plenary Meeting: Improving International Collaboration to Address the Foreign Terrorist Fighter Phenomenon

17-18 May 2016

Participants reviewed the Working Group’s strategic priorities, discussed the proposed Addendum to The Hague-Marrakech Memorandum on Good Practices for a more effective response to the foreign terrorist fighter (FTF) phenomenon (The Hague-Marrakech Memorandum), considered ongoing and planned initiatives, and reviewed activities since the previous Working Group Plenary Meeting.

Key themes of the discussion included: trends and dynamics of FTFs; The Addendum to The Hague-Marrakech Memorandum; and the importance of a renewed focus on strategic communications.

The Addendum to The Hague-Marrakech Memorandum is part of the cross-cutting Initiative to Address the Life Cycle of Radicalization to Violence (Life Cycle Initiative), which will be presented and adopted at the Tenth GCTF Coordinating Committee Meeting and the Seventh Ministerial Plenary Meeting in New York in September 2016.

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Seventh GCTF Ministerial Plenary Meeting

Seventh GCTF Ministerial Plenary Meeting

NEW YORK - United States - 2016 marks the fifth anniversary of the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF). On 21 September 2016, the Minister Delegate for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Morocco, Mr Nasser Bourita, and Foreign Minister of the Netherlands, Mr Bert Koenders, co-chaired the Seventh Ministerial Plenary Meeting of the GCTF in New York. The Ministerial Plenary Meeting showcased the action-oriented and strategic nature of the GCTF and provided an opportunity to take stock of the progress achieved since the launch of the Forum, five years ago.

Countering Violent Extremism Working Group - The Role of Family is Critical in Preventing Violent Extremism

Countering Violent Extremism Working Group - The Role of Family is Critical in Preventing Violent Extremism

ABU DHABI - United Arab Emirates – On 23-25 May 2016, under the auspices of the GCTF’s Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) Working Group, Hedayah, the International Center of Excellence for CVE, hosted a workshop on the P/CVE roles of families. 

Ninth GCTF Coordinating Committee Meeting

Ninth GCTF Coordinating Committee Meeting

THE HAGUE - the Netherlands - The GCTF Coordinating Committee convened for its ninth meeting on 12-13 April 2016. Member States and representatives of the GCTF partner organizations reviewed the Forum’s strategic priorities, considered the ongoing and planned initiatives, and reviewed activities since the previous Coordinating Committee Meeting in New York, held on 25 September 2015.

Criminal Justice and Rule of Law (CJ-ROL) Working Group - Experts Meeting on Juvenile Justice in a Counterterrorism Context

Criminal Justice and Rule of Law (CJ-ROL) Working Group - Experts Meeting on Juvenile Justice in a Counterterrorism Context

TURIN - Italy – Under the auspices of the GCTF’s Criminal Justice and Rule of Law (CJ-ROL) Working Group, the International Institute for Justice and the Rule of Law (IIJ), the Government of Switzerland and the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) hosted an experts meeting on Juvenile Justice in a Counterterrorism Context on 16-17 February 2016, in Turin, Italy.

 GCTF Insights

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