External affairs minister S Jaishankar on Friday welcomed the US government's decision to designate The Resistance Front (TRF) as a terrorist organisation.
The statement comes as the United States has designated TRF, which claimed responsibility for the deadly Pahalgam attack in Jammu and Kashmir, as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) entity.
In a post on X, Jaishankar said, “A strong affirmation of India-US counter-terrorism cooperation. Appreciate Marco Rubio and US state departmrnt for designating TRF—a Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT) proxy—as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT). It claimed responsibility for the April 22 Pahalgam attack. Zero tolerance for Terrorism. #OpSindoor.”
The TRF had claimed responsibility for the April 22 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, which led to the deaths of several security personnel.
{{/usCountry}}The TRF had claimed responsibility for the April 22 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, which led to the deaths of several security personnel.
{{/usCountry}}Earlier, the Indian embassy hailed the development as “another demonstration of strong India-USA counter-terrorism cooperation."
The statement by the Indian embassy in Washington read, “Appreciate the department of state for listing The Resistance Front (TRF) as a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization and Specially Designated Global Terrorist. TRF is a proxy of Lashkar-e-Tayyiba and claimed responsibility for the April 22 terror attack on civilians in Pahalgam. ZERO TOLERANCE for terrorism!”
TRF is widely acknowledged as a proxy for Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a Pakistan-based terror outfit already designated as a terrorist organisation by the UN.
‘Justice for Pahalgam attack’
Secretary of state Marco Rubio described TRF as a "front and proxy" of LeT, saying, “The terrorist designation demonstrates the Trump administration's commitment to protecting our national security interests, countering terrorism, and enforcing President Trump's call for justice for the Pahalgam attack.”
In a statement released earlier, the US state department noted that TRF had claimed responsibility not just for the deadly April 22 attack — which left 26 civilians dead, mostly tourists — but also for several other assaults on Indian security forces over the past year.
“Today, the Department of State is adding The Resistance Front (TRF) as a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT). TRF, a Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT) front and proxy, claimed responsibility for the April 22, 2025, Pahalgam attack which killed 26 civilians,” the Trump administration said.
“This was the deadliest attack on civilians in India since the 2008 Mumbai attacks conducted by LeT,” it added.
India launched Operation Sindoor and global outreach mission
Following the April 22 attack, India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7. The targeted offensive struck nine terror infrastructure sites across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), as a retaliatory measure.
According to Indian security forces, over 100 terrorists were neutralised during the cross-border strikes. In the days that followed, Pakistan reportedly launched drones and missiles into Indian territory.
India repelled the intrusions and responded with precision strikes, which ultimately led to Islamabad requesting a ceasefire on May 10.
In a diplomatic offensive that followed, New Delhi sent seven multi-party delegations to 33 global capitals, including Washington DC, to highlight Pakistan’s alleged continued support for terrorist groups operating in South Asia.