Press Release

Supporting Iraq in the registration of its nationals seeking voluntary repatriation from Al-Hol Camp

19 January 2025

On 16 January 2025, an official ceremony was organized in Baghdad by the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) to hand over information technology (IT) equipment to the Iraqi national authorities in charge of registering adult Iraqi nationals seeking to be repatriated from Al Hol Camp located in Northeast Syria. 

 

This equipment consists of two servers, 20 laptops, 20 desktops, 15 tablets, 15 portable printers, 10 fingerprint scanners, six cameras and other IT devices for efficient data management, for a total amount of ca. USD 200,000. Senior representatives from the Iraqi government, including the Office of the National Security Advisor, the Head of the European Union delegation to Iraq, the Head of the European Union Advisory Mission to Iraq, and the Head of the UNOCT office in Iraq, participated in the ceremony. 

The equipment was procured by the European Union – United Nations Global Terrorism Threats Facility, a joint initiative implemented by UNOCT in partnership with and thanks to funding from the European Union. The Facility has been working in coordination with the UNOCT Global Programme on Prosecution, Rehabilitation and Reintegration (PRR) to support the Iraqi national authorities responsible for managing the complex process of registration and screening Iraqi nationals seeking voluntary repatriation. This support seeks to foster effective and ethical practices, in compliance with international human-rights standards.

In addition to the IT equipment, the Facility has provided since March 2024 advisory support and training sessions to relevant Iraqi officials for the development and management of a secure and functional registration database in line with good practices for the management and protection of sensitive personal data in accordance with privacy rights. Iraqi personnel also benefited from opportunities to enhance their trauma-informed, and ethical interviewing practices to effectively interact with volunteers for repatriation, and to maintain their own mental well-being in delivering on these challenging tasks.

Zheeshan Ameen

Zeeshan Amin

UNOCT
Chief of UNOCT’s Strategic Coordination Section and Head of UNOCT Programme Office
Mr Zeeshan Amin is Chief of UNOCT’s Strategic Coordination Section and Head of UNOCT Programme Office in Baghdad. He also supervises UNOCT Programme Office in Nairobi. Mr Amin supervises UNOCT coordination and cooperation with UN agencies and partners in Iraq, as well works toward channeling capacity-building support on counter-terrorism and PCVE topics to countries in need at the national and regional levels. His Section also includes the UNOCT Global Programme on Prosecution, Rehabilitation and Reintegration (PRR) that supports Member States around the world on policies and procedures relating to foreign fighters returnees.
Mr Amin has almost 20-years of experience working at UNHQ on a wide range of topics, including counter-terrorism and PCVE policy-making, capacity-building, advocacy and inter-agency coordination, as well as on inter-governmental consultations on General Assembly resolutions. Mr Amin has a Masters degree in International Security Policy from Columbia University in New York, and a Bachelors degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.

UN entities involved in this initiative

UNOCT
United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism

Goals we are supporting through this initiative