TIL Desk/World/Islamabad/ In a major move ahead of the general elections in Pakistan, the US today designated Milli Muslim League, the political front of Hafiz Saeed-led Jamaat-ud Dawa, as a foreign terrorist organisation.
In a simultaneous move, seven members of MML central leadership body have been designated as foreign terrorist. The US also added Tehreek-e-Azadi-e-Kashmir to the list of terrorist groups. TAJK is said to be a front of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba, which according to the Trump administration, continues to operate freely inside Pakistan.
The move comes a day after the Election Commission of Pakistan asked the MML to produce a clearance certificate by the interior ministry for its registration as a political party. The election commission had earlier rejected the MML’s application for registration as a political party after the interior ministry objected to its ties to banned militant outfits.
The US State Department said the move was aimed at denying the LeT the resources it needs to plan and carry out further terrorist attacks. “Both MML and TAJK are LeT fronts created to circumvent the sanctions against it (LeT)…Today’s amendments take aim at LeT’s efforts to circumvent sanctions and deceive the public about its true character,” said Nathan A Sales, Coordinator for Counterterrorism at the Department of State.
