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US declares Pahalgam attack's ‘The Resistance Front’ as terrorists
State Secretary Marco Rubio described the terror outfit as a "front and proxy" of Lashkar-e-Taiba, a UN-designated terrorist group that is based in Pakistan.
The United States on Thursday designated 'The Resistance Front', which claimed responsibility for the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in India, as terrorists.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the terror outfit as a "front and proxy" of Lashkar-e-Taiba, a UN-designated terrorist group that is based in Pakistan.
In a statement, Rubio said, the terrorist designation "demonstrates the Trump administration's commitment to protecting our national security interests, countering terrorism, and enforcing President (Donald) Trump's call for justice for the Pahalgam attack."
"Today, the Department of State is adding The Resistance Front (TRF) as a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT)," the official statement read.
"TRF and other associated aliases have been added to LeT's designation as a FTO and SDGT pursuant to section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act and Executive Order 13224, respectively. The Department of State has also reviewed and maintained the FTO designation of LeT. Amendments to FTO designations go into effect upon publication in the Federal Registrar," the note attached to the official statement read.
On April 22, terrorists descended down the Baisaran valley in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam and opened fire at tourists in the area, killing 26 people, mostly civilians. The attack sparked widespread outrage across India, with several global countries, including the US, expressing solidarity with the nation in its fight against terrorism.
Trump had immediately called Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the tragic attack to convey condolences for the lost lives.
He said that the US stood with India in its fight against terrorism and offered all possible support to New Delhi.
PM Modi thanked the US President, saying that India is determined to bring perpetrators and supporters of this cowardly attack to justice.
At the time, Trump had also said that the Pahalgam attack was a "bad one". Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, he had said, "I am very close to India, and I'm very close to Pakistan, and they've had that fight for a thousand years in Kashmir. Kashmir has been going on for a thousand years, probably longer than that. That was a bad one (terrorist attack)."
Pahalgam attack and Operation Sindoor
In one of the deadliest terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir since the 2019 Pulwama bombing, terrorists killed 26 people, mostly civilians, in Pahalgam's Baisaran meadow on April 22.
The Resistance Front (TRF), an offshoot of Lashkar-e-Taiba, had claimed responsibility for the attack.
Tensions between India and Pakistan severely escalated following the attack, with New Delhi announcing a series of stern measures against Islamabad, including the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, expulsion of Pakistani military attaches in the country, and the immediate shutdown of the Attari-Wagah border.
ALSO READ | 'Will heed to ceasefire': Pakistan speaks of dialogue with India, but denies Pahalgam role
India had also revoked all visas issued to Pakistani nationals and given them a deadline to leave the country at the earliest.
Nearly two weeks after the attack, on May 7, the Indian armed forces launched Operation Sindoor, launching precision strikes on nine terrorist infrastructure sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Under this operation, more than 100 terrorists were killed, and infrastructures linked to outfits such as Lashkar-e-Taiba, Hizbul Mujahideen, and Jaish-e-Mohammad were destroyed.
Pakistan attempted to launch a retaliatory military action against India, firing drones in Jammu and Kashmir and other border regions. However, the majority of these attacks were thwarted by India's air defense system and armed forces.
ALSO READ | India's 5 big moves against Pakistan: One month since Pahalgam terror attack
In between, to respond to Pakistani strikes, India also attacked the air bases of Islamabad, including Nur Khan, Murid, Jacobabad, and Bholari air bases.
After four days of intense fighting, Pakistan's director general of military operations reached out to his Indian counterpart over a hotline on May 10 and requested a ceasefire.
Following discussions between the two neighbouring countries, a ceasefire understanding was reached, and all military actions, on land, sea, and air, were halted.
Who are The Resistance Front?
The Resistance Front (TRF), a proxy outfit of Hafiz Saeed's Lashkar-e-Taiba, claimed responsibility for the April 22 Pahalgam attack.
The terror outfit is known to target civilians, including migrant workers, Kashmiri Pandits, etc., in Jammu and Kashmir for the past three to four years.
TRF is also responsible for the twin-drone attacks at the Jammu Indian Air Force (IAF) station in June 2021 as well as several instances of dropping weapons and explosives using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) sent from across the border.
Several assessments by the Indian intelligence agencies revealed that the TRF is nothing but the core LeT group, HT had reported.
“The highly skilled terrorists of LeT are behind all these attacks on civilians since 2020. Following Pulwama attack and abrogation of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir, the name ‘TRF’ was popped up by anti-India planners in Pakistan Army and ISI in 2019 to avoid scrutiny from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF),” a counterterrorism official said.
The officer further said that the modus operandi adopted by Pakistan through the TRF is to create an atmosphere of fear among locals and civilians in the valley.
In January 2023, the ministry of home affairs had banned The Resistance Front under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and declared its commander, Sajjad Gul, an individual terrorist in 2022.
“TRF came into existence in the year 2019 as a proxy outfit of Lashkar-e-Taiba, a proscribed terrorist organisation listed at serial number 5 of the first schedule under the UAPA. TRF has been involved in carrying out propaganda on terror activities, recruitment of terrorists, infiltration of terrorists and smuggling of weapons and narcotics from Pakistan into Jammu and Kashmir,” the MHA said in its notification in 2023.
