Israel designated Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) as a terror organisation on Tuesday (November 21), to mark the 15th anniversary of 26/11, the deadly terror attacks that took place in Mumbai on November 26, 2008. The Pakistan-based terrorist organisation was behind the attacks that claimed 166 lives and left 300 injured.
In a statement, the Embassy of Israel in India said that it had not been requested by the Indian government to take this step. It also called the LeT a “deadly and reprehensible terror organisation, responsible for the murder of hundreds of Indian civilians as well as others.”
“While Israel only lists terror organisations who are actively operating against it from within or around its borders, or in a similar manner to India – those globally recognised by UNSC or the US State Department; the Israeli ministries of Defense and Foreign affairs, have jointly worked in the last few months towards an expediated and extraordinary listing of the Lashkar -e- Taiba organisation on this date, to highlight the importance of a Unified Global Front in combating terrorism,” the Embassy said.
“The state of Israel offers its sincere condolences to all victims of terrorism and to the survivors and bereaved families of the Mumbai attacks, including those in Israel. We stand with you united in the hope for a better peaceful future,” the statement added.
India has been consistently pushing for global consensus on fighting terrorism, and has emphasised on a “uniform, unified and zero tolerance approach”. At a G20 meeting this year, Union Home Minister Amit Shah stressed the need for global unity. in fighting emerging challenges in terrorism and terror financing.
Last year, addressing the inaugural session of Interpol’s 90th General Assembly in New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “Despite all the past successes, today, I want to remind the world about a few things. There are many harmful globalised threats that the world faces. Terrorism, corruption, drug trafficking, poaching and organised crime. The pace of change of these dangers is faster than earlier. When threats are global, the response cannot be just local. It is high time that the world comes together to defeat these threats.”
Earlier this year in October, the Israeli Ambassador to India, Naor Gilon, had said, “It is time for India to declare Hamas as a terrorist organisations in India”. He also thanked India for its “100 per cent” support to Israel in its anti-terror operations against Palestinian militant group Hamas, which launched an infiltration into the southern part of Israel on October 7, claiming 1,200 lives.
