Pak must act on UN decision: Rice

ON THE TERROR TRAIL

Rejecting Pakistan’s claim that Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD), the front group of the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) blamed for the Mumbai terror attacks, is a charity, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pressed Islamabad to “adhere” strictly to the UN Security Council’s ban on the outfit.

In remarks suggesting that the JuD is definitely linked to terror, Rice said that Washington has learnt the hard way that such groups sometimes are too intertwined with the bodies that have terrorist ties.

Talking to reporters, Rice said the US would press Pakistan as also other member states to adhere completely to the UN decision to ban the JuD, freeze its assets and deny travel visas to its leaders.

The US expects that Pakistan would cooperate as it faces the problem of terrorism and its dire consequences, she said.

The remarks by Rice came amid reports from Pakistan suggesting that it might be easing restrictions on

JuD, which is the parent body of the LeT said to be invo-lved in the Mumbai terror attacks.

Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has also reportedly said that charitable arms of JuD will not be closed down. Media reports had also said that JuD had transferred millions of dollars of funds into accounts which would be difficult to locate and analysts have expressed fear that it might start operating under a different name.

Pakistan, Rice said, now has a new civilian government that is legitimate, wants to deal with the world in good faith and wants to be respected in the international politics.