Pakistan Admits Masood Azhar Is In The Country, Unwell

Islamabad: In face of increased pressure from the international community to act again terror groups, Pakistan has admitted that dreaded terrorist Masood Azhar is in Pakistan and is unwell.

Masood is the founder of Jaish-e-Mohammad, the terror group responsible for the Pulwama attack of February 24 that claimed the lives of 42 jawans including two from Odisha.

“Azhar is in Pakistan. According to my information, he is very unwell. He is unwell to the extent that he can’t leave his house, because he’s really unwell,” Pakistan foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi told CNN during an interview.

When asked why doesn’t Pakistan arrest him as he is the cause of incredible disturbance in the region, Qureshi said that Pakistan will take action against him if presented with “evidence that can stand in a court of law.”

“If they have solid, inalienable evidence that is acceptable to courts of Pakistan, share it with us so that we can convince the people and we can convince the independent judiciary of Pakistan,” the foreign minister said, adding that there is a “need to satisfy the legal process.”

India has handed over a dossier to Pakistan with “specific details of JeM complicity in Pulwama terror attack and the presence of JeM terror camps and its leadership in Pakistan.” It also contains details of Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) chief Maulana Masood Azhar’s anti-India speeches and claims of attacks by Jaish on security forces in the past two years, official sources said.

India had started pushing for Azhar’s listing since 2008-09, after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. The most recent effort began after India blamed JeM for the attack on the IAF base in Pathankot on January 2, 2016, and proposed a month later to designate Azhar as a global terrorist. The United States, United Kingdom and France have now moved a fresh proposal against Azhar.

If the proposal is passed at the UNSC, Azhar will be tagged as a ‘UN-designated global terrorist’, which in turn would subject him to a global travel ban, asset freeze and arms embargo.

Notably, in a significant shift of tone, Qureshi also said Pakistan will welcome any step that leads to the de-escalation of tensions with India when asked about the designation of Azhar as a global terrorist by the United Nations Security Council.