The meeting, organized by the Naif Arab University for Security Sciences and Interpol May 15–17 as part of the Interpol initiative for biosecurity, aims to discuss detecting and combating biological events and bioterrorism in Gulf Cooperation Council states.

It was attended by Catherine Colthart, Interpol assistant director for CBRNE and vulnerable targets, and Ali Al-Khalaileh, head of the coordination desk for the Middle East and North Africa at INTERPOL’s General Secretariat.

The meeting saw the participation of 55 experts from civil defense and state security agencies, ministries of health, Red Crescent authorities, public prosecution offices, border guard directorates, international organizations and armed forces from six Arab countries.

Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al-Harfash, vice dean for external relations at NAUSS, said that the university is working on transferring the best practices and expertise to Arab states, thus enhancing international Arab security cooperation.

The meeting was organized in the framework of cooperation with Interpol through which joint programs that contribute to combating crime in Arab states and the world are implemented, he said.

Al-Harfash added that the meeting is a continuation of previous ones that aimed to enhance the readiness of national law enforcement agencies to combat natural, accidental or deliberate biological events, including bioterrorism.

It also seeks to clarify the standard operating procedures for regional cooperation based on internal procedures and national plans and enhance coordination between law enforcement agencies.

It aims to achieve multi-agency collaboration, information exchange and capacity-building, he added, in order to combat biological events, and discuss the role of regional agencies in supporting the initiative’s long-term outcomes.