'Pak-Based Terror Groups Like LeT, JeM Operate With Impunity, Encouragement': India At UNSC

"Whether it is in Afghanistan or against India, groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed continue to operate with both impunity and encouragement," Jaishankar said.

New Delhi: Drawing a parallel between Coronavirus and the global scourge of terrorism, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar on Thursday said that what is true of Covid is even more true of terrorism: none of us are safe until all of us are safe.

While speaking at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meet, the minister said that groups like the LeT and JeM continue to operate with both impunity and encouragement and pointed out that no country should provide sanctuaries to them, as he recalled the Mumbai, Pathankot and Pulwama attacks carried out by Pakistan-based terrorists.

"Whether it is in Afghanistan or against India, groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed continue to operate with both impunity and encouragement. It is, therefore, vital that this Council does not take a selective, tactical or even a complacent view of the problems we face," Jaishankar said.

"We must never countenance sanctuaries for terrorists or overlook the raising of their resources," said Jaishankar, as he chaired the Security Council briefing on 'Threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts', held under India's current Presidency of the 15-member Council.

While indirectly hitting out at Pakistan where proscribed UN terrorists and terror groups enjoy safe havens and state support, Jaishankar said when we see state hospitality being extended to those with innocents' blood on their hands, we should never lack the courage to call out this double-speak.

The UNSC briefing considered the 13th report of the Secretary General on the threat posed by ISIL (Da'esh) to international peace and security. The  Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant Khorasan have expanded its presence in several provinces of Afghanistan and strengthened its positions in and around Kabul, the August 3 report stated.

The report said that one of the main risks identified by member states is that "militants in Afghanistan, from the Taliban or other groups, may join the Da'esh affiliate if they feel alienated or threatened by developments in the Afghan peace process.

"In our own immediate neighborhood, ISIL-Khorasan (ISIL-K) has become more energetic & is constantly seeking to expand its footprint. Events unfolding in Afghanistan have naturally enhanced global concerns about their implications for both regional and international security," Jaishankar pointed out. 

(With inputs from PTI)