Latest news with #Saifullah
Hindustan Times
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Chopper, drones and sniffer dogs deployed in J-K's Kishtwar to smoke out Jaish operatives on day 3
A massive search operation to track down terrorists hiding in the forests of Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar district entered its third day on Friday, with security forces deploying helicopters, drones, sniffer dogs and additional troops to strengthen the ongoing cordon, officials said. A security personnel stands guard near the site of the encounter, at Gujjarpati area in Sopore, Baramulla district of Jammu and Kashmir,(PTI) The operation began after an encounter broke out on Wednesday evening between security personnel and terrorists in the dense Kanzal Mandu forest area of the Kuchal-Chatroo belt. 'The encounter began around 7:45 PM when police, assisted by the Army and CRPF, launched a cordon and search operation in Kuchal based on intelligence inputs about the presence of terrorists in the area,' news agency PTI quoted an official as saying. Security forces believe that two to three terrorists may still be hiding in the forest region, prompting an expansion of the search area deeper into Chatroo's rugged terrain. Also Read | Encounter breaks out between security forces and terrorists in J&K's Kishtwar This was the second terror-related encounter in the Jammu region within a week. On June 26, a Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist was killed in Udhampur district's Basantgarh area, while three others escaped into the surrounding forests. Officials said that all possible surveillance and tracking resources are also being used to prevent the terrorists from slipping through the cordon. Two top Jaish terrorists may be hiding According to a PTI report, two top Jaish terrorists — Saifullah and Adil — may be hiding in the hills of Kishtwar and are believed to be part of the group involved in the ongoing encounter. Also Read | Security forces continue searches in Kishtwar to track down Jaish ultras 'The terrorists opened fire on noticing the search parties, leading to a gunfight which was continuing when last reports came in,' an official earlier said. Security forces quickly sent more troops to the area to strengthen the cordon and prevent the terrorists from escaping. 'Reinforcements have been rushed to the area to maintain a tight cordon and neutralise the terrorists, who are affiliated with Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Muhammad outfit,' the official added. This is the second encounter in Jammu in the last week. On June 26, one Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorist was killed by security forces in Udhampur's Basantgarh area, while three others managed to escape into the nearby forest.
Hans India
04-07-2025
- Hans India
3 Jaish terrorists hiding in Kishtwar, search on
Jammu: A search operation was underway on Thursday to track down two to three terrorists hiding in a forested area of Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar district, officials said. The cordon and search operation follows an encounter that broke out between terrorists and security forces in the heavily forested Kanzal Mandu area of the Kuchal-Chatroo belt on Wednesday night. The operation is backed by drones and sniffer dogs, with the cordon further strengthened by additional reinforcements. As per unconfirmed reports, one terrorist is believed to have been injured in the gunbattle, which continued this morning. The encounter started when police, assisted by the Army and CRPF, launched a cordon and search operation in the Kuchal area of Chatroo around 7:45 pm on Wednesday following information about the presence of terrorists, they said. The officials said the terrorists opened fire on noticing the search parties, leading to a gunfight which was continuing when last reports came in. Reinforcements have been rushed to the area to maintain a tight cordon and neutralise the terrorists, who are affiliated with Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad outfit, the officials said. According to reports, top terrorists Saifullah and Adil are believed to be operating in the hills of the district. This is the second encounter in the Jammu region in the past one week. On June 26, a Pakistan-based JeM terrorist was killed in an encounter with security forces, and three of his associates escaped into the forested area of the Basantgarh belt of Udhampur district. --
Time of India
22-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Begusarai engineer trapped in Iran, kin request govt for his safe return
Begusarai: The family members of Syed Saifullah (31), an engineer from Bihar, are having sleepless nights since the escalation of tension between Iran and Israel. Saifullah, who had reached Iran on a 30-day work visa on June 12, found himself trapped the very next day following the escalating Iran-Israel tension. His brother Syed Asdullah Azad, who submitted an application to the district magistrate's office on Saturday requesting his safe return, said on Sunday that they last talked to Saifullah over phone on June 17 night. "Since then, he has been incommunicado," Azad said. Saifullah, a native of Bari Balia village under Balia police station of Begusarai district, works for a private construction company. "He had been assigned to do a plant shutdown job, along with about 30-35 other people of his company, in the city of Arak in Iran. He told me that had he had any inkling of the impending situation, he would not have reported for duty," Azad said. Saifullah's father Syed Rahmatullah said that his son had informed the family members that his colleagues and he had been shifted to the township of the refinery plant concerned. "Still, we have been rattled by the worsening situation there, besides our failure to communicate with him," he said, adding they have requested the prime minister's office, external affairs ministry and the Indian embassy to ensure his safe return. Azad said the construction company has also not been able to contact them. Since then, Saifullah's mother and wife have been offering prayers for his safe return.
NDTV
05-06-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Europe To Africa, Why Pakistan's Terror Exports Aren't India's Problem Alone
It is now more than official. Terrorist groups are not just supported by the Pakistani state, but they receive public encouragement and quite literally rub shoulders with the country's top army men and police officers. But as our diplomatic system gets into top gear to spread this message, it is important to also point out that this is certainly not merely an India-Pakistan issue. Pakistani elements have been stoking terrorism everywhere from Africa and Europe to the United States. In short, our delegations should be talking not just about Operation Sindoor, but must also bring up the truth about dangerous activities by terrorist elements elsewhere. Partying With The Lashkar First, there's the explosive video that emerged of a Pakistani politician claiming that the prominent Lashkar-designated terrorist, Hafiz Saeed, was his 'second team' and virtually a brother. Looking on in the video are his son, Talha Saeed, also a designated terrorist, and Saifullah Kasuri, who has a number of aliases. Only days before, Kasuri had – after denying that he had anything to do with the Pahalgam attack – addressed crowds, threatening India in his speech. Also on 'parade' at different times, were a number of other top Lashkar leaders - so far careful to keep themselves out of public gaze – who were openly exhorting the crowd towards jihad. All this points to a clear army hand in letting loose terrorists in an act of defiance. Second is the reality that Pakistani politicians need these people to win votes. Prominent politicians, including close cronies of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, food minister Malik Rasheed Ahmad Khan, and Punjab Assembly Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan, were at the aforementioned rally. Malik Ahmed Khan, for instance, comes from a political family and has been elected from Kasur, the focus and centre of the worst blasphemy fabrications and a hunting ground for jihadis of all hues. His declaration, that India should provide proof of the involvement of Saifullah in the terrorist attack, is audacious. His own chief of police could give him an entire dossier. Besides, Saifullah's entire history is well known to both US intel and India. He is hardly a shy flower in the terrorist world. ... And In Nigeria Meanwhile, another story has surfaced. The Nigerian army recently arrested four Pakistanis for allegedly training Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). Boko Haram had once sworn allegiance to the Islamic State but later parted ways. Nonetheless, the two outfits remain bloody as ever. Boko Haram had first made headlines in 2014, when it kidnapped over 200 schoolchildren, mostly girls, in the town of Chibok in Nigeria. ISWAP, on the other hand, is a Salafist group that believes in indiscriminate executions of non-believers. Those are some nice friends to have for Pakistan. In any case, Nigeria is looking for intel cooperation, and Delhi must oblige. Europe Gets a Jolt Too Just months ago, the Spanish police had arrested some 30-plus Pakistanis in a three-year-long operation in Spain, which had subsequently led to another 11 11 arrests in Barcelona. The operation had targeted a number of cells, including women, which were purportedly radicalising the youth using encrypted channels for communication and a strong hierarchical structure. In other words, this was not just a loose band of people but a strong organisation with a specific purpose. Though reports note they were linked to the 'Pakistani Taliban', that term has come to encompass a variety of actors, both criminal and jihadi in nature. Last year, the European Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation had stated that authorities in Romania, Italy and Austria dismantled a criminal network that abused work visas to smuggle over 500 Pakistani, Bengali and Egyptian migrants to various EU member states. In total, 12 suspects were formally identified. A Joint Working Group has been set up to investigate this Europe-wide network. Then, in the US, a Pakistani Canada-based man, Shahzab Jadoon, was arrested for allegedly planning a mass attack against Jews in New York City. In Paris, a Pakistani national was given a 30-year sentence for his role in attacking a newspaper office. There's no end to the listings. There's more. In February, three Pakistanis were arrested in Indonesia for entering on - of all things - French passports that were patently fake. The country has had other instances of Pakistanis entering illegally, including one wanted by none other than the INTERPOL. No wonder, then, that Indonesia has stood strongly with India after Pahalgam. 'Traditional Terrorism' Lingers On Then there is the simple fact that Pakistan sponsors terrorism against Iran. An irate Tehran finally bombed the camps of the Jaish ul Adl last year after repeated requests to Islamabad to do something about its activities. Meanwhile, the saga of Afghanistan spans decades, starting in the late 1970s. Now, it has gone inwards, with Pakistan complaining that it suffers more terrorist attacks than anyone else. The Global Terrorism Index agrees. It identifies Pakistan as the second most affected among 163 countries, with its position rising from the fourth place last year. Much of this is attributed to the Tehrik-e-Taliban, a motley group of some 40-plus smaller outfits said to be based around the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. Don't forget, these are areas that had been a hotbed of the Pakistan army's operations into Afghanistan. When the inevitable terror blowback finally began, the tribal areas found themselves on the receiving end of brutal 'counterterrorism' operations that included air and artillery attacks. The same goes for Balochistan. The point that Indian diplomacy should stress as its delegations travel across the world is that Pakistan is a problem not for India alone, but a dangerous terror supplier for the world itself. With Gaza and Ukraine taking up the attention of the US and European capitals, the files on terrorism need to be reopened, for their own good. Remember, terrorists are learning all the time, from each other and from their counterparts in conventional warfare. True, Ukraine's 'Operation Spider' may not be replicated in its entirety, but terrorists will certainly try to devise simpler versions to grab eyeballs. Most importantly, recruits from Pakistan are easily available to a variety of groups involved in the Gaza conflict. Add to this the sudden respectability provided to the terrorists by the Pakistani army – and the police, if the presence of a Lieutenant General, a Major General, a Brigadier and an IG of police at a terrorist funeral in Muridke is any indication. That means that instead of trying to throttle back on terrorism post-Operation Sindoor, the Pakistanis, in their 'victory' mindset, have empowered them even more. Snake And The Charmer Hopefully, some in other countries have had their counter-terrorism spectacles on. But this is despite the ultimate irony: just this week, Pakistan was appointed to chair a vital counter-terrorism committee in the United Nations Security Council, on the Taliban. That's rich, considering that the Taliban have done far, far more to finish off terrorists, especially the Islamic State - and have been commended for it by various UN committees - than what Pakistan has ever done. Having been for decades the tormentor of Afghanistan, Pakistan is now in the driver's seat. In sum, the snake has been let loose on the charmer. Prepare to fight your own battles. That's the bottom line - especially for Operation Sindoor.
The Print
04-06-2025
- General
- The Print
Lashkar's renewed blossoming shows war hasn't coerced Pakistan Army into giving up on Kashmir
Then, on 28 May, just two weeks after the 100-hour India-Pakistan war set off by that carnage, Saifullah was on stage vowing jihad without end against India—a warning that India's cruise missile attacks haven't coerced Pakistan into ending its covert war in Kashmir. Even though New Delhi believes the punishment it delivered has drawn new red lines, deterrence cannot be inferred from conjectures. The harms one adversary considers unacceptable might not be so for another. To conclude that some degree of deterrence has been secured, evidence has to be sought in the real-world actions of the adversary. Eighteen years ago this summer, then-Lashkar-e-Taiba commander in charge of operations in southern Kashmir's Kulgam, Saifullah had dramatically escaped across the Line of Control, together with his new bride, Shabbira Kucchay. From his home near Kasur in Pakistan, the National Investigation Agency alleges , he led forces which harried Indian troops, executed dozens of civilians, and conducted the communal massacre in Pahalgam. Tu paani band karega, to hum saans band kar dengey ': The crowd swayed listlessly in the Lahore heat, perhaps to keep off the flies, as the anthem threatening to choke India's breath blared out through low-grade loudspeakers. 'Light up your phones to welcome this man of courage, the hero of Kashmir, the conqueror India,' the sweat-drenched compere shouted over the music, a miserable remix of an ageing disco-era Bollywood hit. Finally, making his way through a swarm of selfie-seeking fanboys, Sajid Saifullah Jatt emerged on the stage in Lahore: The appearance of the jihadist icon, a carefully-crafted message from the Pakistan Army. For now, there's no evidence at all that ought give India comfort. Far from hiding their links with terrorists, as Pakistani officials were compelled to do after 26/11, high officials have given slain Lashkar personnel state funerals, joined their functions, and allowed the organisation to hold processions across the country. Even before the Pahalgam attack, Pakistan-based journalist Kunwar Khuldune Shahid reports, Lashkar leader Naseer Ahmad told a gathering in Muridke that 'the ideological offspring of Hafiz Mohammed Saeed will continue his jihad.' Earlier, Lashkar co-founder Amir Hamza, internationally-sanctioned for his role in raising terrorism funding, delivered a sermon in Murdike urging 'jihad against the infidels.' Local Lashkar leader Rizwan Hanif, speaking in Bazaar Khaigala of Rawalakot, urged followers to prepare for 'our jihad against the cow-worshippers.' The speaker of Punjab's Legislative Assembly, Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan, shared a stage with members of the Lashkar's political front this week, praising its jailed chief, Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, and promising future support. Little doubt exists that these public declarations of support would not take place without permission from the Pakistan Army. Two years ago, facing the risk of sanctions from the multinational Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on terror finance, Pakistan had jailed several key Lashkar terrorists, and pushed its activities underground. Today, jihadist groups—not just the Lashkar, but also the Jaish-e-Muhammad—have been freed from their cages. There's no knowing, just yet, what ends Field Marshal Asim Munir—who served as Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief during the 2019 Pulwama attack—is seeking through this escalation. The commander might see it as retaliation for Indian support for secessionists in Baluchistan, or be securing his credentials as a hawk among other Generals displeased by the decision to hold power for five entire years. The guardians of the Islamic state Located at the peripheries of Pakistan's national project, Islamism was to have a profound effect on its evolution. The state, Jamaat-e-Islami leader Abul 'Ala Maududi argued, 'and all that it contains belongs to God, who alone is its sovereign.' This language was appropriated by the country's military. The 1962 constitution of Field Marshal Ayub Khan's regime established a council to enforce legal compliance with religious ideology. The war of 1965 saw fallen soldiers for the first time being hailed as religious martyrs. Following the liberation of Bangladesh in 1971, the tensions over Pakistan's identity grew deeper. The new prime minister, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, increasingly relied on religious polemic, and his 1973 constitution made Islam the state religion. These organisations would flourish in the regime of General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, who recruited Islamist groups to support his campaign against the Soviet Union. The Ahl-e-Hadith, the religious order from which the Lashkar flowered, was not among them. Founded in the mid-19th century, by Nawab Siddiq Hasan Khan of Bhopal and Nazir Hussain Dehlavi, the Ahl-e-Hadith claimed lineage from the ideas of the anti-colonial cleric Shah Wali Allah. The sect's members, largely landed elites who had experienced downward mobility during colonial rule, blamed their plight on the decadence of Islam. Elements of the Ahl-e-Hadith, known as the Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen, participated in the anti-colonial jihadist operations in the North-West Frontier Province, historian Lal Baha records. Their strength rarely exceeded a few dozen men, and their base at Chamarkand was largely ignored by colonial forces. The organisation may have also played a marginal role in supporting Pakistan Army-backed irregulars who attacked Kashmir in 1947. The Ahl-e-Hadith split into several factions soon after, each focussed on building seminaries and mosques across Sindh and Punjab. Also read: Asim Munir just stole his 5th star & has nothing to show for it. It'll make him desperate, dangerous The Afghan jihadists From the work of Lashkar propagandist Amir Hamza, we know some young Ahl-e-Hadith seminarians began pushing to join the jihad in Afghanistan soon after the Soviet invasion, even though they had no armed group. Led by Abdul Qahar from Sargodha, a small group travelled in 1977, followed by students from seminaries in Gujaranwala and Faisalabad. Then, in 1983, to-be Lashkar deputy Zaki-ur-Rahman Lakhvi took another group of volunteers from Gujaranwala to the Nuristan region in Afghanistan, where there was an old Ahl-e-Hadith presence. The push to form the Lashkar, though, came from Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, an ethnic-Gujjar who had moved to Lahore during Partition, from what is now Haryana. Teaching at the International Islamic University in Islamabad, Saeed came into contact with Afghan jihadist circles through Abdullah Azzam, also a teacher at the university, who was Osama Bin Laden's mentor. Later, during a two-year stint at Saudi Arabia's King Saud University, Saeed was introduced to the powerful cleric Sheikh Abd al-Aziz ibn Baz, and tapped jihad donors around him. A one-time convert from the syncretic Barelvi sect, Zafar Iqbal, together with Amir Hamza and Lakhvi, formed the core of a new jihadist organisation, the Markaz ud Dawat wal'Irshad, or Centre for Proselytisation. The organisation's rise wasn't predestined. Two influential Ahl-e-Hadith figures, political scientist Sameena Yasmin has written in her authoritative work on the Lashkar, held out. Sajid Mir—not to be confused with the Sajid Mir involved in the 26/11 attacks—continued to dominate the religious infrastructure of the Ahl-e-Hadith. Eminent Ahl-e-Hadith scholars like Hafiz Abdullah Bahawalpuri and Hafiz Mohammad Yahya Aziz also chose not to participate in the new group. Following the founding of its first training camp at Karair, near Tangu in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, in February 1990, the MDI's armed wing, the Lashkar, began funnelling small numbers of fighters across the Line of Control. It focussed, though, on recruitment. Giant rallies were held in 1995, 1996, and 1997 at its new campus near Lahore, which were addressed by Bin Laden himself. The group used the deaths of cadre to draw more volunteers. As historian Mariam Abou Zahab has written, the funerals were treated as celebratory occasions, akin to marriages, where the slain terrorist was identified as a divine groom joining the houris in paradise. Literature produced by the Lashkar claimed the killed terrorist would be able to intercede for his loved ones at the gates of heaven. Also read: Pakistan has no natural tendency to be democratic. Rule of Islam is the priority Annihilation of India From the outset, the Lashkar made no secret of the fact that its objective was the annihilation of India, not just the capture of Kashmir. 'Through the jihad waged by mujahideen people of Pakistan, and particularly those from Lahore, [we] would soon be able to [visit and enjoy] the real Chamba and Shimla,' Amir Hamza cheerily asserted in 1999. Later that year, cleric Sheikh Hafiz Ahmad wrote that 'Hindustan is the worst infidel in the world. These idolaters are even worse than the infidels of Mecca as they have millions of gods. This language has increasingly infiltrated Pakistan's official discourse. Inter-Services Public Relations Director General Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhury has spoken of a Fitna al-Hindustan, suggesting the country is a legitimate target of an existential religious war. Field Marshal Munir, journalist Ailia Zahra points out, has also used similar motifs. In one speech made in April, he proclaimed being 'different from Hindus in every possible aspect of life. Our religion is different. Our customs are different. Our traditions are different. Our thoughts are different.' To this, he added the proposition that the Islamic Kalima, or profession of faith, was the foundation of the state of Pakistan itself. Ideological wars are unlike all other wars, because they seek no strategic or political ends. Islamabad has known since at least 1965 that it cannot take Kashmir by force, and yet it persists in waging a war without an end. To give up the conflict would mean giving up the idea on which the project of Pakistan rests. To prevail in this conflict, India needs weapons, but also a powerful idea it is increasingly at risk of losing sight of: The idea that nationhood can be built on something other than irreducible religious hatred. Praveen Swami is contributing editor at ThePrint. His X handle is @praveenswami. Views are personal. (Edited by Aamaan Alam Khan)
