Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish operate with impunity: Jaishankar at UNSC
In the midst of the Afghan crisis, India has raised grave concerns about the “heightened activities” of the proscribed Haqqani network and well as the “impunity and encouragement” with which Pakistan-based terror groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad continue to operate.
“Whether Afghanistan or against India, groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed continue to operate with impunity and encouragement…heightened activities of the proscribed Haqqani network justify growing anxiety,” External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said at a high-level briefing of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on ‘Threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts.’
“In our own immediate neighbourhood, ISIL-Khorasan (ISL-K) has become more energetic and is constantly seeking to expand its footprint. Events unfolding in Afghanistan have naturally enhanced global concerns about their implications for both regional and international security,” Jaishankar said.
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Jaishankar who chaired the meeting, urged the council not to “take a selective, tactical or complacent view of the problems.”
“We must never countenance sanctuaries for terrorists or overlook their raising of resources. And when we see state hospitality being extended to those with innocents’ blood on their hands, we should never lack the courage to call out their double-speak,” he said, taking digs at China and Pakistan.
While China recently recognised the Taliban, with its foreign minister Wang Yi meeting a Taliban delegation led by Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar in Tianjin, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday lauded the outfit for breaking the “shackles of slavery” a day after the fall of Kabul.
India at present holds the presidency of UNSC. The latest briefing is the 13th report of the secretary general on the threat posed by Iraq and the Levanant (ISIL) to global security. The last report, presented on August 3, dealt with the expansion of ISIL-Khorasan (ISIL-K), an offshoot of the ISIL in several Afghan provinces including the neighbourhood of Kabul.
Jaishankar said while the core aim of the organization was to regain ground in Syria and Iraq, it is now seeking to expand its base in India and its neighbourhood.
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“This evolving phenomenon is extremely dangerous and poses a new set of challenges to our collective efforts in our fight against ISIL and terrorism,” he said.