Key Lashkar operative behind terror strikes in India shot dead in Pakistan

Time of India

18-05-2025

Abu Saifullah
NEW DELHI:
Abu Saifullah
, a high-ranking
Lashkar-e-Taiba
operative and key recruiter, was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Pakistan's Sindh province early on Sunday, dealing a significant blow to the terror outfit, already reeling from the aftermath of
Operation Sindoor
.
Saifullah had been overseeing the group's operations in Nepal, and was a key plotter in multiple
terrorist attacks in India
in the early 2000s, including one on RSS headquarters in Nagpur in 2006, the 2008 strike on a CRPF camp in UP's Rampur and the attack on IISc in Bengaluru in 2005.
Saifullah's signature tactic of deploying jihadis disguised in Army fatigues or police uniforms was a distinctive feature in all three attacks, a source said.
ISI had warned him
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'Saifullah confidante of LeT launch commander'
Of late, Saifullah had been asked by
ISI
to restrict his movements and was also provided security cover. 'However, today, he had stepped out of his house in the city of Matli when he was gunned down at a nearby intersection by unidentified armed assailants on a bike,' Pak police told the local press.
Saifullah was a confidante of LeT's launch commander
Azam Cheema
aka Babaji, sources said. Originally named Razaullah Nizamani, he was rechristened Abu Saifullah while being dispatched for terrorist activities in Kashmir. Upon his return, Lashkar's top brass gave him the title 'Ghazi', a highly sought after label by jihadis. He was since known as Ghazi Abu Saifullah.
Saifullah had nine aliases, including that of Vinod Kumar, and was in-charge of LeT's
Nepal module
for a long time. 'He was responsible for recruitment of cadres providing financial and logistics support and facilitating movement of LeT operatives across the Indo-Nepal border. He used the alias of Vinod while operating in Nepal,' a dossier on him says.
He returned to Pakistan after carrying out jihadi activities in India and started working with LeT's chief accountant Yaqub and started fundraising for
Jamaat-ud-Dawah
and Lashkar. Gradually, he started overseeing recruitment at the launchpads as well, sources said.
He had settled in Balochistan with his wife. Of late, he had been working closely with Hamas functionaries and fundraising for Gaza and Palestine.
On June 1, 2006, three terrorists—Afzal Ahmad Butt, Abu Al Kalam Alad and Usman Habib—were killed while attempting to attack the RSS headquarters in Nagpur.
The attack on a CRPF camp in Rampur on Jan 1, 2008, had resulted in the death of seven jawans of the paramilitary forces and a civilian.
The attack on Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru took place on Dec 28, 2005. Two-three terrorists in Army fatigues opened fire randomly, killing Manish Chander Puri, a retired professor, and injuring four others.