China blocks India-US sanction bid at UNSC; shields Pak terrorist Abdul Rauf Azhar who plotted Kandahar hijacking

While the other 14 members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) decided to impose sanctions on Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorist Abdul Rauf Azhar, only one country, China, stood out by defending the terrorist and blocking the move.

India and the United States wanted Azhar to be designated as an international terrorist and subjected to a global travel restriction and asset frozen, a move that would have to be approved by all 15 members of the UN Security Council. However, China, a permanent veto-wielding member of the UN and a strong ally of Pakistan, halted the effort.

According to Reuters, a representative for China's UN mission stated that the delay was necessary because China needed "additional time to analyse the situation."

"Placing holds is allowed under the Committee norms, and there have been quite a number of similar holds by Committee members on listing requests," the Chinese official said.

Azhar has been banned by the United States since 2010 when the US accused him of inciting Pakistanis to engage in terrorist activities and plan suicide attacks in India.

He was charged with involvement in the planning and execution of a number of terror acts, including the 1999 hijacking of an Indian Airlines plane in Kandahar, Afghanistan, the 2001 attack on the Indian Parliament, and the 2016 attack on the Indian air force base in Pathankot.

China has repeatedly put the naming of Pakistan-based terrorists under the UN Security Council Al-Qaeda and ISIL Sanctions Committee on hold. Earlier in June, India criticised China for blocking a move to include terrorist Abdul Rehman Makki on the Sanctions Committee, commonly known as the UN Security Council 1267 Committee.