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Global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog FATF has for the first time introduced the concept of state sponsored terrorism in its latest report, highlighting that such funding is a longstanding threat to international peace and security, stability of regional financial, and political systems.
State sponsored terrorism means a state actively financing terrorist activities as part of its state policy. Before this, India had raised and identified state sponsored terrorism from Pakistan as a source of Terrorist Financing risk in its ML/TF risk assessment 2022. The finding of the Financial Action Task Force's (FATF) July 2025 report reinforces India's long-standing position on state-sponsored terror financing. The FATF report also highlights the funding patterns of Pakistan-based terrorist outfits LeT and JeM. It noted the use of e-commerce platform in the procurement of materials for a terrorist attack in India by Pakistani terrorists. Referring to the Pulwama attack of February 2019, where a suicide bombing targeted a convoy of Indian security forces, resulting in the deaths of forty paramilitary soldiers. "India's authorities concluded that the attack was orchestrated by Jaish-I-Mohammed (JiM). Investigations revealed the cross-border movement of a large quantity of explosives into India. Notably, a key component of the improvised explosive device used in the attack-- aluminum powder--was procured through the EPOM Amazon," the FATF report read. "This material was used to enhance the impact of the blast," the report added. Among other revelations in the FATF report, it noted decentralisation as one of the most reported trends regarding worldwide terrorism activities in recent years. For example, FATF noted that Al Qaeda (AQ) has over the past years used a centralised consultation council, known as Majlis al-Shura, to manage key strategic decisions, including financial management. As the organisation has progressively shifted to a decentralised model, loose central elements are now relying on regional branches, such as Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), Al-Qaida in the Arabic Peninsula (AQAP), Jama'a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM), Al-Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), or Al Shabaab, which conduct operations and generate funds locally, FATF added. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is an independent inter-governmental body that develops and promotes policies to protect the global financial system against money laundering, terrorist financing and the financing of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The FATF Recommendations are recognised as the global anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CFT) standard. The last comprehensive update on terrorist financing (TF) risks was released in 2015. "Over the past decade, terrorists have demonstrated a persistent ability to exploit the international financial system to support their activities and carry out attacks. While the methods they employ can vary widely, the overall trend underscores their adaptability and determination. This continued abuse of the financial system poses a serious threat to global security and undermines international peace," read the executive summary of the report. (ANI)
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