WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama signed on Friday the Haqqani Network Terrorist Designation Act of 2012 into law to determine the designation of haqqani network as a foreign terrorist organisation, DawnNews reported.

The act was recently passed by both chambers of the US congressand after President Obama signed it into law it requires the US Secretary of State to submit a report within a month determining whether the Haqqani network qualifies to be categorised as a foreign terrorist organisation or not.

US lawmakers had repeatedly made demands to designate Haqqani network as a foreign terrorist organization.

The State Department, which has slapped sanctions against some of the key leaders of the network, has so far resisted the move to designate it as a foreign terrorist organisation.

Although secretary of state Hillary Clinton had publicly announced late last year that sanctions against the outfit were on their way, the State Department is yet to make any official announcement in this regard and maintains that the process is on.

The US administration on the other hand is also pursuing to engage with the Taliban via “multiple channels and contacts” for reconciliation.

The Haqqani network is accused of carrying out large number of terrorist attacks on American establishments in Afghanistan, including the 2008 bombing of the Indian embassy in Kabul that left 58 people dead.

It is one of the thorniest issues between Islamabad and Washington.

Whereas Pakistan on Saturday asked the US forces to seal the Afghan border in the event of any offensive against the Haqqani network in North Waziristan.