Bilawal Bhutto says Masood Azhar may be in Afghanistan; Pakistan will act if India shares proof of his presence. Photo/X.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari,, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader and former foreign minister, in an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera, spoke about the chief of the terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Masood Azhar.
Bhutto said that if India provides a credible proof of Azhar’s presence on Pakistani soil, his governemnt will arrest the terrorist.
Bilawal Bhutto highlighted during the interview spkoe about involvement of Azhar in the Afghan jihad and suggested that Pakistan believes he may currently be in Afghanistan.
“It’s not possible for Pakistan to do what NATO couldn’t do in Afghanistan. There is no reason for us to want anyone of concern to be active,” he said, referencing the Western military withdrawal and the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan.
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“If and when the Indian government shares information with us that he is on Pakistani soil, we would be more than happy to arrest him,” Bhutto said, who is the member of the ruling coalition in Pakistan.
He however noted that so far New Delhi had not presented such evidence.
Masood Azhar is one of most-wanted terrorists in India and is linked to several high-profile terror attacks. These include the 2001 Indian Parliament attack, the 2008 Mumbai attacks, the 2016 Pathankot airbase assault, and the 2019 Pulwama suicide bombing that killed more than 40 secuirty forces. The United Nations has designated Bilawal Bhutto a global terrorist in 2019. He was previously released from Indian custody in 1999 as part of a hostage exchange following the Kandahar hijacking.
Bhutto strongly rejected the recent New York Times report that claiamed Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) founder Hafiz Saeed was roaming free in Pakistan.
“That’s factually not correct. Hafiz Saeed is in the custody of the Pakistani state,” he said.
Also Read: India Reinstates The Ban On Pakistani Celebrities’ Social Media Accounts Amid Outcry
Zubair Amin is a Senior Journalist at NewsX with over seven years of experience in reporting and editorial work. He has written for leading national and international publications, including Foreign Policy Magazine, Al Jazeera, The Economic Times, The Indian Express, The Wire, Article 14, Mongabay, News9, among others. His primary focus is on international affairs, with a strong interest in US politics and policy. He also writes on West Asia, Indian polity, and constitutional issues. Zubair tweets at zubaiyr.amin
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