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.

Links in the following list provide the available web pages for the domestic organizational components of the State Department in alphabetical order. Visit the biographies page for more information. Names with an asterisk (*) indicate people who fill more than one position on this list.

Secretary of State (S)

Deputy Secretary (D)
Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources (DMR)
Counselor of the Department (C)

Under Secretary for:

Arms Control and International Security (T)
Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights (J)
Economic Growth, Energy, and Environment (E)
Management (M)
Political Affairs (P)
Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs (R)

Other Senior Officials:

Special Envoys

Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL (Brett McGurk)
Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs (James O’Brien)
Special Envoy and Coordinator for International Energy Affairs (Amos Hochstein)
Special Envoy and Coordinator of the Global Engagement Center (Michael D. Lumpkin)
Special Envoy for Climate Change (Jonathan Pershing)
Special Envoy for Closure of the Guantanamo Detention Facility (Lee Wolosky)
Special Envoy for Global Food Security (Dr. Nancy Stetson)
Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region of Africa and the Democratic Republic of Congo (Thomas Perriello)
Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues (vacant)
Special Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBT Persons (Randy Berry)
Special Envoy for Israeli-Palestinian Negotiations (Frank Lowenstein)
Special Envoy for Libya (Jonathan Winer)
Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism (Ira Forman)
Special Envoy to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (vacant)
Special Envoy for North Korean Human Rights Issues (Robert R. King)
Special Envoy for Six-Party Talks (Sydney Seiler)
U.S. Special Envoy to Sudan and South Sudan (Donald E. Booth)
U.S. Special Envoy for Syria (Michael Ratney)

Special Representatives

Special Representative of the President for Nuclear Nonproliferation (rank of Ambassador) (Adam Scheinman)
Special Representative and Policy Coordinator for Burma (vacant)
Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan (Richard Olson)
Special Representative for the Arctic Region (Admiral Robert J. Papp, Jr.)
Special Representative for Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention Issues (Robert A. Wood)* (Also Permanent Representative for Conference on Disarmament)
Special Representative for Commercial and Business Affairs (Scott Nathan)
Special Representative for Global Health Diplomacy (Deborah Birx, M.D.)* (also Ambassador at Large and Coordinator of United States Government Activities to Combat HIV/AIDS Globally)
Special Representative for Global Partnerships (Andrew O’Brien)
Special Representative for International Labor Affairs (Sarah Fox)
Special Representative to Muslim Communities (Shaarik Zafar)
Special Representative of North Korea Policy (Sung Kim)* (also Deputy Assistant Secretary in East Asia and Pacific Affairs Bureau)
Special Representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) (Michael Scanlan)
U.S. Special Representative for the Central African Republic (W. Stuart Symington)
U.S. Special Representative to the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) (Linda S. Taglialatela)* (also Ambassador to Barbados)
U.S. Special Representative for Religion and Global Affairs (Shaun Casey)

Ambassadors at Large

Ambassador at Large and Coordinator for Counterterrorism
Ambassador at Large and Coordinator of United States Government Activities to Combat HIV/AIDS Globally (Deborah Birx, M.D.)* (also Special Representative for Global Health Diplomacy)
Ambassador at Large for Global Criminal Justice (vacant)
Ambassador at Large for Global Women’s Issues (Catherine M. Russell)
Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom (David Saperstein)
Ambassador at Large to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (Susan Coppedge)

Coordinators

U.S. Coordinator for International Communications and Information Policy, with the rank of Ambassador (Daniel Sepulveda)* (also DAS in the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs)
Lead Coordinator for Iran Nuclear Implementation (Stephen D. Mull)
Coordinator for Cyber Issues (Christopher Painter)
Coordinator for Sanctions Policy (Dan Fried)
Coordinator for Threat Reduction Programs (rank of Ambassador) (Bonnie Jenkins)
Coordinator for U.S. Assistance to Europe, Eurasia, and Central Asia (Alina Romanowski)
Fissile Material Negotiator and Senior Cutoff Coordinator (Michael Guhin)
International Information Programs Coordinator (Robert (Macon) Phillips)
Israel and the Palestinian Authority, U.S. Security Coordinator (Lieutenant General Frederick S. Rudesheim)
Senior Coordinator for International Information Technology Diplomacy (Catherine A. Novelli)* (Also Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment)
Senior Coordinator for Knowledge Management
Special Coordinator for Global Criminal Justice (Todd F. Buchwald)
Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues (Sarah Sewall)* (also Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights)
Transparency Coordinator (Janice Jacobs)

Special Advisors

Science and Technology Adviser (vacant)
Special Adviser for Global Youth Issues (Andrew Rabens)
Special Adviser for Holocaust Issues (Stuart Eizenstat)
Special Advisor for International Disabilities Rights (Judith E. Heumann)
Special Advisor for Nonproliferation and Arms Control (Robert J. Einhorn)
Special Advisor for Religious Minorities in the Near East and South/Central Asia (Knox Thames)
Special Advisor for Secretary Initiatives (Elizabeth Bagley)

Senior Advisor

Senior Advisor (David H. Thorne)

Senior Official

U.S. Senior Official to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) (Matthew Matthews)* (also Deputy Assistant Secretary in Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs)

Personal Representative

Personal Representative for Northern Ireland Issues (Gary Hart)

Senior Representative

Senior Representative to Minsk (James Warlick)

Bureaus and Offices:

Administration (A)
African Affairs (AF)
Allowances (A/OPR/ALS)
Arms Control, Verification and Compliance (AVC)
Authentications

Budget and Planning (BP)

Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications (CSCC)

Chief Information Officer (CIO)
Chief Economist, of the Department
Chief of Staff
Civil Rights, Office of
Comptroller and Global Financial Services (CGFS)
Conflict and Stabilization Operations (CSO)
Consular Affairs (CA)
Counterterrorism (CT)

Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL)
Department Spokesperson
Diplomatic Reception Rooms
Diplomatic Security (DS)
Director General of the Foreign Service and Director of Human Resources (DGHR)

East Asian and Pacific Affairs (EAP)
Economic and Business Affairs (EB)
Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA)
Energy Resources (ENR)
European and Eurasian Affairs (EUR)
Executive Secretariat (S/ES)

Foreign Assistance (F)
Foreign Missions (OFM)
Foreign Service Institute (FSI)

Global AIDS Coordinator (S/GAC)
Global Criminal Justice (GCJ)
Global Food Security
Global Women’s Issues (S/GWI)
Global Youth Issues (GYI)

Human Resources (DGHR)

Information Resource Management (IRM)
Inspector General (OIG)
Intelligence and Research (INR)
International Information Programs (IIP)
International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL)
International Organization Affairs (IO)
International Security and Nonproliferation (ISN)

Legal Adviser (L)
Legislative Affairs (H)

Management Policy, Rightsizing and Innovation (PRI)
Medical Services (MED)
Mission to the United Nations (USUN)

Near Eastern Affairs (NEA)

Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs(OES)
Office of Terrorism Finance and Economic Sanctions Policy
Ombudsman, Office of
Overseas Buildings Operations (OBO)

Policy, Planning, and Resources for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs (PPR)
Policy Planning Staff (S/P)
Political-Military Affairs (PM)
Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM)
Protocol (S/CPR)
Public Affairs (PA)

Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR)

Science & Technology Adviser (STAS)
South and Central Asian Affairs (SCA)

Trafficking in Persons (TIP)

Western Hemisphere Affairs (WHA)