BUREAU
OF COUNTERTERRORISM

Foreign
Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) are foreign organizations that are designated by
the Secretary of State in accordance with section 219 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (INA), as amended. FTO designations play a critical role in our
fight against terrorism and are an effective means of curtailing support for
terrorist activities and pressuring groups to get out of the terrorism
business.

Identification

The Bureau of Counterterrorism in the State Department (CT) continually
monitors the activities of terrorist groups active around the world to identify
potential targets for designation. When reviewing potential targets, CT looks
not only at the actual terrorist attacks that a group has carried out, but also
at whether the group has engaged in planning and preparations for possible
future acts of terrorism or retains the capability and intent to carry out such
acts.

Designation

Once a target is identified, CT prepares a detailed “administrative
record,” which is a compilation of information, typically including both
classified and open sources information, demonstrating that the statutory
criteria for designation have been satisfied. If the Secretary of State, in
consultation with the Attorney General and the Secretary of the Treasury,
decides to make the designation, Congress is notified of the Secretary’s intent
to designate the organization and given seven days to review the designation,
as the INA requires. Upon the expiration of the seven-day waiting period and in
the absence of Congressional action to block the designation, notice of the
designation is published in the Federal
Register, at which point the designation takes effect. By law an
organization designated as an FTO may seek judicial review of the designation
in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit not
later than 30 days after the designation is published in the Federal Register.

Until
recently the INA provided that FTOs must be redesignated every 2 years or the
designation would lapse. Under the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention
Act of 2004 (IRTPA), however, the redesignation requirement was replaced by
certain review and revocation procedures. IRTPA provides that an FTO may file a
petition for revocation 2 years after its designation date (or in the case of
redesignated FTOs, its most recent redesignation date) or 2 years after the
determination date on its most recent petition for revocation. In order to
provide a basis for revocation, the petitioning FTO must provide evidence that
the circumstances forming the basis for the designation are sufficiently
different as to warrant revocation. If no such review has been conducted during
a 5 year period with respect to a designation, then the Secretary of State is
required to review the designation to determine whether revocation would be
appropriate. In addition, the Secretary of State may at any time revoke a
designation upon a finding that the circumstances forming the basis for the
designation have changed in such a manner as to warrant revocation, or that the
national security of the United States warrants a revocation. The same
procedural requirements apply to revocations made by the Secretary of State as
apply to designations. A designation may be revoked by an Act of Congress, or
set aside by a Court order.

Legal Criteria for Designation under Section 219 of
the INA as amended

1. It must be a foreign organization.
2. The
   organization must engage
   in terrorist activity, as defined in section 212 (a)(3)(B) of
   the INA (8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(3)(B)),* or terrorism, as
   defined in section 140(d)(2) of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act,
   Fiscal Years 1988 and 1989 (22 U.S.C. § 2656f(d)(2)),** or retain the capability and
   intent to engage in terrorist activity or terrorism.
3. The
   organization’s terrorist activity or terrorism must threaten the security
   of U.S. nationals or the
   national security (national defense, foreign relations, or the
   economic interests) of the United States.

Legal Ramifications of Designation

1. It is
   unlawful for a person in the United States or subject to the jurisdiction
   of the United States to knowingly provide “material support or
   resources” to a designated FTO. (The term “material support or
   resources” is defined in 18 U.S.C. § 2339A(b)(1) as ” any
   property, tangible or intangible, or service, including currency or
   monetary instruments or financial securities, financial services, lodging,
   training, expert advice or assistance, safehouses, false documentation or
   identification, communications equipment, facilities, weapons, lethal
   substances, explosives, personnel (1 or more individuals who maybe or
   include oneself), and transportation, except medicine or religious
   materials.” 18 U.S.C. § 2339A(b)(2) provides that for these purposes “the
   term ‘training’ means instruction or teaching designed to impart a
   specific skill, as opposed to general knowledge.” 18 U.S.C. § 2339A(b)(3)
   further provides that for these purposes the term ‘expert advice or
   assistance’ means advice or assistance derived from scientific, technical
   or other specialized knowledge.’’
2. Representatives
   and members of a designated FTO, if they are aliens, are inadmissible to
   and, in certain circumstances, removable from the United States (see 8
   U.S.C. §§ 1182 (a)(3)(B)(i)(IV)-(V), 1227 (a)(1)(A)).
3. Any U.S.
   financial institution that becomes aware that it has possession of or
   control over funds in which a designated FTO or its agent has an interest
   must retain possession of or control over the funds and report the funds
   to the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

Other Effects of Designation

1. Supports our
   efforts to curb terrorism financing and to encourage other nations to do
   the same.
2. Stigmatizes
   and isolates designated terrorist organizations internationally.
3. Deters
   donations or contributions to and economic transactions with named
   organizations.
4. Heightens
   public awareness and knowledge of terrorist organizations.
5. Signals to
   other governments our concern about named organizations.

Revocations of Foreign Terrorist Organizations

The
Immigration and Nationality Act sets out three possible basis for revoking a
Foreign Terrorist Organization designation:

1. The
   Secretary of State must revoke a designation if the Secretary finds that
   the circumstances that were the basis of the designation have changed in
   such a manner as to warrant a revocation;
2. The
   Secretary of State must revoke a designation if the Secretary finds that
   the national security of the United States warrants a revocation;
3. The
   Secretary of State may revoke a designation at any time.

Any
revocation shall take effect on the date specified in the revocation or upon
publication in the Federal Register if no effective date is specified. The
revocation of a designation shall not affect any action or proceeding based on
conduct committed prior to the effective date of such revocation.