Almotamar.net - The Security Council said on Friday that Al-Qaeda is still a major challenge to the peaceful transition stage in Yemen.

"The presence of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) in Yemen remains a major challenge to the country's peaceful transition," read a statement issued by the Security Council bodies with responsibilities relating to Yemen and counter-terrorism, which held joint consultations with the Charg� d'affaires of the Permanent Mission of Yemen to the UN Khaled al-Yamany and the Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Yemen Jamal Benomar.

During their joint meeting, the Yemen Sanctions Committee (established pursuant to resolution 2140 (2014)), the Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee (pursuant to resolutions 1267 (1999) and 1989 (2011)) and the Counterterrorism Committee (established pursuant to resolution 1373 (2011)) were also briefed by the Council's Panel of Experts on Yemen, the Al-Qaida Committee's Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team, and the Counterterrorism Committee's Executive Directorate on the complex challenges currently faced by Yemen in its fight against terrorism.

Participants in the joint meeting also underlined the need for targeted international support to Yemen to combat terrorism and identified a range of opportunities to enhance coordination and cooperation among relevant United Nations and Security Council entities in delivering support. The participants emphasized the need for the Panel of Experts on Yemen and the 1267 Monitoring Team to share information relevant to the potential designation of individuals and entities linked to political spoilers in Yemen and AQAP, including possible links between them, as well as pertaining to their financial sources.

They noted the importance of the adoption by Yemen of the national counterterrorism law and the development of the national counter-terrorism strategy. Meeting participants also discussed opportunities for prioritizing outreach and assistance to Yemen and the broader region through the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate to address immediate counter-terrorism needs on the ground. Leveraging existing regional cooperation through the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) was also identified as important.

The three Committees committed to meet again, in a similar format, as required, to further explore opportunities for cooperation and collaboration. The Chair of the 2140 Committee briefed the member countries of the GCC on the joint informal consultations on 27 June 2014.