Qureshi regrets int'l community's inaction despite evidence provided against India

• FM Qureshi regrets int'l community's inaction despite evidence provided against India's involvement in terrorist activities.
• Qureshi's response came after intelligence gathered proved that the mastermind behind the Lahore blast was an Indian citizen.
• Says If FATF doesn’t bring India to task regarding terror-financing, then it shows its double standards.

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Sunday once again condemned India's involvement in terrorist activities across Pakistan and said that had the international community taken timely notice of Pakistan’s concerns, Lahore's Johar Town blast would have not taken place and innocent lives would not have been lost.

Qureshi's response came after intelligence gathered proved that the mastermind behind the Lahore blast was an Indian citizen, having clear links with his country's spy agency, RAW.

Speaking to Geo News, the foreign minister said that he had earlier held a press conference alongside Adviser to the Prime Minister on National Security Moeed Yusuf to express Pakistan's concerns against India's involvement in destroying the peace in Pakistan, not only through the provision of arms but also through the financing and training of terrorists.

He said that India has also used Afghan soil to launch attacks in Pakistan from time to time.

"We have said it before too, and now India's involvement in the Lahore blast has strengthened our suspicions and have proved that whatever concerned we had [about India] were true," he said. "We still have concrete evidence that India is involved in terror financing."

Qureshi went on to say that given the clear-cut evidence of India’s involvement in terror financing, it is the duty of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to question why India is backing terrorist activities in Pakistan.

"If [FATF] doesn’t bring India to task, then it shows its double standards, and Pakistan has a right to raise an objection regarding these double standards," said the foreign minister. 

He said Pakistan had previously exposed India’s [wrongdoing] and has now done it again.

“To camouflage its atrocities in Kashmir and to take the attention away from its internal problems, India sometimes makes up incidents like the Pulwama attack, launches attacks on Pakistan’s border areas to which Pakistan gives a befitting response, and sometimes it trains terrorists," he said.

Speaking about Pakistan’s course of action regarding the latest revelation regarding the Lahore blast, he said that the Foreign Office would want to highlight the issue at an international level once again.

“We would want the international community to know that we had been saying it before too and had provided evidence against India’s involvement in terrorist activities in Pakistan, but a timely notice was not taken regarding the matter," he stressed.

“Had the international community taken timely notice of Pakistan’s concerns, the Johar Town blast would have not taken place and innocent lives would not have been lost. Several terrorist incidents in Balochistan would not have taken place either."

He said that Pakistan would once again share evidence [with the international community] and raise its concerns.

“We are facing a challenging situation but, by the grace of Allah, we are a responsible nation. Once we present evidence against India at the FATF and its member countries don’t pay heed, then we would know whether it’s a technical forum or a political one.”

When questioned how Pakistan would move forward after antagonising FATF, Qureshi said that Pakistan has to work towards its self-defence and uproot the menace of money-laundering which has done a lot of damage to Pakistan. 

"We have to fight against terror finance and while we have already done a lot, we have to bring those involved to justice," he said.

Mastermind behind Johar Town blast an Indian citizen, associated with RAW

Earlier in the day, Adviser to the Prime Minister on National Security Moeed Yusuf briefed the nation on intelligence gathered on the blast that took place in Lahore's Johar Town, saying that the main mastermind behind the attack is an Indian citizen and has clear links with RAW.

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, Yusuf who began in Urdu, also spoke in English at the end, to ensure that the international community has a clear idea of the findings.

"I want to make sure that our message is heard very clearly [regarding] this particular incident on the 23rd of June in Lahore. We have concrete evidence and intelligence, including financial and telephone records that point to direct Indian sponsorship of these terrorists.

"Through forensic analysis, electronic equipment which has been recovered from these terrorists, we have identified the main mastermind and the handlers of this terrorist attack and we have absolutely no doubt or reservation in informing you that the main mastermind belongs to RAW, the Indian intelligence agency, is an Indian national, and is based in India," he said.

Yusuf said that he would like to remind everyone that "Indian use of territory and people of third countries, which actually embarrasses other countries, is not new".

"We have been constantly reminding the world of Indian actions, including a detailed dossier that was put out last November with details, minute details of finances, of action, of support coming from India," said the national security adviser.

He drew attention to the recent report by EU DisinfoLab, an international reputed organisation, which provides a detailed account of how "hundreds and thousands of fake outlets were being used to malign Pakistan, to spread misinformation about Pakistan, and to hide what is actually a clear terrorist sponsorship by a state against another state in our region".

Yusuf said that "very unusually" there is also evidence of "thousands of attempts of cyber attacks against our critical investigative infrastructure right after this attack on the 23rd in Lahore".

"These attacks and the number and the sophistication in some cases leaves no doubt of state sponsorship and state linkage in this case."

He said that Pakistan's cybersecurity was strong enough to thwart the attempts but asked why the attacks took place, before going on to provide an answer.

"They were being conducted because our enemies wanted to buy time to deflect attention and to avoid the apprehending and capture of these terrorists that we managed to do," said the national security adviser.

Yusuf also pointed out the "drama" of mysterious drones flying in the Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir territory.

"What was the logic, is now very clear, and again with confidence we can put it out, that was a deflection tactic trying to divert attention of the world from the fact and they knew at that time we had not only apprehended culprits but we knew exactly what had been done behind the scenes and who was behind it."

The adviser said that the main executor, Eid Gul, has an Afghan origin and was living in Pakistan.

He said that Pakistan has constantly been flagging for the world the concern that "millions of law abiding Afghan refugees are given a bad name and Pakistan is blamed when these actors go and hide in these refugee settlements and then Pakistan is questioned on why one or two or five people who were miscreants, who were terrorists could not be apprehended".

Yusuf said that Pakistan reminds the world "of their duty to find a way for a dignified return of Afghan refugees and then questions may be asked".

"Till then, this is a very good example of the complication when something like this occurs," he said.

Yusuf said that Prime Minister Imran Khan has instructed his team "to use all possible legal and political means to get to the people outside Pakistan who are part of this international terrorist network".

"We will therefore be sharing all evidence with the international community and exposing the nefarious and real face of a state in our neighbourhood that has constantly sponsored terrorism against our innocent civilians."

The adviser called upon the international community to play its part saying it is "high time" it "stop turning a blind eye and play a constructive and legally binding role for the safety of innocent Pakistanis if they are really serious about peace and stability in the region".

IGP Punjab's briefing on the nature of the attack

Prior to Yusuf's briefing, Inspector General of Police Inam Ghani provided an account of the events leading up to the blast.

Ghani noted that the blast occurred at 11:09am on June 23 in Block E of Johar Town and a Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Device (VBIED) was used. As a result of the explosion, three citizens were killed and 22 were injured, including two policemen.

The explosion also destroyed 12 cars and seven houses.

He said that the police's Counter-Terrorism Department was immediately deployed to the site and it quickly cordoned off the area and established an operational base.

"Punjab's CTD has long been working on counter-terrorism and is at that stage of maturity where it can very quickly and capably connect the dots. As a result of this, not only did they unearth the entire plan [by the terrorists] within 16 hours of the incident, but also identified the names of all those involved."