US designates LeT's Abdul Rehman al-Dakhil as global terrorist

The US Department of State on Tuesday put Abdul Rehman al-Dakhil on the list of 'Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).'

In a statement, the US State Department said, "The Department of State has designated Abdul Rehman al-Dakhil as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) under Section 1(b) of Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, which imposes sanctions on foreign persons who have committed, or pose a significant risk of committing, acts of terrorism that threaten the security of US nationals or the national security, foreign policy, or economy of the United States."

Dakhil was a longtime member of the US-designated Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) and Lashkar e-Tayyiba (LeT) and was an operational leader responsible for LeT-led attacks in India between 1997 and 2001.

"Today's designations seek to deny Dakhil the resources to plan and carry out terrorist attacks. Among other consequences, all of his property and interests subject to US jurisdiction are blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from engaging in any transactions with him," the statement added.

In 2004, Dakhil was captured in Iraq by UK forces and was held in US custody in Iraq and Afghanistan until his transfer to Pakistan in 2014.

After his release from Pakistani custody, Dakhil returned to work for LeT. In 2016, Dakhil was the LeT divisional commander for the Jammu region in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. He still remains a senior commander in LeT.

The statement continued, "Today's action notifies the US public and the international community that Abdul Rehman al-Dakhil has committed, or poses a significant risk of committing, acts of terrorism."

Furthermore, the US State Department noted that the designations of terrorist individuals and groups exposed and isolated organisations and individuals, and denied them access to the US financial system.