It was in 2009 that India had first moved to list Azhar as a UN-listed terrorist. It was a lone proposer back then. Gradually other countries started appreciating India's position on this issue.
New Delhi: Finally, after long diplomatic negotiations, India has managed to get Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Maulana Masood Azhar designated as a global terrorist. It was a major victory for the Indian government as China finally stepped back, paving the way for the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to blacklist Azhar on Wednesday.
The blacklisting of Azhar comes 20 years after he was released when Pakistan-based terrorists hijacked Indian Airlines Flight 814 and took it to Taliban-controlled Kandahar. The motive of the hijack was not only to secure the release of Azhar, but other terrorists as well. All the released terrorists found safe houses in Pakistan and in years to follow masterminded many terror attacks in India. Azhar's JeM is responsible for the Parliament attack (2001), Pathankot attack (2016) and Pulwama attack (2019).
The sanctions committee of the UNSC was established in 1999 under Resolution 1267, which imposed limited sanctions on the Taliban. Over time, the sanctions regime has evolved to include a lot of measures against designated individuals and entities.
Also read: Who is Masood Azhar and how Jaish-e-Mohammed became the deadliest terror outfit
The sanctions committee also oversees the implementation of the sanctions and reports annually to the UNSC on the implementation of these measures.
1. Azhar's designation as a global terrorist will force Pakistan to act against him and his associates. This will effectively mean total immobilisation of Azhar and shutdown of his organisation and its institutions such as terror camps and madrasas.
2. After the ban, Azhar will be put under a travel and arms embargo, which means he can be arrested if he tries to travel. The Indian agencies have been claiming that Azhar is hiding in Pakistan and have been running his terror outfit from there, though Pakistan has denied the allegation. The travel ban entails preventing the entry into or transit by all states through their territories by designated individuals.
3. This move will also break Jaish's financial funding as its assets will be freezed. Funds and other financial assets or economic resources will be freezed without a delay. The JeM is already a proscribed organisation worldwide.
4. Under the arms embargo, all states are required to prevent the direct or indirect supply, sale and transfer of arms from their territories or by their nationals outside their territories to Azhar and his outfit.
Also read: China relents, UN declares Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar global terrorist
5. It is a huge diplomatic win for India as it had garnered support from all the major countries. India has been, for a decade, trying to list Azhar as an international terrorist. It was in 2009 that New Delhi had first moved to list Azhar as a UN-listed terrorist. It was a lone proposer back then.
Gradually other countries started appreciating India's position on this issue. In 2016, the UK, the US and France made a proposal, which was blocked by China. The move in February 2019 saw global support with 14 out of 15 members of the UNSC backing the move for the blacklisting of Azhar. The proposal was moved by the US, the UK, France and co-sponsored by Australia, Bangladesh, Italy and Japan.
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