Washington, July 24: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan described the Pulwama terror attack as "indigenous thing" and denied his country's involvement in the strike. Imran Khan, who was in the United States where he met President Donald Trump, said since Jaish-e-Mohammed claimed responsibility for the Pulwama terror attack, fingers were pointed at Pakistan. But Pakistan is not to be blamed for the attack, Khan added.

Refuting Pakistan's involvement, Khan said though Jaish-e-Mohammed is Pakistan-based terror outfit, it has a presence in Kashmir. "A Kashmiri boy was radicalised after the brutalities of the Indian security forces and he carried out the attack, but suddenly Pakistan came into the limelight," Khan was quoted as saying. The Pulwama terror attack soured relations between India and Pakistan, resulting in a brief dogfight following India's airstrike in Balakot. Imran Khan Says 'There Were 40 Militant Groups Operating Within Pakistan'.

Pakistan-based Jais-e-Mohammed has carried out umpteen terror attacks in India, including the one on Parliament on December 13, 2001. The latest outrageous action by the outfit was in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama on February 14, when a suicide bomber of JeM, identified as Adil Ahmed Dar, rammed his explosive-laden vehicle into a CRPF convoy on Srinagar-Jammu National Highway, killing 40 security personnel.

The UN Security Council had in May declared Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist, a move that was being blocked by China, apparently on Pakistan's request, for nearly 10 years. Pakistan PM Imran Khan Warns US of Any Misadventure Against Iran.

The UN Security Council had listed Jaish-e-Mohammed on October 17, 2001, as being associated with Al Qaida, Osama bin Laden, and the Taliban for "participating in the financing, planning, facilitating, preparing or perpetrating of acts or activities by, in conjunction with, under the name of, on behalf or in support of", "supplying, selling or transferring arms and related materiel to" or "otherwise supporting acts or activities of" Al Qaida, Osama bin Laden and the Taliban.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 24, 2019 01:49 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).