US declares MML, TAK terrorist outfits

WASHINGTON: In an expected move, the US State Department on Monday included the Milli Muslim League (MML) and Tehreek-e-Azadi-e- Kashmir (TAK) to its list Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) while identifying both as the front organisations of the Lashkar-e-Taiba.

“Today’s amendments show that the US government is not fooled by Lashkar-e-Taiba’s efforts to circumvent sanctions and deceive the public about its true character,” Ambassador Nathan Sales, the coordinator for Counterterrorism at the State Department said in a statement. “Make No mistake: whatever the LeT chooses to call itself, it remains a violent terrorist group. The United States supports all efforts to ensure that the LeT does not have a political voice until it gives up violence as a tool of influence,” the statement further said.

The amended FTO designated list already has the Lashkar-e-Taiba on it. The inclusion of Milli Muslim League was suggested late last year during an India-US conference. Meanwhile, the US Treasury Department has also added seven members of the MML’s council to the list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists. These seven members were identified as Saifullah Khalid, Muzammil Iqbal Hashimi, Muhammad Harris Dar, Tabish Qayyum, Fayyaz Ahmad, Faisal Nadeem and Muhammad Ehsan. Lashkar-e-Taiba was added to the Foreign Terrorist Organisation list in December 2001. Its founder, Hafiz Saeed, is considered a terrorist and has a 10 million dollars bounty on him. Tehreek-e- Azadi-e-Kashmir was formed last year after the Pakistani government banned Jamaatud Dawa.

The MML sprang up earlier last year, and its efforts to take part in elections were blocked by the Pakistani government. LeT members make up MML’s leadership and the so-called party openly displays Saeed’s likeness in its election banners and literature, the department noted.

These designations are the latest in a series of steps by the Trump administration to pressure Pakistan to act against terrorist groups.