No need to take seriously threats on Kashmir by Al-Qaeda chief: MEA
| Date :13-Jul-2019 |
NEW DELHI:
INDIA has the capability of taking care of its territorial integrity and sovereignty and there is no need to take seriously the threats on Kashmir by Al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri, the External Affairs Ministry said on Thursday. In a video, Zawahiri, who took over the reins of Al-Qaeda after the death of Osama bin Laden, said, “I am of the view that the Mujahideen(armedterrorists)in Kashmir -- at this stage at least - - should focus with single mind oninflictin gunrelenting blows on the Indian Armyand Government so as to bleed the Indian economy and make India suffer sustained losses in manpower and equipment.”
Reacting to it, MEA spokes person Raveesh Kumar said that India’s security forces arecapable and equipped toprotect the country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. “We keep hearing of such threats and it is not the first time that we received such a threat. I don’t think we need to take it seriously,”Kumar said in response to aquestion.“Al-Qaeda is a UN-prescribed terror organisation and their leader is UN-designated terrorist. Our security forces are capable and equipped. Not to worry about these threats. They have the capabilityoftaking care of our territorial integrity and sovereignty,” he said.
The video was posted on ‘As Sahab’channel,anin-house productionofAl-Qaeda used to relay the organisation’s views to the world, also asked the terrorists “to establish stronger channels of communication with their Muslim brethren all over the world”.Zawahiri hails from Egypt and the US has announced a reward of USD 25 million for information leading to his arrest ordeath.The Al-Qaeda chief also warned the terrorists not to fall into the trap of Pakistan, which he termed as a puppet of the US.
India fully committed to Kartarpur Sahib corridor: Raveesh Kumar
NEW DELHI:
THE External Affairs Ministry on Thursday said India is fully committed to the Kartarpur Sahib corridor project and wants the work to be completed expeditiously. The assertion came after a section of media reported that India is lagging behind in the construction of the Kartarpur corridor. “We are fully committed to this project and want it to be expeditiously completed,” Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said at the weekly media briefing. He said the Government is aware of thesentimentsofpeople and pilgrims for the Kartarpur Sahib. Kumar said the work on two important aspects -- the state of the art passenger terminal and the four-lane highway which is going to connect the zeropointoftheKartarpurcorridor to the national highway - - will be completed in time. No need to take seriously threats on Kashmir by Al-Qaeda chief: MEA I