UNITED NATIONS: Pakistan has urged the international community to take effective action against terrorist groups operating from Afghanistan, warning the UN Security Council that the country has become a safe haven for multiple militant organisations planning attacks against Pakistan and other states.
Addressing a UN Security Council meeting, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, said that since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021, terrorist groups including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and its Majeed Brigade, Daesh-Khorasan (ISIL-K), Al-Qaeda affiliates and the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) have continued to enjoy safe havens in Afghanistan.
He said these groups recruit, train, plan and launch attacks against Pakistan from Afghan territory, alleging that they also receive financial and other support from Pakistan’s eastern neighbour. He recalled last week’s suicide bombing in Swat, claimed by the TTP, which killed 16 Pakistanis.
The ambassador said that although Pakistan’s counterterrorism operations had dealt significant blows to Daesh-Khorasan, the group’s presence in Afghanistan remained a serious threat.
He stressed that terrorism is a transnational challenge requiring stronger international cooperation, improved border management, enhanced law enforcement capacity and efforts to cut off terrorist financing.
Ambassador Asim Iftikhar also warned that terrorist organisations were increasingly using modern technologies, including drones, social media, artificial intelligence, digital wallets and cryptocurrencies, for recruitment, financing and operational planning, calling for a coordinated global response.
He urged the international community to ensure that the Taliban fulfil their responsibility to prevent Afghan territory from being used by any terrorist group against Pakistan or any other country, and called for the sponsors and facilitators of terrorist organisations to be held accountable.
Referring to Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), the ambassador said August 5 marked the seventh anniversary of India’s unilateral actions in the disputed territory. He described the measures as an example of state terrorism and called on the international community to adopt a zero-tolerance policy against state terrorism, including in IIOJK.
He reaffirmed that eliminating terrorism requires a comprehensive, coordinated and multilateral approach free from double standards, adding that Pakistan would continue to play its role in global counterterrorism efforts.
