Hafiz Saeed gang: allowed to use bank accounts!

The deteriorating economic and financial conditions of Pakistan is proving not only painful for the government and citizens. The economic/financial condition of the notorious terrorists based in Pakistan has also started deteriorating. The government of Pakistan, which has always played the role of a guardian for terrorists, has come into a very active role as a redeemer and best tried to rescue them from this situation. And for this Pakistan government has restored the bank accounts of Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Muhammad Saeed and his four trusted allies. Imran Khan-led the Pakistan government had formally requested United Nations Security Council to allow terrorist leader Hafiz Saeed to get 'pocket money' in 2019 from his bank account for basic expenses. However, the request was most likely made by the government on behalf of the terrorists. And now they get formal approval from the Sanctions Committee of the United Nations Security Council. According to the Pakistani media, beside Hafiz Saeed, the four other terrorists who got their bank accounts restored include Abdul Salam Bhuttavi, Haji M Ashraf, Yahya Mujahid and Zafar Iqbal. This is notable that in last month, an anti-terrorism court in Pakistan had indicted Saeed and his close aides in a terror-financing case.

The other four terrorists which Pakistan has appealed for monetary relief on behalf of are Zafar Iqbal, who is a senior leader and co-founder of LeT; Haji Muhammad Ashraf who is the chief of financial affairs for LeT; Muhammad Yahya Mujahid (also known as Yahya Aziz), the media and publicity head for LeT since 2001; and Abdul Salam Bhutvi (also as Bhuttavi), a founding member of LeT and deputy to LeT emir Hafiz Muhammad Saeed. Bhuttavi is also responsible for LeT/JuD’s madrassah, or religious schools, network. Pakistan arrested all four of these men in October. Saeed was already in prison facing trial for terrorism financing.

An anti-terrorism court in Pakistan sentenced up to five years four top leaders of the banned Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) and close aides of the 2008 Mumbai terror attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed in a terror-financing case. LeT killed 174 people in the Mumbai attacks between November 26-29, 2008. LeT is on the UNSC Resolution 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions List and was designated as an FTO (Foreign Terrorist Organization) by the United States in 2001 and there is $10 million bounty on his head by the U.S. Hafiz Abdul Rehman Makki, Malik Zafar Iqbal, Yayha Aziz and Abdul Salam were indicted on June 9. Iqbal and Aziz were sentenced to five years in prison while Makki and Salam to one-year each. The four suspects have been convicted under the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997.

Such exemption was also granted last year when UN sanctions committee has allowed Hafiz Saeed to use his bank account for ‘basic expenses’ to help his family after Pakistan had reached out to the United Nations Security Council asking to let UN-designated global terrorist and chief of Jamaat-ud-Dawa to use his bank account for personal expenses. In a provided notification dated August 15, the UNSC committee which was pursuant to UN resolutions 1267, 1989, 2253, has said: “The chair has the honour to refer to his draft letter to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan communicating the committee’s decision with respect to the intention of the Pakistani authorities to authorise certain expenditures to the benefit of Hafiz Muhammad Saeed (ODi.263), Haji Muhammad Ashraf (ODi.265) and Zafar Iqbal (ODi.308) to cover basic expenses, as specified in the note verbale of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan pursuant to paragraph 81 (a) of resolution 2368 (2017).”