WASHINGTON: The United States on Wednesday announced that it was adding the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) student wing, Al-Muhammadia Students (AMS) to its list of “foreign terrorist organisations” and slapped sanctions against its two top leaders.

Fresh action against Pakistan-based terror group's student wing not only expose their activities, but also disrupts Lashkar-e-Taiba's financial network and ability to carry out violent terrorist attacks.

LeT was banned by the government in 2002 but it has continued operating through front organisations, according to US officials, and their leaders conduct public rallies and interviews. US urges Pakistan to take steps towards ‘shutting down access to terrorists’

The US Treasury Department designated two LeT senior leaders, Muhammad Sarwar and Shahid Mahmood, as global terrorists. Both the LeT leaders are based in Pakistan. Sarwar, the department said, is the LeT leader in Lahore and Mahmood is a senior LeT leader in Karachi and has routinely travelled outside Pakistan on the group’s behalf.

ABOUT AMS

Founded in 2009, AMS is a subsidiary of LeT and has worked with LeT senior leaders to organise recruiting courses and other activities for youth, it added.