Press Releases

Ministerial Meeting of the Group of Friends of Victims of Terrorism

September 29, 2020

Smt. Vijay Thakur Singh, Secretary (East), Ministry of External Affairs, led the Indian delegation in the 2nd Ministerial Meeting of the Group of Friends of Victims of Terrorism, which took place virtually on September 28, 2020. She thanked the Foreign Ministers of Afghanistan and Spain, Co-Chairs of the Group and the UN office of Counter Terrorism (UNOCT) for organizing the meeting.

Secretary (East), highlighted the pain and suffering of the innocent victims of terrorism across the world. She underscored that even amidst the ongoing pandemic, terrorism continues to pose a critical threat to international peace and security. She highlighted that the acts of terrorism not only violate the rights of individual victims but they also deeply affect the enjoyment of a range of rights by the families of the victims particularly women and children and therefore, measures aimed at addressing the needs of victims of terrorism should specifically factor-in their needs and sensitivities.

Secretary (East) specifically emphasized upon the importance of the right of the victims of terrorism to get justice for the crimes committed against them and in this context, highlighted that the victims of 2008 Mumbai terror attack and 2016 Pathankot terror attack are yet to get justice due to unwillingness and non-cooperative attitude of a particular country. She called for redressing deficiencies in the international efforts to ensure that perpetrators of terrorism are brought to justice.

Secretary (East) appreciated the UN for establishing August 21 as the ‘International Day of Remembrance of and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism’, and hoped the UN would continue its work related to addressing the needs of victims of terrorism.

New Delhi
September 28, 2020