'Petty geopolitical interests': India slams China for blocking UNSC listing of Sajid Mir as terrorist; Who is he-

New Delhi, June 20: In a scathing attack on China, India slammed the country for indulging in "petty geopolitical interests" after it blocked India and US’s joint proposal to list Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist Sajid Mir as a global terrorist.

 

 

 

In a sharply worded statement at the United Nations counter-terror meeting, Indian diplomat Prakash Gupta said that "something is seriously wrong" with the global anti-terrorism architecture that despite getting co-sponsored from various member countries the proposal couldn’t pass the key hurdle.

"If we cannot get established terrorists who have been banned across global landscapes proscribed by the United Nations — for petty geopolitical interests —then we really do not have the genuine political will to sincerely fight this challenge of terrorism," Gupta, Joint Secretary, UN Political at Ministry of External Affairs, said.

 

 

Without naming China, he urged the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) members to close some critical gaps and "avoid double standards and this self-defeating justification of good terrorists vs bad terrorists."

 

"A terror act is a terror act, period. Any justification being used should not be countenanced upon by anybody," he added.

 

China had put a technical hold on the proposal in September last year after India and the United States submitted a proposal to the United Nations Security Council’s (UNSC) 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee to designate Mir, who is wanted for his involvement in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, which killed 166 people and injured over 300.

 

On Tuesday, China effectively blocked a proposal to designate the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist Sajid Mir as a global terrorist. For a proposal to be adopted, it needs consensus from all the member countries. Had the proposal been passed to list Mir as a global terrorist, he would have been subjected to assets freeze, travels ban and arms embargo.

Sajid Mir is India's most wanted terrorist and was involved in the 2008 Mumbai attacks. He was responsible for the largest ever overseas LeT terror attack resulting in the death of nationals of several countries including India and Western countries. During the attack, 175 people were killed (18 Police personnel, 122 people, 26 Foreigners and 9 terrorists) and 291 were injured ( 25 Police personnel, 243 people, 22 foreigners and one terrorist Ajmal Kasab).

 

Mir, who is believed to be in the mid-40s, was LeT Project Manager for the November 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. He, through satellite phone, instructed the terrorists involved in the attacks for executing hostages during the operation. He is also actively involved in the launching of LeT operatives into India. He looked after the security of Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi (LeT Operations Chief), responsible for anti-India terror operations.

 

 

Sajid Mir was also involved in overseas recruitment/training activities for LeT and travelled to UAE, Bangladesh, Canada, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Saudi Arabia in Connection with operational work. In 2003, a LeT module controlled by him was busted in Australia. Sajid Mir reportedly underwent plastic surgery in 2008.

 

Two Interpol notices RCN A-6269/10-2010 and A-2032/2-2019 are issued against him. India has listed him as a terrorist under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act [UA(P)A], 1967, as amended in 2019 in October 2020. Pakistan arrested Sajid Mir in 2022 and sentenced him in May 2022 to 15 years on terrorist financing charges related to a charity set up by LeT founder Hafiz Muhammad Saeed.

 

Mir was indicted in the US District Court, Northern District of Illinois on April 21, 2011, and was charged with conspiracy to injure the property of a foreign government; providing material support to terrorists; killing a citizen outside of the US, aiding and abetting; and the bombing of places of public use. An arrest warrant was issued on April 22, 2011. Then Mir was designated as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) in August 2012.

US Department of States in November 2018 announced a reward of upto USD 5 million for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Mir. Federal Bureau of Investigation, in March 2019, included Mir in its most wanted terrorist list.