Masood Azhar designated 'global terrorist': Pakistan to 'immediately enforce UN sanctions'

Pakistan will immediately enforce the UN sanctions imposed on Masood Azhar after the Security Council designated the Jaish-e-Mohammed chief as 'global terrorist', Pakistan foreign office spokesman Mohammad Faisal said.

"Formal action will be taken on three counts: travel ban, arms embargo and travel restrictions. That is the requirement...Pakistan is a responsible state and we will take appropriate action," he said.

The spokesman said Islamabad rejected earlier proposals to list Azhar as terrorist as those efforts had a political agenda and aimed at maligning Pakistan.

"Pakistan maintains that terrorism is a menace to the world...The UNSC 1267 Sanctions Committee listing is governed by clear rules and its decisions are taken through consensus...Pakistan has always advocated the need for respecting these technical rules and has opposed the politicisation of the committee," Faisal said.

"Earlier proposals to list Azhar failed to generate the requisite consensus in the Sanctions Committee as the information did not meet its technical criteria...These proposals were aimed at maligning Pakistan...And were thus rejected by Pakistan," he said, noting that "the current listing proposal has been agreed after all political references, including removal of attempts to link it with Pulwama".

Faisal asserted that the UN decision "will not impact the struggle of Kashmiris and Pakistan would continue to support them".

Pakistan will continue to extend diplomatic, moral and political support to the Kashmiris, he said.

A UNSC designation will subject Azhar to an assets freeze, travel ban and an arms embargo. 

An assets freeze under the Sanctions Committee requires that all states freeze without delay the funds and other financial assets or economic resources of designated individuals and entities. 

The travel ban entails preventing the entry into or transit by all states through their territories by designated individuals. 

Under the arms embargo, all states are required to prevent the direct or indirect supply, sale and transfer from their territories or by their nationals outside their territories, or using their flag vessels or aircraft, of arms and related materiel of all types, spare parts, and technical advice, assistance, or training related to military activities, to designated individuals and entities.

China, which lifted its technical hold on listing Masood Azhar as a global terrorist by the UN, said that it took the decision after it found no objection to the listing proposal by the US, the UK and France following a careful study of the revised materials.  

China removed its hold on the proposal, which was moved by France, UK and the US in the Security Council's 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee in February just days after the deadly Pulwama terror attack carried out by the Pakistan-based terror outfit JeM.

A known fugitive, 50-year-old Azhar, who formed the JeM in 2000, was branded the brain behind various suicide strikes in India and known to have finetuned terror tactics which included survey of potential targets before carrying out the attack.

The proposal to designate Azhar under the 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council was moved by France, UK and the US on February 27.