New list released before FATF meeting
A new list of wanted terrorists has been released by Pakistan before the proposed meeting of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in Paris next month. It includes the names of a total of 1804 terrorists. Apart from Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar, 19 other terrorists who were involved in the Mumbai terror attack conspiracy have also been included in the list.
However, some changes have also been made in the list. Pictures of Mohammed Khan, who helped in the Mumbai attacks, and Bahawalnagar terrorist Abdul Rehman have been removed. The mention of his connection with Lashkar-e-Taiba has also been removed from the list.
India's claim- terrorists are present in Pakistan only
Indian agencies claim that Masood Azhar and the remaining 19 wanted terrorists associated with the Mumbai attacks are present in Pakistan. Pakistan had claimed in the year 2021 that Masood Azhar had fled to Afghanistan. On the contrary, Indian agencies claim to have information that Azhar is hiding in Nawabshah of Sindh province.
According to Indian agencies, information related to the activities of Masood Azhar in Nawabshah has been emerging during the last six months. In such a situation, Pakistan's inclusion of him in the wanted list is questionable.
Number of wanted terrorists increased by 35 percent in four years
There has also been a huge increase in the number of terrorists in Pakistan's new list. There were names of 1330 wanted terrorists in the list released in the year 2021. In the new list of 2026, this number has increased to 1804. That means the number of listed terrorists has increased by about 35 percent in four years.
Names of 11 Lashkar terrorists linked to Mumbai attack
According to the list of FIA's anti-terrorism branch, the names of 11 people associated with Lashkar-e-Taiba are included in the most wanted terrorists. He is accused of providing sea route help to the Mumbai terror attack attackers.
The list also contains names of six people who have been accused of providing financial help to terrorists. Among them, Mohammad Iftiyar is accused of spending Rs 70 thousand, Mohammad Zia Rs 80 thousand, Mohammad Abbas Nasir Rs 2.53 lakh, Javed Iqbal Rs 1,86,430, Mukhtar Ahmed Rs 2,98,047 and Ahmed Saeed Rs 21 lakh.
Pakistan has been in FATF gray list thrice
Pakistan has long been accused of promoting terrorism and not taking effective action against terrorist organizations. For this reason FATF has put it in the gray list thrice. India has been continuously raising the issue of Pakistan's role in international forums.
India is also preparing to raise the issue of terrorism and Pakistan's role in the FATF meeting to be held next month. In such a situation, the Indian side is seeing Pakistan's move to increase the reward on Masood Azhar and include him in the wanted list as a strategy to avoid global pressure.