‘Jaish chief Masood Azhar is in Pak’, admits foreign minister, then says ‘he is very unwell’

world

Updated: Apr 20, 2020 20:58 IST

Pakistan foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has admitted that Masood Azhar, the chief of terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed, is in Pakistan.

“He (Masood Azhar) is in Pakistan. According to my information, he is very unwell. He’s unwell to the extent that he cannot leave his house because he is really unwell. So, that’s the information I have,” Qureshi told CNN in an interview.

The Pakistan foreign minister’s comments came as France, the UK and the US have launched a fresh bid at the UN to list Masood Azhar, founder of the Jaish that took responsibility for the February 14 Pulwama terror attack, as a global terrorist though China remained non-committal on backing the move.

Watch: Parents of IAF pilot Abhinandan get standing ovation in flight

Qureshi claimed that Pakistan will take action against the Jaish chief if India provides “solid, inalienable evidence” .“If they give us evidence which is acceptable to the courts of Pakistan… after all we will have to justify they will go to the court. If they have solid, inalienable evidence, share it with us so that we can convince the independent judiciary of Pakistan,” he said.

Also read:China non-committal as push renews for terror tag on Jaish chief Masood Azhar

France is leading the latest and fourth attempt to put Azhar on the blacklist of UN’s 1267 Committee that already includes the JeM, which he founded after being freed by India in 1999 in exchange for passengers of an Air India flight hijacked to Kandahar.

Three previous attempts were blocked by China, which cited the rules under the UN Security Council Resolution 1267 and lack of evidence and consensus. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson was non-committal when asked whether Beijing will block the latest move to list Azhar.

Qureshi said that Pakistan PM Imran Khan’s decision to free Indian Air Force pilot Abhinandan Varthaman was a “goodwill gesture” and an expression of Pakistan’s “willingness to de-escalate”. Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan had announced on Thursday that Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman will be freed on Friday after New Delhi sought his unconditional, immediate and unharmed release signalling a de-escalation in the spiralling tension with New Delhi.

Also read: IAF pilot Abhinandan Varthaman to come home today, hundreds at Wagah to welcome him

Imran Khan’s announcement also came amid pressure from New Delhi and other countries to act against terror emanating from his country.

The 35-year-old Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman was flying the MiG-21 Bison that shot down the PAF F-16 in the aerial engagement with Pakistan on Wednesday morning.

The IAF pilot will be brought by Pakistani authorities from Rawalpindi to Lahore and handed over first to the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) under rules of the Geneva Convention before being brought to the Wagah check post to return home.