Director of National Intelligence and 2024 Wash100 awardee Avril Haines has released a statement thanking Christy Abizaid, the outgoing director of the National Counterterrorism Center, for her service.
Haines said Thursday, “Since being sworn in as NCTC Director more than three years ago, Christy led the Center to address an evolving counterterrorism threat environment while also preparing the NCTC workforce for future challenges.”
Abizaid’s departure was confirmed in early June.
In an interview with The Cipher Brief, Abizaid said that one of the “seminal moments” during her term as NCTC director was the fall of Kabul. Her organization had “a big part” in the effort to evacuate not only U.S. citizens but also Afghan partners from the city.
NCTC worked to ensure “that the people that come here are the people that are those partners and allies we care so much about while protecting against bad people who might want to enter the country,” the outgoing official said.
Abizaid is succeeded by Brett Holmgren, former assistant secretary of State for intelligence and research.
Regarding Holmgren’s appointment, Haines said, “We are so fortunate to have a distinguished member of the IC leadership team and another truly exceptional counterterrorism leader join us at ODNI.”
Holmgren takes charge of NCTC in an acting capacity.