Bank accounts belonging to the UN Designated Persons not unfrozen: FO

Bank accounts belonging to the UN Designated Persons not unfrozen, said the Foreign Office on Monday.

Foreign Office Spokesperson Aisha Farooqui  categorically dismissed reports of unfreezing the bank accounts of UN sanctioned individuals.

Bank accounts belonging to the UN Designated Persons

She said that ‘targeted financial sanctions’ on the persons were still in place.

Moreover, she termed ‘factually incorrect and misleading” the news item published in an English daily on Sunday (July 12).

That report claimed restoration of the bank accounts of top five leaders of defunct Jamaat-ud-Dawa and Lashkar-e-Taiba, including Hafiz Muhammad Saeed.

Aisha Farooqui said that the UN Designated Persons’ bank accounts not restored.

She said the targeted financial sanctions, on the UN Designated Persons, including freezing of their bank accounts are in place and being strictly monitored, in compliance with the UN sanctions.

Furthermore, the spokesperson mentioned that UNSC 1267 Sanctions Committee had granted basic expense exemptions to the designated individuals in 2019.

Exemption granted in accordance with the exemption provisions of the relevant resolutions of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).

Hence, she clarified the exemptions granted to allow these individuals to meet their basic expenses. But that do not involve any restoration or unfreezing of the bank accounts.

She further said these exemptions are being enforced and monitored as per law.

The spokesperson expressed the hope that “due care would be taken in ascertaining facts with relevant government departments before filing such reports in the future”.

GTV