Ahead of the subsequent assembly this month of the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the worldwide watchdog for terror financing and cash laundering, Pakistan has scrambled into motion by registering two circumstances in opposition to Maulana Masood Azhar, Rauf Asgar and Sajid Mir— high leaders of the jihadi group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). It has additionally carried out raids to find Azhar however, reportedly, unsuccessfully. “They have knowledgeable that raids have been carried out at Bahawalpur however solely Masood Azhar’s spouse and some aides have been discovered at that residence,” officials aware of the developments told News18. Pakistan is likely to officially inform FATF of these steps in its bid to get off the agency’s grey list.
The FATF in 2018 placed Pakistan on the grey list of countries whose domestic laws are considered weak to tackle challenges of money laundering and terrorism financing. The agency was formed by the 1989 G7 Summit in Paris and was charged with studying money laundering trends, monitoring legislative, financial and law enforcement activities taken at the national and international level, reporting on compliance, and issuing recommendations and standards to combat money laundering. Its mandate was expanded to include terrorist financing following the September 11, 2001 al-Qaeda attacks in the United States. The watchdog blacklists countries which it judges to be disregarding the global fight against money laundering and terrorist financing, calling them Non-Cooperative Countries or Territories (NCCTs). Such an outcome would be a crippling blow for Pakistan, which is grappling with double-digit inflation, high interest rates and spiralling unemployment.
In May 2019, the United Nations designated Masood Azhar a “global terrorist”. He is a fugitive launched by India in alternate for passengers of the hijacked Indian Airlines airplane IC-814 in 1999. After his launch, Azhar fashioned the JeM and scripted many terror strikes in India. Jaish claimed accountability for the Pulwama assault of February 14, 2019, during which 40 CRPF personnel have been killed. Twelve days later, India launched airstrikes on JeM’s greatest coaching camp in Pakistan’s Balakot.
In January this 12 months, an anti-terrorism court docket (ATC) choose at Pakistan’s Gujranwala, Natasha Naseem Supra, issued an arrest warrant for JeM chief Azhar on fees of terror financing. This was completed after disclosure by Pakistani authorities of his presence within the nation. This was an enormous departure from the previous when Islamabad had refused to acknowledge that Azhar was in Pakistan. India has learnt {that a} second case was registered in opposition to Azhar, Rauf Asghar and Sajid Mir just a few weeks in the past. India feels all these actions are as a result of of the upcoming FATF meet.
Pakistan had complied with 24 out of a compulsory 27-point motion plan by February this 12 months when FATF reviewed the progress. Officials stated it has additionally tried to fulfill two different factors by registering circumstances in opposition to Azhar, and acknowledging that he’s current in Pakistan. “In the June assembly, Pakistan might present compliance in 26 out of 27 factors and these raids are to show that motion is being taken,” sources said.
Pakistan is hoping to get out of the grey list of the watchdog after its plenary scheduled from June 21-25. The country could seek more time to implement the 27th point on the action plan citing the Covid pandemic.
The counts on which Pakistan was found wanting in February were:
- Demonstrating that TF (terrorism financing) investigations and prosecutions target persons and entities acting on behalf or at the direction of the designated persons or entities;
- Demonstrating that TF prosecutions result in effective, proportionate and dissuasive sanctions; and
- Demonstrating effective implementation of targeted financial sanctions against all 1267 and 1373 designated terrorists, specifically those acting for or on their behalf.
At the February plenary, FATF president Dr Marcus Pleyer had said, “Pakistan remains under increased monitoring. It had made significant progress but some serious deficiencies in mechanisms to plug terrorism financing remained.”
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