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UK bans Indian Mujahideen

Britain has banned the Indian Mujahideen, making it a criminal offence to join and support the Lashkar-e-Taiba-linked terror group which carried out 'indiscriminate mass casualty attacks' in India and 'posed a threat' to British nationals there.

The MPs at the UK's House of Commons unanimously approved a motion on Wednesday night proscribing the Indian Mujahideen and placing it on the list of 47 organisations that have been banned from functioning in the UK.

'Indian Mujahideen is a terrorist organisation which has carried out a number of indiscriminate mass casualty attacks in India since 2007. It uses violence to achieve its stated objectives of establishing an Islamic state in India and implementing Sharia law,' the home secretary Theresa May said. She added: 'Proscribing Indian Mujahideen sends a clear message that we condemn its activities and enables the UK to demonstrate our commitment to counter-terrorism to our international partners.'

The ban, which was slapped based on available evidence and information, comes into effect from Thursday.

Setting out the reasons for proscribing the organisation, the home office minister James Brokenshire told the House of Commons that the decision was 'not taken lightly' but after thoroughly reviewing all the available information and evidence about the Indian Mujahideen.

Brokenshire said that the Indian Mujahideen 'has frequently perpetrated attacks against civilian targets, such as markets, with the intention of maximising casualties... The organisation has also publicly threatened to attack British tourists, so they clearly pose a threat to British nationals in India.'

The senior Labour leader Keith Vaz said: 'I welcome yesterday's decision of the British Parliament to ban the Indian Mujahideen from operating in the UK. The international community should join together in criminalising this organisation, which has killed innocent civilians and uses violence indiscriminately.' He added, 'Britain and India should use their strong ties and work together to persuade other countries to ban the Indian Mujahideen from operating, and ensure they have nowhere left to go.'

Brokenshire noted that the Indian Mujahideen was also banned in other countries, including the United States and New Zealand.
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