China on Wednesday put on hold a request by Britain, France and the United States to add the leader of a Pakistan-based Islamist group behind a suicide attack in Kashmir to the UN terror blacklist, diplomats said. It was the fourth time that the UN Security Council was considering a request to put Masood Azhar, leader of Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), on the UN sanctions blacklist, which would subject him to a global travel ban, an assets freeze and an arms embargo.

India said it was disappointed by the Chinese move. In a statement, the Indian foreign ministry said it "was disappointed by the outcome", adding it would continue to pursue all avenues to make sure "terrorist leaders who are involved in heinous attacks on our citizens are brought to justice". Jaish-e-Mohammad has claimed responsibility for the February 14 attack in Kashmir that killed 40 Indian troops and which was condemned by the Security Council.

In a note, China said it needed more time to examine the sanctions request targeting Azhar and asked for a technical hold which could last up to nine months, diplomats said. “It appears as though the Chinese have been protecting Pakistan’s priorities on counter-terrorism in the committee and so they are Pakistan’s protector,” said a Security Council diplomat, who asked not to be named.