UNITED NATIONS, Sep 28 (APP): India used its UN General Assembly address on Saturday to raise its oft-repeated accusations against Pakistan, calling the neighbouring country — without naming it — an “epicentre of global terrorism”.
“The most recent example of cross-border barbarism was the murder of innocent tourists in Pahalgam in April this year,” Extrenal Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar told the 193-member Assembly, an incident which Pakistan not only condemned but also called for credible, impartial and independent investigations that India ignored.
Instead, the Indian minister, said, “For decades now, major international terrorist attacks are traced back to that one country — UN’s designated lists of terrorists are replete with its nationals”.
In his regard, he cited the Pahalgam incident, saying, “India exercised its right to defend its people against terrorism and brought its organizers and perpetrators to justice” — without elaborating.
“When nations openly declare terrorism as state policy, when terror hubs operate on an industrial scale, when terrorists are publicly glorified, then such actions must be unequivocally condemned,” Jaishankar said.
“The financing of terrorism must be choked, even as prominent terrorists are sanctioned. Relentless pressure must be applied on the entire terrorism eco-system. Those who condone nations that sponsor terror will find that it comes back to bite them.”
On its part, Pakistan has been apprising the world community of its enormous sacrifices in combating terrorism, having lost more than 70,000 people and billions of dollars of economic losses and infrastructure damages.
At the same time, Pakistan highlights that India practices state-sponsored terrorism as policy at home and abroad.
Pakistan has also pointed out that proxies like TTP (Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan), BLA (Balochistan Liberation Army) and its Majeed Brigade, Indian-sponsored terrorism has not just claimed lives of thousands of innocent civilians in Pakistan, it has turned places of worship, learning, and livelihood into sites of carnage.