2008 Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed. 2008 Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed. The Imran Khan-led government in Pakistan on Thursday banned 2008 Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed-led Jamat-ud-Dawa (JuD) and its charity wing Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation, a spokesperson of the Interior Ministry said. The decision was taken during a meeting of the National Security Committee at the Prime Minister’s Office in the wake of the Pulwama attacks in which 40 CRPF men were killed. “It was decided during the meeting to accelerate action against proscribed organisations,” a statement later issued by the spokesperson read. VIDEO | What is Jaish-e-Mohammed, the terror group that carried out Pulwama attack “It was further decided that Jamat-ud-Dawa and Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation be notified as proscribed organizations by the Ministry of Interior,” the statement added. The two outfits were on the watchlist of the interior ministry. During the Pakistan general elections last year, JuD, who had fielded its candidates under the banner of Allahu Akbar Tehreek, had failed to secure a single seat. The party had put up candidates for 80 National Assembly seats, and also contested for the provincial assemblies. Saeed himself had led the campaign by addressing several rallies.<doc-sep>Islamabad: Pakistan on Thursday banned the 2008 Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed-led Jamat-ud-Dawa and its charity wing Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation, amid intense global pressure to rein in the terror groups following the Pulwama attack that killed 40 CRPF soldiers. A spokesman of the Interior Ministry said that the decision to ban these groups was taken during a meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC) chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan at his office on Thursday. "It was decided during the meeting to accelerate action against proscribed organisations," the spokesperson said in a statement. "It was further decided that Jamat-ud-Dawa and Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation be notified as proscribed organizations by the Ministry of Interior," he added. The decision has been taken just a day ahead of the concluding session of the Financial Action Task Force meeting takes place in Paris. According to sources, India has intensified its efforts to get Pakistan blacklisted by the watchdog after the Pulwama attack, for not cracking down on terror financing. Two Indian government officials dealing with the issue said a new dossier had been provided to the FATF relating to Pakistan after the car bombing last week. Pakistan was put on the grey list by the FATF in June 2018, and was warned that it may further be downgraded if it does not act against terror groups operating from its soil. If FATF puts Pakistan on the black list, the country’s economy may suffer a huge blow owing to downgrading of ratings. While there are no direct legal implications from being on the list, it brings extra scrutiny from regulators and financial institutions that can chill trade and investment and increase transaction costs, experts said. Pakistan PM Imran Khan, left, chairs a meeting of the National Security Committee in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Thursday. (Photo: PTI) However, it remains to be seen how effective the latest ban would be on the two groups, which have the tacit backing of the political leaders and the security agencies. Earlier, the two outfits were kept on the watchlist of the interior ministry. According to officials, JuD's network includes 300 seminaries and schools, hospitals, a publishing house and ambulance service. The two groups have about 50,000 volunteers and hundreds of other paid workers. The JuD is believed to be the front organisation for the LeT which is responsible for carrying out the Mumbai attack that killed 166 people. It has been declared as a foreign terrorist organisation by the US in June 2014. The US Department of the Treasury has designated its chief Saeed as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist, and the US, since 2012, has offered a USD 10 million reward for information that brings Saeed to justice. Saeed was listed under UN Security Council Resolution 1267 in December 2008. He was released from house arrest in Pakistan in November 2017. Pakistan's move comes amid mounting global pressure to act against the terrorist outfits operating from its soil. Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad claimed the responsibility of the Pulwama suicide attack that killed 40 CRPF soldiers on February 14. US President Donald Trump has repeatedly accused Pakistan of providing "safe haven" to terrorists and asked Islamabad to rein in the terror groups operating from its soil. Iran and Afghanistan also accuse Pakistan of providing support to terror groups to carry out attacks in the neighbouring countries. Last week, Iran asked Pakistan to crack down on militants who killed 27 of its Revolutionary Guards in an attack near the border or expect military action by Tehran "to punish the terrorists". The NSC meeting also reviewed the National Action Plan against terrorism in detail. Services chiefs and key ministers were in attendance. "We need to move to ensure that militancy and extremism are rooted from the society and the State never becomes hostage to extremists," Khan said as he directed both the interior ministry and the security institutions to immediately accelerate actions on ground.<doc-sep>The Pakistan government on Thursday banned Hafiz Saeed-led Jamat-ut-Dawa (JuD). The decision was taken in the National Security Committee (NSC) meeting chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan to review the National Action Plan in detail. Hafiz Saeed is the mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. He formed Jamat-ut-Dawa after Lashkar-e-Taiba was banned by the Pakistan government. "It was decided during the meeting to accelerate action against proscribed organizations. It was further decided that Jamat-ut-Dawa and Falah-e- Insaniat Foundation be notified as proscribed organizations by the Ministry of Interior," a statement by Government of Pakistan said. Govt of #Pakistan confirmed the decision taken by NSC direction to issue notification of banning JuD & FIF #PulwamaAttack #Pulwama pic.twitter.com/fzgxhiTKnK Saurav Ojha (@sauravojha16) February 21, 2019 PM Imran Khan chaired a key meeting of the National Security Council (NSC) during which the country's security situation was discussed, amidst heightened tensions between India and Pakistan following the Pulwama terror attack. Pakistan's decision to ban JuD has come a day before the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) planary meeting where the measures taken by Islamabad to curb money laundering and terror financing were to be reviewed. Pakistan was put on the FATF grey list in June 2018 and was put on notice to be blacklisted by October 2019 if it didn't curb money laundering and terror financing. PULWAMA FALLOUT The decision is a culmination of a series of events, starting from the February 14 Pulwama terror attack. Over 40 CRPF personnel were killed in a Jaish-e-Mohammed suicide attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama. The terror group is based in Pakistan. Following this, Pakistan drew condemnation from across the world and India geared up to sideline Islamabad at the international stage.<doc-sep>Pakistan has re-instated a ban on two charities linked to Hafiz Saeed, the founder of prominent Islamist militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), that has carried out attacks in India, the interior ministry said on February 22. The ban comes as Pakistan faces international pressure to act against militant groups, amid escalating tension with its nuclear-armed neighbour, India, following a suicide bomb attack on Indian police in the disputed region of Kashmir. The attack, in which 40 Indian paramilitary troops were killed, was claimed by the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) militant group. Pakistan's National Security Committee, made up of top military and civilian officials, decided late on Thursday to ban the charities liked to LeT founder Saeed, who has long been on a U.N. international terrorism blacklist. The United States and India have blamed the LeT for numerous deadly militant attacks, including a four-day siege by gunmen in the Indian city of Mumbai in 2008 that killed 166 people. The United States has offered $10 million for information leading to Saeed's his arrest and conviction. "It was decided during the meeting to accelerate action against proscribed organisations," Pakistan's interior ministry said in a statement. Saeed, who denies being the mastermind of the Mumbai attacks and says he has no links to militant violence, has maintained that the two charities - the Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) and Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation (FIF) - are vital for helping the poor and have militant ties. JuD spokesman Yahya Mujahid said the two groups would turn to the courts to overturn the latest ban. Saeed has been placed under house arrest several times over the past decade but he has always been released after a few months and has mostly been living freely in Pakistan, to the anger of both India and the United States. Pakistan has long banned the LeT but for many years allowed its charity wings to operate an extensive network including 300 seminaries and schools, hospitals, a publishing house and ambulance services. The United States has repeatedly complained about Pakistan's failure to shut down the charities it deems "terrorist fronts" for LeT. Pakistan last year banned the two charities but the order was temporary and it lapsed. India has ratcheted up pressure on Pakistan since the Feb. 14 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir. India accused Pakistan of having a hand in the attack. Pakistan denies that. Pakistan has also been placed on an international watchlist for failing to curb terrorist financing.<doc-sep>
Pakistan on Thursday banned the 2008 Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed-led Jamat-ud-Dawa and its charity wing Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation, amid intense global pressure to rein in the militant groups following the Pulwama terror attack that killed 40 CRPF soldiers. A spokesman of the Interior Ministry said that the decision to ban these groups was taken during a meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC) chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan at his office on Thursday. "It was decided during the meeting to accelerate action against proscribed organisations," the spokesperson said in a statement. "It was further decided that Jamat-ud-Dawa and Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation be notified as proscribed organizations by the Ministry of Interior," he added. Earlier, the two outfits were kept on the watchlist of the interior ministry. According to officials, JuD's network includes 300 seminaries and schools, hospitals, a publishing house and ambulance service. The two groups have about 50,000 volunteers and hundreds of other paid workers. The JuD is believed to be the front organisation for the LeT which is responsible for carrying out the Mumbai attack that killed 166 people. It has been declared as a foreign terrorist organisation by the US in June 2014. The US Department of the Treasury has designated its chief Saeed as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist, and the US, since 2012, has offered a USD 10 million reward for information that brings Saeed to justice. Saeed was listed under UN Security Council Resolution 1267 in December 2008. He was released from house arrest in Pakistan in November 2017. The NSC meeting also reviewed the National Action Plan against terrorism in detail. Services chiefs and key ministers were in attendance. "We need to move to ensure that militancy and extremism are rooted from the society and the State never becomes hostage to extremists," Khan said as he directed both the interior ministry and the security institutions to immediately accelerate actions on ground.