Washington: Indian-American Rashad Hussain has been appointed as Special Envoy and Coordinator for Strategic Counter-terrorism Communications to expand global engagement and partnerships of the US to counter violent extremism, the state department has said. The 37-year-old Hussain is currently the Special Envoy of the US to Organisation for Islamic Countries (OIC).
He will also serve as Coordinator of the Center for Strategic Counter-terrorism Communications, established at the direction of President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2010 to coordinate, orient, and inform government-wide strategic communications focused on violent extremists and terrorist organisations.
Before his role in OIC, Hussain was Deputy Associate Counsel to US President Barack Obama, focusing on national security, new media, and science and technology issues. He has also served as Director for Global Engagement at the National Security Council (NSC) and as a Special Assistant US Attorney in Washington, where he prosecuted criminal cases. In 2009, Hussain worked with the NSC in developing and pursuing the New Beginning that Obama outlined in Egypt.
Before joining the White House, he was a member of the legal staff for the Presidential Transition Team. He previously served as a Trial Attorney at the US Department of Justice. Earlier in his career, he was a legislative assistant on the House Judiciary Committee, where he focused on national security-related issues.
