“Thousands of journalists have fled their home countries in recent years to escape political repression, save their lives and escape conflict – but in exile they are often vulnerable to physical, digital and legal threats,” a U.N. investigator said on May 22.

Irene Khan said in a report to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) that the number of journalists in exile has increased as the space for independent and critical media has been “shrinking in democratic countries where authoritarian trends are gaining ground.”

Today, she said, free, independent and diverse media supporting democracy and holding the powerful to account are either absent or severely constrained in over a third of the world’s nations, where more than two-thirds of the global population lives.

The U.N. independent investigator on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression said most journalists and some independent media outlets have left their countries so they can report and investigate freely “without fear or favour.”

But Ms. Khan, a Bangladeshi lawyer who previously served as secretary general of Amnesty International, said exiled journalists often find themselves in precarious positions, facing threats against them and their families from their home countries without assured legal status or adequate support to continue working in their country of refuge.

Myanmar journalist gets a 20-year sentence for reporting on cyclone’s aftermath, news site says

“Fearing for their own safety or that of their families back home and struggling to survive financially and overcome the many challenges of living in a foreign country, many journalists eventually abandon their profession,” she said. “Exile thus becomes yet another way to silence critical voices – another form of press censorship.”

Ms. Khan, whose mandate comes from the Geneva-based U.N. Human Rights Council, said there are international legal protections for journalists in exile who range from full-time professional reporters to bloggers publishing on the internet and elsewhere. “The problem is “the failure of states to respect their obligations under international law,” she said.

In recent years, Ms. said, hundreds of journalists have fled from Afghanistan, Belarus, China, Ethiopia, Iran, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Russia, Sudan, Somalia, Turkey and Ukraine. In addition, smaller numbers have fled from a range of other countries including Burundi, Guatemala, India, Pakistan and Tajikistan, “to name just a few,” she said.

Ms. Khan said there is no data on human rights violations committed by countries outside their borders. “But there is anecdotal evidence including victims’ testimony, scholarly research and the experience of civil society organisations suggesting that “a high prevalence” of such “transnational repression” targets exiled journalists and media outlets,” she said.

Ms. Khan said “the butchering of exiled Saudi journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, in the consulate of Saudi Arabia in Istanbul was an outrageous, audacious act of transnational repression.” Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist who entered the consulate on October 2, 2018, to get documents for his impending marriage, never emerged and his remains have never been found.

Ms. Khan also pointed to Turkey’s extraterritorial abductions and forcible return of at least 100 Turkish nationals, including journalists, from many countries, and Iran’s targeting of exiled Iranian journalists and media outlets as well as Iranian and Iranian-origin journalists and media staffers working for the BBC Persian-language service.

In February 2020, she said, prominent Iranian exiled journalist Rana Rahimpour received death threats against herself, her husband, her children and her elderly parents.

Ms. Khan said the world witnessed a blatant example of forced abduction when Belarus authorities used a false bomb threat in violation of international law to divert a commercial airliner as exiled media worker Raman Pratasevich was travelling to the country’s main airport in May 2021. He was arrested, convicted, sentenced to eight years in prison and later pardoned.

As for digital transnational repression, the U.N. special rapporteur said attempts to intimidate and silence journalists and their sources and promote self-censorship online have increased over the past decade.

Ms. Khan said common practices include “recruiting armies of trolls and bots to amplify vicious personal attacks on individual journalists to discredit them and their reporting, blocking exiled news sites or jamming broadcasts, and targeted digital surveillance.” “Online attacks including death threats, rape threats and smear campaigns have skyrocketed in the past 10 years,” she said.

“Digital surveillance also surged over the past decade as spyware enables authorities to access journalists’ phones and other devices without their knowledge,” Ms. Khan said. In early 2022, journalists from El Salvador fled to Costa Rica, Mexico and elsewhere after civil society investigations reported the use of Pegasus spyware on their devices.

She said exiled journalists often face two major legal threats from their home countries: “investigation, prosecution and punishment in absentia, and the pursuit of their extradition on trumped up criminal charges.”

Hong Kong’s recently adopted National Security Law, augmented by the Safeguarding National Security Ordnance, “criminalizes secession, subversion, terrorism and ‘collusion with foreign organizations’ in sweeping terms and with extraterritorial reach,” she said. It has been used extensively against independent journalists in Hong Kong and has hampered the work of journalists in exile and forced many to self-censor.

After Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Ms. Khan said, it adopted draconian laws punishing anyone discrediting the armed forces or disseminating false information about the military operation. This has led independent media to self-censor, shut down or leave the country. “Russian courts have issued sentences in absentia against several exiled journalists,” she said.

Ms. Khan called for countries hosting exiled journalists to provide them with visas and work permits.

“Exiled journalists also need better protection from physical and online attacks, long-term support from civil society and press freedom groups, and “they need companies to ensure that the technologies that are essential to practice journalism are not disrupted or weaponized against them,” she said.

In the Security Council vote on April 18, the Palestinians got much more support for full U.N. membership. The vote was 12 in favor, the United Kingdom and Switzerland abstaining. 
| Photo Credit: AP

The U.N. General Assembly (UNGA) is expected to vote on May 10 on a resolution that would grant new “rights and privileges” to Palestine and call on the Security Council to favourably reconsider its request to become the 194th member of the United Nations.

The United States vetoed a widely backed council resolution on April 18 that would have paved the way for full United Nations membership for Palestine, a goal the Palestinians have long sought and Israel has worked to prevent, and U.S. Deputy Ambassador Robert Wood made clear on Thursday that Joe Biden administration is opposed to the Assembly resolution.

Under the U.N. Charter, prospective members of the United Nations must be “peace-loving,” and the Security Council must recommend their admission to the General Assembly for final approval. Palestine became a U.N. non-member observer state in 2012.

“We’ve been very clear from the beginning there is a process for obtaining full membership in the United Nations, and this effort by some of the Arab countries and the Palestinians is to try to go around that,” Mr. Wood said on Thursday. “We have said from the beginning the best way to ensure Palestinian full membership in the U.N. is to do that through negotiations with Israel. That remains our position.”

But unlike the Security Council, there are no vetoes in the 193-member General Assembly and the resolution is expected to be approved by a large majority, according to three Western diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity because negotiations were private.

The draft resolution “determines” that a state of Palestine is qualified for membership – dropping the original language that in the General Assembly’s judgment it is “a peace-loving state.” It therefore recommends that the Security Council reconsider its request “favourably.”

The renewed push for full Palestinian membership in the U.N. comes as the war in Gaza has put the more than 75-year-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict at center stage. At numerous council and assembly meetings, the humanitarian crisis facing the Palestinians in Gaza and the killing of more than 34,000 people in the territory, according to Gaza health officials, have generated outrage from many countries.

“The original draft of the assembly resolution was changed significantly to address concerns not only by the U.S. but also by Russia and China,” the diplomats said.

The first draft would have conferred on Palestine “the rights and privileges necessary to ensure its full and effective participation” in the assembly’s sessions and U.N. conferences “on equal footing with member states.” It also made no reference to whether Palestine could vote in the General Assembly.

According to the diplomats, Russia and China which are strong supporters of Palestine’s U.N. membership were concerned that granting the list of rights and privileges detailed in an annex to the resolution could set a precedent for other would-be U.N. members — with Russia concerned about Kosovo and China about Taiwan.

Under longstanding legislation by the U.S. Congress, the United States is required to cut off funding to U.N. agencies that give full membership to a Palestinian state – which could mean a cutoff in dues and voluntary contributions to the U.N. from its largest contributor.

The final draft drops the language that would put Palestine “on equal footing with member states.” And to address Chinese and Russian concerns, it would decide “on an exceptional basis and without setting a precedent” to adopt the rights and privileges in the annex.

The draft also adds a provision in the annex on the issue of voting, stating categorically: “The state of Palestine, in its capacity as an observer state, does not have the right to vote in the General Assembly or to put forward its candidature to United Nations organs.”

The final list of rights and privileges in the draft annex includes giving Palestine the right to speak on all issues not just those related to the Palestinians and Middle East, the right to propose agenda items and reply in debates and the right to be elected as officers in the assembly’s main committees. It would give the Palestinians the right to participate in U.N. and international conferences convened by the United Nations — but it drops their “right to vote” which was in the original draft.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas first delivered the Palestinian Authority’s application for U.N. membership in 2011. It failed because the Palestinians didn’t get the required minimum support of nine of the Security Council’s 15 members.

They went to the General Assembly and succeeded by more than a two-thirds majority in having their status raised from a U.N. observer to a non-member observer state. That opened the door for the Palestinian territories to join U.N. and other international organizations, including the International Criminal Court.

In the Security Council vote on April 18, the Palestinians got much more support for full U.N. membership. The vote was 12 in favor, the United Kingdom and Switzerland abstaining, and the United States voting no and vetoing the resolution.

Protesters are arrested and led away by law enforcement at Grand Central Terminal during a rally calling for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on October 27, 2023, in New York.
| Photo Credit: AP

Hundreds of protesters filled the main concourse of New York city’s famed Grand Central Terminal during the evening rush hour on October 27, chanting slogans and unfurling banners demanding a cease-fire as Israel intensified its bombardment of the Gaza Strip.

Wearing black T-shirts and saying “Jews say cease-fire now” and “Not in our name,” at least 200 of the demonstrators were detained by New York Police Department (NYPD) officers and led out of the train station, their hands zip-tied behind their backs. The NYPD said the protesters were taken briefly into custody, issued summons and released, and that a more exact number of detentions would be available on October 28.

Some protesters hoisted banners as they scaled the stone ledges in front of leader boards listing departure times. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority asked commuters to use Penn Station as an alternative. After the sit-in was broken up by police, the remaining protesters spilled into the streets outside.

“Hundreds of Jews and friends are taking over Grand Central Station in a historic sit-in calling for a ceasefire,” advocacy group Jewish Voice for Peace said on social media.

The scene echoed last week’s sit-in on Capitol Hill in Washington, where Jewish advocacy groups, including Jewish Voice for Peace and If Not Now, poured into a congressional office building. More than 300 people were arrested for illegally demonstrating.

Israel stepped up airstrikes across the Gaza Strip on Friday, knocking out internet and largely cutting off communication with the 2.3 million people inside the besieged Palestinian enclave. Gaza’s Hamas-run Health Ministry says more than 7,300 people have been killed, more than 60% of them minors and women.

The Israeli military’s announcement it was “expanding” ground operations in the territory signalled it was moving closer to an all-out invasion of Gaza, where it has vowed to crush the ruling Hamas militant group after its bloody incursion in southern Israel three weeks ago. More than 1,400 people were slain in Israel during the attack, according to the Israeli government, and at least 229 hostages were taken into Gaza.

The U.N. General Assembly approved a nonbinding resolution calling for a “humanitarian truce” in Gaza leading to a cessation of hostilities. It was the first U.N. response to Hamas’ surprise October 7 attacks and Israel’s ongoing military response.

New Delhi:

India did not vote in the UN General Assembly resolution that called for an immediate humanitarian truce in the Israel-Hamas war. Explaining their decision to abstain, India said that the resolution did not mention Hamas and that the UN needs to send a clear message against terror.

“We hope that the deliberations of this assembly will send a clear message against terror and violence and expand prospects for diplomacy and dialogue while addressing the humanitarian crisis that confronts us,” said India’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Yojna Patel.

The draft resolution had called for an immediate truce in the conflict and unhindered humanitarian access in the Gaza Strip, which has been the target of Israel’s airstrikes.

Israel launched a massive counter-offensive after 1,400 people were killed in a surprise attack by Hamas on October 7.

Condemning the attacks, India said that they deserve condemnation, hinting at the omission of the word “Hamas” from the resolution.

“The terror attacks in Israel on 7th October were shocking and deserve condemnation. Our thoughts are also with those taken hostages. We call for their immediate and unconditional release. Terrorism is a malignancy and knows no borders, nationality, or race. The world should not buy into any justification of terror acts. Let us keep aside differences, unite, and adopt a zero-tolerance approach to terrorism,” Ms Patel said.

India also said it is deeply concerned at the deteriorating security situation in the region and urged all parties to de-escalate.

“India is deeply concerned at the deteriorating security situation and the astounding loss of civilian lives in the ongoing conflict. The escalation of hostilities in the region will only exacerbate the humanitarian crisis. It is necessary for all parties to display the utmost responsibility,” Ms Patel said.

She noted that India has always supported a “negotiated two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine.”

Ms Patel said that India urges the parties to de-escalate, eschew violence, and work towards creating conditions for an early resumption of direct peace negotiations.

The remarks came at an emergency UNGA session to vote on the draft resolution submitted by Jordan. The resolution was overwhelmingly adopted with 120 nations voting in its favour, 14 against it, and 45 abstaining.

Besides India, countries that abstained included Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, Ukraine and the UK.

India, instead, lent support to an amendment proposed by Canada seeking condemnation of Hamas and the terror attacks carried out in Israel.

The amendment sought a paragraph to be added in the resolution stating that the general assembly “unequivocally rejects and condemns the terrorist attacks by Hamas that took place in Israel starting on 7 October 2023 and the taking of hostages, demands the safety, well-being and humane treatment of the hostages in compliance with international law, and calls for their immediate and unconditional release.”

The amendment though did not get the number of votes required to be adopted.

The US also expressed outrage at the resolution not naming Hamas and called it an “omission of evil”. Before the vote, the US also voiced its displeasure over the word “hostage” not being part of the resolution.

“This resolution makes no mention of the innocent people – including citizens of many of you in this room – many of you here today who have citizens who are being held hostage by Hamas and other terrorist groups,” US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said.

The UN General Assembly on Friday called by a large majority for an “immediate humanitarian truce” in Gaza, on the 21st day of the Israel-Hamas conflict as the Israeli army announced it was extending its ground operation into the shattered territory.

The non-binding resolution, criticized by Israel and the United States for failing to mention Hamas, received 120 votes in favor, 14 against and 45 abstentions from UN members.

Israel angrily dismissed the measure, and said the country would use “every means at our disposal” in confronting Hamas.

“Today is a day that will go down as infamy. We have all witnessed that the UN no longer holds even one ounce of legitimacy or relevance,” Israeli ambassador Gilad Erdan said, telling the assembly: “Shame on you.”

“Israel will continue to defend itself. We will defend our future, our very existence by ridding the world of Hamas’s evil so that it can never threaten anyone else again,” he said.

Hamas meanwhile welcomed the call for a break in the conflict.

“We demand its immediate application to allow the entry of fuel and humanitarian aid for civilians,” said a Hamas statement.

The rival Palestinian Authority’s foreign ministry said that as Israel’s campaign “reaches a new peak of brutality,” there was “a solid international position rejecting Israel’s unhinged aggression”.

The text proposed by Jordan in the name of 22 Arab countries called for “an immediate, durable and sustained humanitarian truce leading to a cessation of hostilities.”

An earlier version called for an “immediate ceasefire.”

Israel has bombarded Gaza since Hamas gunmen stormed across the border on October 7, killing 1,400 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapping over 220 others, according to Israeli officials.

The health ministry in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, in an update on Friday, said the strikes had now killed 7,326 people, mainly civilians and many of them children.

The resolution co-sponsored by nearly 50 other countries centered largely on the dire humanitarian situation in sealed-off Gaza as Israel presses on with its bombardment.

The document urges “immediate” provision of water, food, medical supplies, fuel and electricity and unhindered access for UN and other humanitarian agencies trying to help the Palestinians.

The draft condemns “all acts of violence aimed at Palestinian and Israeli civilians, including all acts of terrorism and indiscriminate attacks” but it does not mention Hamas.

The resolution exposed a division within Western countries, with France voting for the measure; Germany, Italy and Britain abstaining; while Austria and the United States voted against.

“It is outrageous that this resolution fails to name the perpetrators of the October 7 terrorist attack,” US ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said.

“Another key word missing in this resolution is hostage,” she added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Washington:

India’s foreign minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, said on Tuesday that India has told Canada it was open to looking into any specific information it provides on the killing of Sikh terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

Speaking at a Council on Foreign Relations event, Jaishankar said India had told Canada, “This is not the government of India’s policy,” after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said last week that Canada was pursuing “credible allegations” that Indian government agents may be linked to the killing.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar at a global event on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, in New York.
| Photo Credit: PTI

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar held a series of bilateral meetings with his global counterparts on the sidelines of the high-level United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session in New York, exchanging views on reforming multilateralism and cooperation in G20.

He held separate bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Mexico, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Armenia on September 24. Jaishankar said it was a “real pleasure” to meet with Secretary of Foreign Affairs Alicia Bárcena of Mexico.

“Discussed taking forward our Privileged Partnership focussing on business, science & technology, education, economy and traditional medicine. Also exchanged views on reforming multilateralism and our work together in G20,” he said in a post on X.

The External Affairs Minister also met his counterpart from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Elmedin Konakovic and discussed growing bilateral ties with a focus on trade and economy.

Terming his meeting with Konakovic on the sidelines of the UNGA session as “good”, Jaishankar said, “Discussed growing our bilateral ties with (a) focus on trade and economy.” Jaishankar also met with his counterpart from Armenia, Ararat Mirzoyan.

“Appreciate his sharing assessment of the current situation in the Caucasus. Affirmed our strong bilateral relationship,” he posted on X.

Jaishankar is scheduled to meet UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the President of the 78th UN General Assembly session, Dennis Francis, on Monday.

On Saturday, Jaishankar called on Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and discussed the progress of the bilateral development partnership and the situation in Myanmar. The two leaders met on the margins of the high-level UN General Assembly session in New York.

“Pleased to call on Prime Minister Hun Manet of Cambodia. Conveyed the warm greetings of PM @narendramodi. Discussed the progress of our development partnership,” Jaishankar posted on X.

“Noted as well our expanding defence and cultural cooperation. Exchanged views on Myanmar,” he added. Jaishankar also held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Egypt, Guinea Bissau, Cyprus and Uganda on Saturday.

He began a nine-day visit to the U.S. on Friday, primarily to attend the annual session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York and to host a special event on Global South. He would also participate in various plurilateral and bilateral meetings in New York.

He is scheduled to address the General Debate from the UN General Assembly hall on Tuesday.

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar at a global event on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, in New York.
| Photo Credit: PTI

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar held a series of bilateral meetings with his global counterparts on the sidelines of the high-level United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session in New York, exchanging views on reforming multilateralism and cooperation in G20.

He held separate bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Mexico, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Armenia on September 24. Jaishankar said it was a “real pleasure” to meet with Secretary of Foreign Affairs Alicia Bárcena of Mexico.

“Discussed taking forward our Privileged Partnership focussing on business, science & technology, education, economy and traditional medicine. Also exchanged views on reforming multilateralism and our work together in G20,” he said in a post on X.

The External Affairs Minister also met his counterpart from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Elmedin Konakovic and discussed growing bilateral ties with a focus on trade and economy.

Terming his meeting with Konakovic on the sidelines of the UNGA session as “good”, Jaishankar said, “Discussed growing our bilateral ties with (a) focus on trade and economy.” Jaishankar also met with his counterpart from Armenia, Ararat Mirzoyan.

“Appreciate his sharing assessment of the current situation in the Caucasus. Affirmed our strong bilateral relationship,” he posted on X.

Jaishankar is scheduled to meet UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the President of the 78th UN General Assembly session, Dennis Francis, on Monday.

On Saturday, Jaishankar called on Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and discussed the progress of the bilateral development partnership and the situation in Myanmar. The two leaders met on the margins of the high-level UN General Assembly session in New York.

“Pleased to call on Prime Minister Hun Manet of Cambodia. Conveyed the warm greetings of PM @narendramodi. Discussed the progress of our development partnership,” Jaishankar posted on X.

“Noted as well our expanding defence and cultural cooperation. Exchanged views on Myanmar,” he added. Jaishankar also held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Egypt, Guinea Bissau, Cyprus and Uganda on Saturday.

He began a nine-day visit to the U.S. on Friday, primarily to attend the annual session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York and to host a special event on Global South. He would also participate in various plurilateral and bilateral meetings in New York.

He is scheduled to address the General Debate from the UN General Assembly hall on Tuesday.

Columbian President Gustavo Petro. File
| Photo Credit: AP

The Colombian government manipulated a video to alter the applause received by President Gustavo Petro during his speech at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

The Associated Press reviewed the video and was able to verify that it was altered. The recording released by the Presidential office incorporated applause for the U.S. President Joe Biden, who spoke moments before Mr. Petro, making it appear the applause was directed at the Colombian leader. The manipulation was first reported by the Colombian website La Silla Vacía.

The Presidential office was asked for comment by the AP but had not responded by late Friday afternoon. Although Mr. Petro did receive applause, the final clip of the video posted on Thursday on the government’s YouTube channel does not correspond to what was broadcast in the UN video.

It incorporates a different shot to the original broadcast and to what was broadcast in the media, making it seem that many more attendees applauded Mr. Petro at the end of his speech.

The recording raised doubts among social media users and the media, given that there were several empty seats in the General Assembly during Mr. Petro’s speech.

At 1.52.39 of the official UN broadcast, the same applause that the Colombian government video shows going to Mr. Petro is heard but it is at the end of Mr. Biden’s address.

The UN video also shows that three men in the seventh row stand up at the same time and that a woman walks towards the podium between the seats, the same scene that appears in the video released by Colombia’s Presidential office.

AP photographer Richard Drew captured the moment of Mr. Petro’s speech in a photo and shows that in the seventh row there were only people sitting in three of the 12 seats. In the edited video released by the Colombian government, all those seats look to be occupied.

This year’s annual meeting of the UN General Assembly brought together heads of state and government from at least 145 countries, including Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva,Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

New Delhi:

India has reiterated that matters pertaining to Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are “purely internal” and Pakistan cannot comment on its domestic matters. The strong remarks came a day after Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar raised the Kashmir bogey at the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly.

“Pakistan has become a habitual offender when it comes to misusing this August forum to peddle baseless and malicious propaganda against India,” Petal Gahlot, First Secretary for second committee of General Assembly, said on Saturday.

Pakistan does so to deflect the international community’s attention away from its own abysmal record on human rights, she said.

“J&K Purely Integral To India”

Pakistan’s Mr Kakar yesterday said Kashmir is the “key to peace” between the two neighbours.

“We reiterate that the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir are an integral part of India. Matters pertaining to the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are purely internal to India. Pakistan has no locus standi to comment on our domestic matters,” she asserted in response.

India tore into Pakistan for having the “world’s worst human rights records”, especially those of the minority and women. “Pakistan would do well to put its own house in order before venturing to point a finger at the world’s largest democracy,” Ms Gahlot said.

She sought to remind Pakistan its “glaring example of systemic violence against minorities” – the incident in August in which several churches and Christian houses were burnt down in Faisalabad district.

An estimated 1,000 women from minority communities are kidnapped, forcefully converted and married off in Pakistan every year, Ms Gahlot said cited a report by Pakistan’s own Human Rights Commission.

“Take Action Against Mumbai Attack Perpetrators”

India also slammed Pakistan for providing a safe haven to terrorists and called on its government to take action against the perpetrators of the Mumbai terror attack.

“Pakistan has been the home and patron to the largest number of internationally prescribed terrorist entities and individuals in the world,” she said. “Instead of engaging in technical sophistry, we call upon Pakistan to take credible and verifiable action against the perpetrators of the Mumbai terror attacks whose victims await justice even after 15 years.”

India also listed three steps that Pakistan must take to ensure peace in South Asia: “First, stop cross-border terrorism and shut down its infrastructure of terrorism immediately. Second, vacate Indian territories under its illegal and forcible occupation. And third, stop the grave and persistent human rights violations against the minorities in Pakistan,” said Ms Gahlot.