Pakistan's Foreign Ministry on Thursday said Islamabad was disappointed over what it termed the unjustified imposition of sanctions by the United States on Kashmiri militant group Hizbul Mujahideen. We are disappointed," Pakistan's Foreign Ministry spokesman Nafees Zakaria said at a media briefing in Islamabad. He said:
The designation of individuals or groups supporting the Kashmiri right to self-determination as terrorists was completely unjustified.
Zakaria said it was India which should be held to account for what he said was its brutal use of force and human rights violations in Kashmir.
US Designates Hizbul as Foreign Terrorist Group
The United States on Wednesday said it had sanctioned Hizbul Mujahideen, the largest of the anti-Indian Kashmiri militant groups fighting in the state divided between Pakistan and India.
The US Treasury Department, in a statement on its website, said it had listed the Pakistan-based group as a counter-designated group, freezing any assets it may hold in the United States and prohibiting Americans from dealings with it.
"These designations seek to deny HM (Hizbul Mujahideen) the resources it needs to carry out terrorist attacks," the US State Department said in a separate statement.
In announcing the designation, the State Department said the group had claimed responsibility for several attacks, including one in 2014 in Jammu and Kashmir that left 17 people injured.
Last month, the United States also designated Syed Salahuddin, a militant commander for the group, as a terrorist – a label he denounced.
Such designations are aimed at denying individuals and entities access to the US financial system.
Both India and Pakistan claim Kashmir in its entirety. Pakistan has denied giving material help to Kashmiri separatists but has pledged to provide continued diplomatic and moral support. India blames Pakistan for stoking the 28-year revolt in Muslim-majority Kashmir and has stepped up its pressure on Pakistan over the conflict.
(This piece has been published in arrangement with Reuters)
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