Washington (Web Desk): The United States has backed India’s move to declare Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed, Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) leader Masood Azhar, Lashkar-e-Taiba leader Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi and Dawood Ibrahim as terrorists under a new law.
The US State Department’s Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs quoted Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Ambassador Alice Wells as saying that the US stood with India on the matter.
“We stand [with] India [and] commend it for utilising new legal authorities to designate 4 notorious terrorists: Maulana Masood Azhar, Hafiz Saeed, Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi & Dawood Ibrahim. This new law expands possibilities for joint US-India efforts to combat scourge of terrorism.”
The statement comes a day after India’s Ministry of Home Affairs issued a notification declaring Masood Azhar and Hafiz Muhammad Saeed as terrorists under a new law. as ‘terrorists’ under clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 35 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967.