FATF Condemns Pahalgam Attack, Warns of Terror Financing Links; India Pushes to Grey List Pakistan

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global body monitoring terror financing and money laundering, has strongly condemned the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, in which 26 tourists lost their lives.

In a strongly worded statement issued this week, the FATF said:

“Terrorist attacks kill, maim and inspire fear around the world. The FATF notes with grave concern and condemns the brutal terrorist attack in Pahalgam on 22 April 2025. This, and other recent attacks, could not occur without money and the means to move funds between terrorist supporters.”

Without directly naming Pakistan, the FATF stressed the critical role of financial flows in enabling terrorism and announced plans to establish a new framework to combat such financing.

The watchdog said it is intensifying efforts to evaluate the effectiveness of countries’ counter-terror financing measures:

“Through our mutual evaluations, we have identified gaps that need to be addressed. The FATF has developed guidance on terrorist financing risk to support experts that contribute to evaluations of the 200+ jurisdictions in the Global Network.”

India Pushes to Grey List Pakistan

The FATF’s statement comes amid heightened diplomatic tension between India and Pakistan following the Pahalgam attack. Indian security agencies have attributed the attack to Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba and its proxy group, The Resistance Front (TRF).

While Pakistan has denied any involvement, Indian officials have reiterated their claims of Islamabad’s continued support for cross-border terrorism. Citing links to terror financing, Indian authorities are reportedly working to get Pakistan re-listed on the FATF’s “grey list”, according to a PTI report.

Pakistan’s FATF History

Pakistan has been placed on the FATF grey list multiple times:

• First inclusion: 2008, removed in 2010

• Re-listed: 2012, removed in 2015

• Again listed: June 2018, removed in October 2022

The FATF’s grey list currently includes 24 countries under increased monitoring for issues related to terrorist financing, money laundering, and proliferation financing.

India’s call to re-list Pakistan, if supported, could further isolate Islamabad diplomatically and financially on the global stage.