Pakistan govt cracks down on militant groups

March 6, 2019

TEHRAN - In a significant move, Pakistani authorities have reportedly detained 44 members of various militant groups, including relatives of Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) chief Masood Azhar,

Azhar’s JeM was allegedly responsible for the February terror attack in India-controlled Kashmir that brought the two warring neighbors to the brink of full-fledged war last week.

A senior Pakistani government official was quoted saying that those arrested would be held for at least 14 days, and would be prosecuted if further evidence was found against them.

India had shared a dossier with Pakistan following the Kashmir attack that killed 44 Indian paramilitary police forces personnel.

In Tuesday's press conference, the government official alleged that the Indian dossier, shared with Pakistan on Thursday, lacked prosecutable evidence.

“There are some things that were mentioned in the Indian dossier, but they did not provide evidence," he said. "Until they provide us evidence, we have taken some people into protective custody and we will investigate it.”

He said the operation launched by Pakistan was aimed at all armed groups operating on Pakistani soil, not just JeM and relatives of Azhar.

The move came a day after Pakistan's government passed a regulation authorizing the seizure of assets of armed groups that have been sanctioned by the United Nations.

"The objective of the UNSC (Freezing and Seizure) Order 2019 is to streamline the procedure for implementation of Security Council Sanctions against designated individuals and entities," Pakistan's foreign ministry said in a statement on Monday.