India Condemns Pakistan's Terrorism Ties Amid Pahalgam Attack

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson, Randhir Jaiswal, on Thursday, issued a strong condemnation of Pakistan for its persistent support of terrorism, citing the recent attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam as a blatant example of cross-border terrorism. During a weekly media briefing, Jaiswal also highlighted the extradition of 26/11 conspirator Tahawwur Rana from the U.S. and reminded the media of Pakistan's history of providing shelter to Osama bin Laden.

When questioned regarding U.S. statements suggesting Pakistan as a potential counter-terror cooperation partner, Jaiswal responded by underscoring Pakistan's well-documented track record. He reminded the audience that Dr. Shakil Afridi, key to locating bin Laden, remains jailed by Pakistani authorities. The remarks follow a controversial endorsement of Pakistan's counter-terror efforts by U.S. Central Command's Gen. Michael Kurilla, who noted Pakistan's role in capturing several significant IS-K figures.

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, speaking in Brussels, emphasized that the conflict is a response to terrorism, not a bilateral state conflict, urging the global community to think of the threat in terms of 'India-terroristan'. Stressing zero tolerance for terrorism, and rejecting nuclear blackmail, Jaishankar called for robust international collaboration against this shared threat. In response to the April 22 Pahalgam attack, India launched Operation Sindoor targeting terror infrastructures, leading to over 100 terrorist fatalities. After reciprocal cross-border aggression from Pakistan, both nations agreed to a ceasefire on May 10.

(With inputs from agencies.)