UN report reveals 6,500 Pak terrorists are among foreign fighters in Afghanistan. India expresses 'serious concern'
New Delhi: A report published by United Nations (UN) has revealed that around 6,500 Pakistani nationals are among foreign terrorists who are operating in Afghanistan and the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) play a key role in bringing foreign fighters into the war-torn country.
The report, from the UN Security Council’s analytical support and sanctions monitoring team and issued late last month, indicated Pakistani terrorists formed a significant part of foreign fighters that pose a serious threat to Afghanistan’s security because of their activities and permanent presence in the country, reports Hindustan Times.
The report said the Afghan Taliban’s role as a credible counter-terrorism partner for the world community in the aftermath of the February agreement with the US will need careful monitoring because of the “number of foreign terrorist fighters in search of a purpose and livelihood in Afghanistan, including up to 6,500 Pakistanis”, reported the newspaper.
Reacting to the report, India's external affairs ministry spokesperson Anurag Srivastava expressed “serious concern” to the continued presence in Afghanistan of the senior leadership of al-Qaeda and a large number of foreign terrorists, including 6,500 Pakistan nationals, reports HT.
The report, he said, “vindicates India’s long-standing position that Pakistan remains the epicentre of international terrorism”.
External affairs ministry spokesperson Srivastava said UN-designated entities such as LeT and JeM, “operating from Pakistan-controlled territories [were] facilitating trafficking and imparting training to other terrorists in Afghanistan”.
He was quoted was saying by Hindustan Times, “This vindicates India’s long-standing position that Pakistan remains the epicentre of international terrorism. That proscribed terrorist entities and individuals continue to enjoy safe havens and recruit, train, arm, finance and operate with impunity from Pakistan with state support. They inflict violence and spread terrorism in the region and other parts of the world.”
Pakistan, Srivastava said, has failed in fulfilling its international obligations, including under UN Security Council resolutions and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), to “put an end to support to terrorism emanating from territories under its control”.
The world community should hold Pakistan accountable and seek sustained, verifiable and irreversible action against terrorism, he said.
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