NEW DELHI, Jan 31: The United States has blocked the appointment of the next Pakistani ambassador, Masood Khan, over possible terror links. US Congressman Scott Perry wrote to the President Joe Biden and requested him to reject Masood Khan as the next ambassador.
The US Congressman mentioned that Masood was known to have praised Burhan Wani. In his letter to the President, Perry wrote: “I write with grave concern about the appointment of Masood Khan as Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States. Imran Khan’s nomination of a bona fide terrorist sympathizer ‘working to undermine our interests in the region — as well as the security of our Indian allies — can only be described as a breath-taking lack of judgment at best, and a demonstration of Islamabad’s unmitigated contempt for the United States at worst.”
The US Congressman urged Biden to reject “any diplomatic credentials presented to him by Masood Khan”. The letter said: “While I am encouraged that the State Department has reportedly placed a pause on approving Masood Khan as the new Ambassador of Pakistan, a pause is not enough. I urge you to reject any diplomatic credentials presented to you by Masood Khan and reject any effort by the Government of Pakistan to install this jihadist as Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States.”
In his letter, Perry mentioned that Masood Khan had “encouraged young men to emulate jihadists like Burhan Wani, a former commander of Hizbul Mujahideen who dedicated his life to ‘holy war against India.” The letter added: “Masood Khan has praised both terrorists and foreign terrorist organizations — including Hizbul Mujahideen — in stark and unsetting terms. In 2017, Khan lashed out at the United States for designating the leader of Hizbul Mujahideen for sanctions, calling those sanctions “unjustifiable.” In 2019, Khan willingly appeared alongside Fazlur Rehman Khalil, a Specially Designated Global ‘Terrorist (SDGT) who is the founder of Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HuM), a US-designated foreign terrorist organization.”
The Congressman mentioned that Khalil’s SDGT designation was justified by the Treasury Department in 2014 due to his “close relationship with al-Qaida, including with Usama Bin Laden (UBL) prior to his death. Khalil was a key member of UBL’s International Islamic Front and a cosignatory of LUBL’s first fatwa, issued in 1998, calling for attacks against the United States.”
Khan, Perry pointed out, had also demanded the United States to free would-be mass murderer Aafia Siddiqui. “In 2010, Siddiqui was convicted of attempting to murder American troops. Since then, jihadists have regularly clamoured for her release – to include the perpetrator behind the anti-Semitic hostage crisis in Colleyville, Texas earlier this month,” the letter read.
(Manas Dasgupta)