PHOTO: REUTERS
Although the Foreign Office spokesperson did not explicitly name the member, officials privately disclosed that it was the United States that blocked Pakistan's move.
In July last, Pakistan requested the UN Security Council sanction committee for the listing of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar (JuA) Umar Khalid Khorasani since his outfit had already been banned.
The committee took up Pakistan's request recently only to be turned down after the US raised objections.
The sanction committee's deliberations are confidential, therefore it is not clear on what ground the US opposed Pakistan's request.
One diplomatic source said the US had issues with Pakistan mentioning the presence of Khursani in Afghanistan.
Nevertheless, the US move invited strong reaction from Pakistan, which said the decision "demonstrates double standards prevailing in the international fight against terrorism and also show complete disregard of the sacrifices rendered by Pakistan in this fight".
"We are aware that the UN Al-Qaeda/ISIL Sanctions Committee did not approve Pakistan's proposal to list Umer Khalid Khorasani, aka Abdul Wali, the leader of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar since it could not reach consensus due to objection by a member," Foreign Office spokesperson Dr Muhammad Faisal told reporters at the weekly news briefing.
Khorasani confirmed dead in US drone strike
"As the discussions of the sanctions committee are confidential, we are not in a position to comment on these deliberations. The committee has not yet formally conveyed this development to us," Faisal added.
"However, we are deeply disappointed over the failure of the Sanctions Committee to list Wali who is a known terrorist and has the blood of hundreds of innocent Pakistanis on his hands," he regretted.
JuA, a breakaway faction of banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), is responsible for a number of deadly attacks inside Pakistan. Its chief, Khursani, is thought to be the mastermind of December 2015 massacre at the Army Public School in Peshawar.
The latest controversy came at a time when relationship between Pakistan and the US are at its lowest.
The spokesperson confirmed that the US decision to impose restrictions on Pakistani diplomats would come into effect from Friday. The development suggested that the two sides could not resolve the issue despite recent talks.
Pakistan ready for unconditional talks with India
Responding to reports quoting certain Indian officials for the country's willingness to hold talks with Pakistan, the spokesperson said it was news to him.
He, however, added that Pakistan was always ready for unconditional talks with Indian on all issues -- including the longstanding Kashmir dispute and terrorism.
Referring to the situation in Occupied Kashmir, the Foreign Office spokesperson said, "Neither will India break the will of the Kashmiri people, nor will they succeed in misleading the international community through its malicious propaganda by terming the Kashmiri struggle for realisation and self-determination as 'terrorism'."
"Indeed, in the history of the past 70 years, it has been demonstrated time and again that the ferocity and inhumanity of India's state-terrorism in Indian occupied Kashmir (IoK) is no match to the resolve and resilience of the innocent, unarmed Kashmiri people," Dr Faisal said.
"Pakistan also calls upon the world community to play its rightful role in promoting a just and lasting solution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the wishes of the Kashmiri people. We believe this is a sine qua non for durable peace and stability in South Asia," the spokesperson added.
The spokesperson added that Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi condemned the escalation of systematic brutalities, killing of innocent civilians, and human rights violations committed by the Indian occupation forces with impunity in Occupied Kashmir.
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