France freezes assets of Masood Azhar

France has frozen the assets of Pakistani militant leader Masood Azhar on Friday after China blocked an attempt to list him as a global terrorist at the United Nations.

France’s foreign, interior and finance ministries said in a joint statement that the action was linked to the Feb. 14 attack in Indianadministered Kashmir that killed 40 security personnel. While Islamabad denied involvement in the suicide bombing, Azhar’s group — Jaish-e-Mohammed — claimed the attack. France said it would also ask the 28-member European Union to add Azhar on its terror list. The move comes immediately after China blocked a fresh attempt by the UN Security Council to proscribe the Jaish-e-Mohammed chief as a terrorist, which has intensified pressure on the tense relationship between New Delhi and Beijing.

India, which said Pakistan’s government was complicit in the February 14 attack, has repeatedly sought to get Azhar designated. New Delhi’s efforts have been blocked by Beijing, which is an all-weather ally of Islamabad and has financed about $60 billion in infrastructure projects across Pakistan. China argues that Azhar’s group is already clearly designated as a terrorist group.

New Delhi claims that Azhar enjoys free rein in Pakistan. Azhar was released by India in exchange for the safe return on 160 hostages on an Indian Airlines plane hijacked to Afghanistan in 1999.