The killing of al-Qaeda Ayman Zawahiri in Kabul has confirmed India’s worst fears that terrorists and terror outfits are present and active in Afghanistan. At every forum, from the United Nations, the G20 to the Quad, New Delhi has been raising concerns that terror outfits are getting shelter in Afghanistan. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and India’s permanent representative to the UN have been drawing attention of the global community towards this issue. Top diplomatic sources told The Daily Guardian Review, “Killing of Zawahiri is the confirmation of India’s assertion that Afghanistan’s soil is being used by terrorists as a safe haven. Secondly, what is more concerning is that the al-Qaeda leader was living in a Taliban safe house when he was killed in a US drone strike.” “It suggests that terrorists are getting protection from the Taliban in Afghanistan, a situation that merits world attention,” say sources, adding, “Taliban need to do a lot of explanation as they are expecting recognition of the world community. Now this is a serious issue on which the rulers of Kabul need to clear the air.”
Sources said, “The elimi
nation of Zawahiri is also the result of India’s consistent diplomatic efforts and campaign to draw US’ and global attention towards terrorists camping in Afghanistan.” “It is good that the Biden administration is keeping its focus on terror outfits in Afghanistan,” sources said.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and India’s permanent representative to the UN Ambassador TS Trirumurti have been apprising the world community of India’s concern repeatedly about the risk of Afghan soil being used by terror outfits like Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). At the Quad meetings, Jaishankar always on priority basis discussed the issue of terrorism in Afghanistan with his counterparts from the US, Australia and Japan. Joint statements of the Quad summits and meetings also expressed concerns over this issue.
Diplomats say that the US should also turn its focus on the terror outfits like LeT and JeM as well. Recently at the SCO Foreign Ministers’ Meet in Tashkent, Jaishankar said that zero tolerance for terrorism in all its manifestations is a must. “While targeting its main enemy al-Qaeda, the US must turn its focus also on LeT and JeM which are equally dangerous terrorists’ organisations,” diplomats say. “There cannot be bad and good terrorists. Terrorists are terrorists,” an official argues.
India has on several occasions pointed to the heightened threat posed by terror groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Haqqani Network due to the deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan. TS Tirumurti has once said that the UN Security Council cannot afford any complacency on this issue. Jaishankar also raised India’s similar concerns while chairing a Security Council briefing on the theme, “Threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts”, against the backdrop of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
At the UNSC meet, Jaishankar once said, “Whether it is in Afghanistan or against India, groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed continue to operate with both impunity and encouragement. It is, therefore, vital that this Council does not take a selective, tactical or complacent view of the problems we face.”
Jaishankar has also told the G20 nations some time back that the Taliban’s commitment not to allow the use of Afghanistan’s soil for terrorism in any manner should be implemented. India has also called for unified action for ensuring that Afghanistan does not become a haven for terrorists.
India’s assertion at UNSC has been that, “There are serious concerns which need our immediate attention and unified action to ensure that Afghanistan does not become a haven for other terrorist organisations including ISIS-K, Al-Qaeda, JeM and LeT. We need to see concrete progress in ensuring that such proscribed terrorists, entities, or their aliases do not get any support, tacit or direct, either from Afghan soil or from the terror sanctuaries based in the region.” The Indian diplomats are of the view that Washington should intensify its fight against these terror outfits as well.