Countering the Movement of Terrorists Across Borders

Editor of Border Security Report and Director of the World Border Security Congress

Major General John Ochai is the Director of Special Projects Research at the Defence Headquarters Armed Forces of Nigeria. The Directorate of Research works with the Nigerian Armed Forces and Security Services to conduct research into areas of security concerns. This includes counter terrorism and counter insurgency operations and border security. The Directorate is also responsible for capacity building through appropriate technology of the Nigerian Armed Forces and Security Services Major General jeon previously worked as director of operations of the Nigerian army where he was responsible for all troops deployment and oversight functions. Major General Ochai also served as the Chief of Operations of the African Union mission in Darfur, Sudan.
Major General Ochai holds BSc, MSc degrees from University of Ibadan, Nigeria

Esther Zubiri joined the State Attorney-General’s Office of Spain in 1998, where she has developed her professional career over twenty-five years as a State Attorney specialized in counter terrorism and its financing and sanctions regimes. Since 2022, she serves as a counter-terrorism expert at the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team pursuant to United Nations Security Council resolutions 1526 (2004) and 2253 (2015) concerning ISIL (Da'esh), Al-Qaida, and the Taliban and associated individuals and entities. Previously, she worked as a Senior Expert for Afghanistan, Central, South and Southeast Asia, Europe, and the Americas at the United Nations Office of Counter Terrorism (UNOCT). Formerly, she served as the Chief of Rule of Law and Human Rights at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Afghanistan. In 2012, she was appointed as the Agent of the Kingdom of Spain to the European Court of Human Rights and the Council of Europe, representing Spain at the Committee of Experts on Terrorism (CODEXTER). She also served as a Senior Legal Specialist at Inter-American Committee against Terrorism of the Organization of American States. As State Attorney Chief, she worked at the National Court, the High Court of Justice of the Basque Country, the Central Economic-Administrative Court, the State Tax Administration Agency, and the Ministries of Justice and Interior, where she led the prosecution on several high-profile terrorist cases. She served as a counselor at the Permanent Mission of Spain to the United Nations and the Embassy of Spain in the United States of America. She holds a JD and a Master’s Degree in Law from the Comillas Pontifical University of Madrid (ICADE). She has been awarded with the Merit Cross of the Spanish National Police and the Silver Cross of the Spanish Civil Guard.

Major Nick Bennett is an officer in The Parachute Regiment in the British Military, though works for The Centre of Excellence - Defence Against Terrorism (COE-DAT). COE-DAT is a NATO-sponsored organisation that seeks to enhance NATO's understanding of counter-terrorism policy though various academic projects, seminars, and courses. One of the courses Major Bennett is responsible for is understanding the impact of counter-terrorism on border security and refugees.

Dr. Arian Sharifi is a Lecturer and Associate Research Scholar at Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs. He came to Princeton with over 15 years of high-level policy experience, including serving as a Senior Advisor to Afghanistan’s Foreign Minister, as Director General of National Threat Assessment at Afghan National Security Council, as Operation
Research Analyst at the International Center for Political Violence and Terrorism Research in Singapore, and as an Analyst for the Combatting Terrorism Center at West Point. During his service in Afghanistan, he led the development of 20 Afghan national-level documents, including National Security Policy, Counter-Terrorism Strategy, Countering Violent Extremism Strategy and others, and had a major voice in the conduct of the country’s foreign policy for years.
Prior to joining the Afghan government, Sharifi held the position of Partner and Chief Financial Officer for Moore-Afghanistan, where he advised leading American and European companies, including IAP Worldwide, AAI Corporation, Textron, Leidos, BAE, Academi, and many others on financial management and taxation in Afghanistan.
Sharifi holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in International Security Studies from Tufts University’s Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, a Master in Public Affairs (MPA) from Princeton University’s Princeton School of Public and International Affairs, and a Bachelor’s (BA) in Political Science from Wesleyan University. Dr. Sharifi is fluent in Dari, Pashto, and English, and understands Urdu. He has published widely in Afghan and international media, including the USIP, the Hill, the Diplomat, Aljazeera English, India’s Institute of South Asian Studies, 8 AM, Khaama Press and others. He is a frequent commentator on issues related to terrorism and security in Afghanistan and South and Central Asia.