
"When you butcher civilians, you don't get a pass": Trump backs TRF terror designation
"President Trump calls it like it is. The Resistance Front is a foreign terrorist organisation and deserves the designation. When you butcher civilians, you don't get a pass--you get JUSTICE," the Committee posted on X.
The Resistance Front, a proxy group of Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT), had claimed responsibility for the April 22 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam area that killed 26 civilians. The attack also triggered a four-day military escalation between India and Pakistan.
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar welcomed the move, calling it a strong step in the global fight against terrorism. He said the action reflected growing India-US counter-terrorism cooperation.
"Appreciate SecRubio and @StateDept for designating TRF, a Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT) proxy, as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT). It claimed responsibility for the April 22 Pahalgam attack. Zero tolerance for terrorism," Jaishankar posted on his social media platform X.
In a statement, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the decision to designate TRF under US anti-terrorism laws was based on its direct involvement in the Pahalgam attack and its known links with LeT.
The United States noted that the Pahalgam incident was the deadliest civilian attack in India since the 2008 Mumbai attacks, which were also carried out by LeT. The US State Department further stated that TRF has been involved in multiple attacks on Indian security forces, including in 2024.
The move, the US government said, reinforced the Trump administration's long-standing commitment to global counter-terrorism and signalled a message that terrorist proxies will not be spared.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Times of Oman
an hour ago
- Times of Oman
Piyush Goyal meets steel, engineering sector leaders to boost competitiveness and global role
Mumbai: Indian Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal held a high-level meeting with major steel producers in Mumbai on Saturday. The focus of the meeting was to discuss on key areas such as advanced technology adoption, reducing logistics costs, boosting iron ore production, and enhancing MSME competitiveness to strengthen India's position in global value chains. "Held a productive dialogue with major steel producers in Mumbai. Focused on ideas like advanced tech adoption, reducing logistics costs, increasing iron ore production, and expanding India's role in global value chains by making our MSMEs more competitive. Looking forward to a collaborative roadmap ahead to forge a resilient & future-ready steel industry," Goyal said in the X post. Steel is a de-regulated sector and the government acts as a facilitator by creating a conducive policy environment for the development of the steel sector. The government has taken the several measures to improve raw material security, enhance R&D activities, reduce import dependence, and cost of production to support India's goal of becoming Aatmanirbhar in steel production and help MSMEs, small steel producers. He also engaged with leaders from the engineering goods sector, calling them "champions of precision, performance & progress." Goyal emphasized the government's commitment to building a resilient steel industry and transforming India into a global engineering hub under the Aatmanirbhar Bharat and Make in India initiatives. "Engaged with leaders of the Engineering Goods Sector who are our nation's champions of precision, performance & progress. Together, we are building an ecosystem that strengthens Aatmanirbhar Bharat and fuels Make in India for the World. Government is committed to turbocharging India's march to become a global engineering hub!," he added in a seperate post. These meetings are possibly part of the government's effort to protect the stakeholders in the steel and other allied sectors amid the uncertain environment after the imposition of tariff by the US President Donald Trump.


Times of Oman
an hour ago
- Times of Oman
India's semiconductor mission paves way for digital sovereignty: Experts
New Delhi : In a significant stride towards establishing digital sovereignty, the central government's ambitious semiconductor mission is being hailed as a transformative step in securing the country's control over its digital infrastructure. In an exclusive conversation with ANI, experts stated that this initiative lays the groundwork for India to become self-reliant across the entire digital technology stack, from chip manufacturing to Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cloud applications. At the heart of this initiative lies the understanding that all mission-critical digital infrastructure, whether related to artificial intelligence or cloud computing, fundamentally depends on semiconductor chips. "When you are talking about a completely digital sovereignty, it starts at the chip level. Whether it is a complete AI stack or a complete cloud stack on which any mission-critical applications of government or enterprises are running, it always starts from the ground level, which is the chip. From chip level, we end up making equipment," Sunil Gupta, Chair, ASSOCHAM National Council on Datacenter, told ANI. "Chips form the base, leading to the development of equipment, operating systems, datasets, models, and ultimately, applications." On top of that, Gupta said, "You start making operating systems, then you run in case of AI examples. You have data sets and then you have models and then you have applications." "So, the Government of India is clearly understanding this whole stack, which needs to be completely owned by India. At the chip level, India has created a semiconductor mission, which means India is able to design, fabricate, assemble, and package its own chips in India itself." Recognizing this technological hierarchy, the Government of India has launched the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) to ensure full ownership of this stack. The mission aims to enable domestic capabilities in chip design, fabrication, assembly, and packaging. "The semiconductor mission and the government emphasis on that is actually a step in the very very right direction. It is at the route of becoming a sovereign nation in terms of digital infrastructure," Gupta said. He further said the initial efforts have begun with the manufacturing of 28-nanometer chips, but the government is setting its sights higher. "Starting has been done maybe with chips of 28 nanometers, but I am very sure once this mission starts, we will start manufacturing the most high-end two and three nanometer chips also," Gupta stated. "As the Minister of IT also announced that within five years India can also expect its GPU manufacturing in India, which is a real sovereignty at the root level that you are not dependent on a chip which is designed in the US and manufactured in Taiwan." As per Gupta, "India will be able to design and manufacture chips in India itself. Now, on top of that, which is the semiconductor mission that is addressing this point. We also would have seen that India is also trying to find other sources of rare earth metals." "The Prime Minister has visited so many countries in the Latin America and Africa. The reason was that if China had put a huge control on rare Earth. It is presumably, they are owning 90 per cent of the rare Earth in the world. Then India will have to be self-dependent on rare Earth because these rare Earth which are actually being used in the manufacturing of electronics. So, that is another component on which the government is very serious about," he added. On sovereign tech for India's digital transformation, founding member of Bharath Cloud, Dipali Pillai stated, "Having a digital India on sovereignty is crucial because it is an economic and security story, and having everything in house is very important, because then we are running on the regulations that we write..." On India announcing indigenous chip manufacturing units, she stated, "Having everything on our own soil and working on our own terms is extremely important for us to grow and innovate..."


Muscat Daily
12 hours ago
- Muscat Daily
Oman, China explore deeper ties at Salalah forum
Salalah – The third Omani-Chinese Friendship Forum was held in Salalah last week focusing on strengthening strategic partnership and expanding avenues of cooperation and investment between Oman and China. Organised under the theme 'Chinese Modernisation and Oman Vision 2040: Our Work and Proposals', the forum was a joint initiative of Al Roya newspaper, the Chinese Embassy in Oman and the Oman-China Friendship Association. It brought together officials, experts and specialists from both countries. H H Sayyid Marwan bin Turki al Said, Governor of Dhofar, inaugurated the forum and felicitated participants and speakers. H E Dr Saleh Said Masan, Undersecretary for Commerce and Industry at Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion, described the forum as a 'unique opportunity to exchange expertise and explore promising investment areas that serve the development priorities of both countries.' H E Lyu Jian, Ambassador of China to Oman, said relations between the two countries have remained strong for over 1,200 years, with diplomatic ties formally established in 1978. 'Our cooperation has been stable and fruitful, built on mutual respect and equality.' He added that China is Oman's top trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching US$36.7bn in 2024. China is also among the top five foreign investors in Oman. 'Our collaboration includes the launch of the first Omani satellite, joint energy investments and training programmes that have benefited over 1,200 Omanis.' The ambassador noted that trade between China and the GCC reached US$288bn in 2024, with Chinese investments increasing by more than 30% in the first half of 2025. He called for more cultural cooperation and the introduction of direct flights between Oman and China. Dr Khalid Salim al Saidi, Chairman of Oman-China Friendship Association, said it plays a 'vital role in strengthening ties beyond formal meetings'. He added that its work now includes building cultural bridges and informal cooperation initiatives based on mutual values. Naif Hamed Fadhil, Head of the Dhofar branch of Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the forum is 'important for bringing business owners closer and enabling bilateral investment in energy, technology, industry, logistics and tourism'. He called for the development of sustainable and impactful cooperation models. The forum featured discussions on four core themes: Chinese Modernisation and Oman Vision 2040, Energy Sector Cooperation, Innovation and Technology Partnerships, and Cultural and Humanitarian Exchange. It also included a photo exhibition in collaboration with the Chinese Embassy and B2B meetings between companies from the two countries. More than 30 representatives from Omani and Chinese firms took part, with a dedicated exhibition showcasing Chinese businesses. The forum aimed to reinforce strategic ties and explore new collaboration areas aligned with Oman's development priorities, while drawing from China's experience in economic and social modernisation.