US Congressional Report on Terrorism
- A US Congress report says at least 12 groups designated as “foreign terrorist organizations” by the US are based in Pakistan.
- They include five that are India-centric, according to the report on terrorism.
- The report, ‘Terrorist and Other Militant Groups in Pakistan’ was released by the research wing of the US Congress.
Foreign Terrorist Organisation
- Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) are foreign organizations that are designated by the Secretary of State of US.
- FTO designations play a critical role in fight against terrorism and are an effective means of curtailing support for terrorist activities and pressuring groups to get out of the terrorism business.
Types of Terror groups
- As per report, Pakistan-based groups could be broadly categorized into five types –
- Globally oriented
- Afghanistan-oriented
- India and Kashmir-oriented
- Domestically oriented
- Sectarian (anti-Shia)
- The prominent India-centric groups include Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Harakat-ul Jihad Islami and Hizb-ul Mujahideen.