Guwahati: The ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Monday listed Abdul Rehman Makki, as a global terrorist with ties to Pakistan, to its list of international terrorists.
This categorization comes after China blocked India’s attempt to designate the leader of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) as a global terrorist last year. In June 2022, India criticised China for opposing the listing of terrorist Abdul Rehman Makki under the UNSC 1267 Committee’s Sanctions Committee.
“On 16 January 2023, the Security Council Committee pursuant to resolutions 1267 (1999), 1989 (2011) and 2253 (2015) concerning ISIL (Da’esh), Al-Qaida, and associated individuals, groups, undertakings and entities approved the addition of the entry specified below to its ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions List of individuals and entities subject to the assets freeze, travel ban and arms embargo set out in paragraph 1 of Security Council resolution 2610 (2021) and adopted under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations,” the UN said in a statement.
Makki has already been designated a terrorist by domestic legislation in India and the US. He has taken part in fund-raising, recruiting, radicalizing and planning terrorist strikes in India, particularly in Jammu and Kashmir.
Hafiz Saeed, the leader of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the architect of the 26/11 attacks is married to Makki. In the US-designated foreign terrorist organisation LeT he has held a variety of senior positions (FTO). He has also contributed to the effort to raise money for LeT operations.
According to the US State Department, Makki was found guilty of financing terrorism on one count in 2020 and received a prison sentence.
China has already put obstacles in the way of known terrorists being listed, especially those from Pakistan. It had repeatedly rejected attempts to identify Maulana Masood Azhar, the leader of the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorist group based in Pakistan and prohibited by the UN.