China Shields Pakistan-Based Terrorists Again, Blocks India's Move To Blacklist JeM's Abdul Rauf Azhar At UNSC

China has opposed India's call for the UN Security Council to blacklist Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorist Abdul Rauf Azhar, currently based in Pakistan.

Abdul Rauf, brother of JeM leader Masood Azhar, was born in 1974 in Pakistan and is known for his involvement in planning and carrying out multiple terror attacks in India.

These include the hijacking of Indian Airlines flight IC814 in 1999, the Parliament attack in 2001, and the targeting of the Indian Air Force base in Pathankot in 2016.

China opposed India's request to include JeM's Abdul Rauf in the UN Security Council's 1267 ISIL and Al Qaida Sanctions list.

The US had imposed sanctions on Rauf Azhar in 2010.

More recently, in August 2022, China prevented India and the US' proposal to label him a global terrorist and subject him to travel bans, asset freezes, and arms embargo.

China is a permanent member of the UN Security Council with veto rights.

In support of Islamabad, Beijing last year blocked proposals to blacklist Pakistan-based terrorists Hafiz Talah Saeed and Lashkar-e-Taiba's Shahid Mahmood and Sajid Mir under the Al Qaeda Sanctions regime.

China also blocked a proposal by India and the US to sanction Abdul Rehman Makki, the deputy chief of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), under the 1267 committee in June 2022.

Earlier this year, Makki, the JuD/LeT political affairs head and Hafiz Muhammad Saeed's brother-in-law, was declared a global terrorist by the UN after China withdrew its objection to the India-US proposal to blacklist him.

This led to the Security Council's Al Qaeda sanctions committee listing him through consensus.

In December 2022, during India's presidency of the UN Security Council, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar called out Pakistan and China, stating that the "contemporary epicentre of terrorism" is still active and "evidence-backed proposals" to blacklist terrorists under sanctions regimes are being put on hold without adequate reason.

According to the US, as a top leader of JeM, Abdul Rauf Azhar is believed to have encouraged militant activities in Pakistan and served as acting leader in 2007.

He was regarded as one of JeM's most senior commanders in India and functioned as intelligence coordinator.

Azhar was tasked with organising suicide attacks in India in 2008 and had connections with JeM's political wing. Additionally, he played a role in training camps.