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Israel has urged India to move towards designating organisations operating against it, including Hamas, as terrorist groups, with senior Israeli officials saying that New Delhi's stance carries significant regional influence.
Israel noted that it has already proscribed Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and expects "reciprocation" from India. A senior official in Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, speaking to reporters in Jerusalem, said there is an understanding within the Indian government of the "networks and linkages" connected to these groups. "Our request from India is to work hard to sanction and designate these organisations as terrorist groups. Israel designated Lashkar-e-Taiba a couple of years ago, and we would like to see this reciprocated," the official said. The official indicated that ties between Hamas and LeT were "significant", adding that Iran's IRGC, Hamas and Hezbollah increasingly rely on transnational criminal networks to stage attacks worldwide. "You're not going to see an Iranian operative act directly in Europe. What you will see is a criminal group -- a drug lord, a human trafficker or another network -- connected to an Iranian handler who then carries out an attack, as we've seen in Scandinavia or in London," the official in the Israeli foreign ministry said. Stressing that even a declaratory designation by India would have a "strong global impact", another official said neighbouring countries such as Bangladesh, Pakistan and the Maldives "look up to India", and New Delhi's stance shapes regional responses. "It's not only about freezing assets or banning operatives from entering India. It signals that India has clearly seen what Hamas is doing, and no operative should step on Indian soil," the official added. "We are putting pressure on India to designate Hamas... After having designated Lashkar-e-Taiba, we would like to see the same," the official said. He also pointed to "clear attempts" by Hamas to rebuild its structures. "The next phase of the US-proposed ceasefire requires Hamas to dismantle, and that remains central," he said. The remarks come days after the Israeli Defence Forces said they would welcome a formal designation by India. "It will be a good thing if India did. India and Israel have a common enemy. It will be good to have a clear statement on who we face," Lt Col Nadav Shoshani, International Spokesperson for the IDF, told reporters in Tel Aviv on December 1. Hamas, founded in 1987 as an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, is designated a terrorist organisation by the US, UK, Canada and several other countries. India condemned the October 7, 2023, attacks but has not formally listed Hamas as a terrorist organisation under domestic law. (ANI)
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