Pakistan blacklisted by Financial Action Task Force's group for providing safe havens to terrorists

The worst fears of Imran Khan government have come true. A sub-group of the Financial Action Task Force on Friday blacklisted Pakistan for providing safe havens for terrorists. The Asia Pacific Group of the FATF blacklisted Pakistan. On 11 effectiveness parameters, Pakistan was adjudged as low as 10. Despite its efforts, it could not convince the 41-member Plenary to upgrade it on any one parameter. The discussion lasted for over seven hours that ran into two days.

The FATF found Pakistan non-compliant on 32 of 40 compliance parameters on money laundering and terror financing, Indian officials were quoted as saying by news agency Press Trust of India. Pakistan has been trying to skirt this ban by taking certain sham measures. Pakistan reportedly halted intrusion across the Line of Control and shut down as many as 20 terror camps operating in the Pakistan Occupied Kashmir. For the uninitiated, the Financial Action Task Force is set to hear the case in connection with blacklisting Pakistan over money laundering and terror funding activities.

According to its official website, the FATF requires each country to identify, assess and understand the terrorist financing risks it faces in order to mitigate them and effectively dismantle and disrupt terrorist networks. Countries often face particular challenges in assessing terrorist financing risks due to the low value of funds or other assets used in many instances, and the wide variety of sectors misused for the purpose of financing terrorism.

In a blatant attempt to mislead the global community just before the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) meet in Bangkok, Pakistan registered fake and weak Police First Information Reports against terror outfits and terrorists operating on its soil. Some well-placed sources have provided hard evidence about Pakistan’s effort to mislead the Global community. On July 1, Gujranwala police station registered an FIR that was based on the information provided by a ‘source’ about a land deal by members of banned Daawat-wal-Irshad, subsidiary organisation of Lashkar-e-Tayyeba (LeT) headed by Hafiz Saeed.

According to a report by the Indian Express, the Pakistan Army has been avoiding using big guns during the ceasefire violations. The report said that the use of artillery guns has seen a sharp decline. Not just the high-calibre weapons, the overall ceasefire violations have also seen a major drop.