Masood Azhar Is Not In Afghanistan: Kabul Rejects Pakistan Claim As FATF Pressure Mounts

Kabul has rejected Pakistan’s repeated claim that Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) founder Masood Azhar is hiding in Afghanistan, with a senior Afghan Foreign Ministry official saying the wanted terrorist is “not in Afghanistan”. Kabul also reiterated that Afghan territory will not be used against any other country.

The latest statement comes as Pakistan faces renewed scrutiny over its counterterrorism commitments, with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) set to review Islamabad’s anti-money laundering and terror-financing efforts at its upcoming plenary.

Pakistan has long claimed that Azhar crossed the Durand Line into Afghanistan in May 2019 and has remained at large there. However, Kabul has repeatedly rejected the claim. In September 2022, the Taliban government also denied that Azhar was in Afghanistan and said Pakistan had not formally communicated with Kabul about his presence.

The contradiction is significant: Pakistan says Azhar is outside the country, while Kabul says he is not in Afghanistan, raising fresh questions over Islamabad’s explanation for its failure to arrest him.

Azhar remains wanted in India for major terror attacks, including the 2001 Parliament attack, 2008 Mumbai attacks, 2016 Pathankot airbase attack and 2019 Pulwama bombing. The UN Security Council designated him a global terrorist in May 2019.

Pakistan was placed on the FATF grey list from 2018 to 2022 over systemic deficiencies in combating money laundering and terror financing. Concerns included financing linked to JeM and Lashkar-e-Taiba, as well as weak implementation of financial sanctions against UN-designated individuals.

To leave the grey list, Pakistan was required to ban JeM, LeT and their fronts and secure convictions against their leaders. Azhar was convicted in absentia in Pakistan in 2021.

Pakistan exited the grey list in 2022, but the Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG) continued reviewing specific commitments, including, at FATF’s request, Islamabad’s efforts to arrest Azhar.

People tracking the FATF process said Pakistan later backslid on assurances made to secure its exit from the grey list after international pressure eased. Kabul’s latest denial now puts renewed focus on where Azhar actually is and why Pakistan has still failed to arrest him.