Pakistan's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, says multiple terrorist groups continue to thrive in Afghanistan in an increasingly permissive environment.

Speaking at the UN Security Council's briefing on "Threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts", he said safe havens are available inside Afghanistan for terrorist groups such as TTP, BLA and its Majeed Brigade, ISIL-K and their affiliates, and Al Qaeda affiliates.

He said we must effectively address this increasingly dangerous terrorist threat emanating from Afghanistan.

Asim Iftikhar said the Taliban must be held accountable for their obligation to ensure that Afghan territory is not used by any terrorist group to threaten or attack other States, including Pakistan.

About Youm-e-Istehsal-e-Kashmir, he said it is the seventh anniversary of the unlawful and unilateral measures imposed in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir. On this day, seven years ago, an occupied people, the Kashmiri people, enduring over seven decades of injustice, indignity, unfulfilled promises, and denial of their Security Council-guaranteed fundamental right to self-determination, were subjected to a new wave of repression.

He said a 900,000-strong Indian occupation force unleashed untold suffering on a hapless population, which is a worst example of state terrorism.

He said we believe that there must be zero tolerance for such blatant perpetration of state terrorism in occupied Jammu and Kashmir and in other situations of foreign occupation.

Asim Iftikhar said the international community must not allow counter-terrorism to be misused and abused as a pretext to suppress the internationally recognized and legitimate struggles of peoples against foreign occupation and for their inalienable right to self-determination.