UNSC says Pakistan hand in Red Fort attack that killed 15 people, accepts Islamabad's role in Pahalgam

A biannual report from the UN Security Council’s sanctions monitoring team, published this week, states that Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) was "reported to be linked to an attack on the Red Fort in New Delhi on 9 November that killed 15 people".

The report also details JeM’s claim of responsibility for a series of attacks and notes the group's suspected involvement in a suicide car bombing near the Red Fort last November, just weeks after its leader Masood Azhar "formally announced the establishment of a women-only wing, Jamaat ul-Muminat (not listed), which was aimed at supporting terrorist attacks".

One UN member state reported that JeM "was defunct", a claim the report links to longstanding assertions by Pakistan that such groups have been rendered "defunct" by domestic anti-terror laws.

The report notes that on 28 July 2025, "three individuals allegedly involved in the attack perpetrated in Pahalgam, in Jammu and Kashmir, were killed". The Pahalgam attack, attributed to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) proxy The Resistance Front, resulted in 26 civilian deaths and was followed by retaliatory action from India targeting terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan.

The 1267 Sanctions Committee continues to monitor sanctions on al-Qaeda, Islamic State, and their affiliates. LeT and JeM are included under this committee due to their historical links to al-Qaeda dating back to the 1990s.

In Afghanistan, the report describes how the "de facto authorities" have continued to "provide a permissive environment for a range of terrorist groups, notably Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP)". There has been an uptick in attacks in Pakistan launched by TTP from Afghanistan, aggravating tensions and contributing to fragile regional relations.

The report also indicates that while Islamic State-Khorasan (ISIL-K) is "under sustained counter-terrorism pressure", it retains a "potent capability, coupled with intent to conduct external operations". Al-Qaeda "acted as a service provider and multiplier for other terrorist groups in Afghanistan in terms of training and advice".

Regional countries remain concerned about the continued presence of terror groups in Afghanistan and their cross-border activities. The report notes: "The Afghan de facto authorities claimed that there were no terrorist groups within its borders. No Member State supported this view," highlighting scepticism of other UN members towards the Taliban regime’s claims.

Finally, the report draws attention to a "discernible increase in the effective use of new technology", with terrorist organisations showing "greater proficiency in the use of artificial intelligence, primarily in propaganda" and integrating AI tools to radicalise and recruit. It cautioned: "Although this did not represent a step change in capability, it underlined the increasing challenge that these tools pose to the international counter-terrorism effort."