PM to attend Riyadh counter-terrorism summit today

Prime minister Sheikh Hasina is scheduled to attend a summit in Riyadh on countering terrorism and containing extremism today.
She left Dhaka Saturday night for Riyadh. Saudi king Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, US president Donald Trump, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Malaysian president Najib Tun Razak, Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif and Iraqi president Fuad Masum, among others, are likely to attend the summit. 
Sponsored by the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition and organised by the King Faisal Centre for Islamic Research and Studies, the theme of the forum is ‘The Nature of Extremism and the Future of Terrorism’, according to Arab News. 
Secretary-general of the Centre Saud Al-Sarhan said the forum would discuss the nature, forms and influence of fundamentalism, the future of terrorism and the role of social media.
Saudi Arabia has taken the initiative and played a lead role in the war on terrorism, he said, adding that the forum would bolster the kingdom’s pioneering role regionally and internationally.
The forum’s agenda includes four sessions that will debate ways countries can work together against terrorism.
The IMCTC is a 41-nation partnership of countries unified in the battle against terror. 
IMCTC will give a platform for countries to suggest, argue and promote cooperation among members and support nations for the implementation of efforts in four domains — ideology, communications, counter-terrorism financing and military.
The IMCTC will develop, collect, shop and disseminate a wide range of information on CT programmes and best techniques embarked on by member nations and international organisations.
Foreign minister AH Mahmood Ali and foreign secretary M Shahidul Haque were accompanying the prime minister in the visit. 
On a question on the possibility of deploying Bangladesh troops under the Saudi-led coalition, foreign minister Ali said, ‘It is premature’ to say anything as the alliance ‘is still at formation stage with hardly anything in black and white’. 
He, however, reiterated the government’s position on sending troops to the KSA that armed troops would be sent to Saudi Arabia to protect two mosques Al-Masjid al-Haram in Mecca and Al-Masjid al-Nabawi in Medina, if Saudi Arabia requests for troops.
US president Donald Trump said on Wednesday he would use his upcoming trip to Saudi Arabia to urge the leaders of Muslim countries to ‘fight hatred and extremism’ while pursuing a peaceful future for their faith, according to Reuters. 
Prime minister Hasina would visit Mecca and Medina on Monday before returning home on Tuesday.

 

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