What is The Resistance Front? Lashkar's proxy who claimed responsibility for Pahalgam attack; now, a US-designated terror group
The United States on Thursday designated
The Resistance Front
(TRF), an offshoot of the banned Lashkar-e-Tayyiba, as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).
The TRF -- the group responsible for the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 people.
The US department of state, led by secretary
Marco Rubio
, said in a statement that TRF is a
Lashkar-e-Taiba
proxy and front, and that it had claimed responsibility for the Pahalgam attack.
The statement said the group has also carried out multiple assaults on Indian security forces, including as recently as 2024.
"Today, the Department of State is adding The Resistance Front (TRF) as a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).
TRF, a Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT) front and proxy, claimed responsibility for the April 22, 2025, Pahalgam attack which killed 26 civilians. This was the deadliest attack on civilians in India since the 2008 Mumbai attacks conducted by LeT. TRF has also claimed responsibility for several attacks against Indian security forces, including most recently in 2024," the statement read.
The statement added that the action reflects the Trump administration's commitment to protecting national security, countering terrorism, and enforcing US President Donald Trump's call for justice for the Pahalgam attack.
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TRF and its aliases have been added under LeT's designation as an FTO and SDGT, under Section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act and Executive Order 13224, respectively. The department of state also reaffirmed the FTO status of Lashkar-e-Tayyiba.
What is The Resistance Front (TRF)?
The Resistance Front was formed in 2019 as a proxy of Lashkar-e-Taiba and was banned by the central government in 2023.
It has been actively involved in recruiting youth online, facilitating the infiltration of terrorists, and smuggling weapons and narcotics from Pakistan into Jammu and Kashmir.
TRF had also claimed responsibility for several attacks targeting civilians, political leaders, and security forces in Jammu and Kashmir. Its founder and commander, Sheikh Sajjad Gul, has been designated a terrorist under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.
According to security agencies, TRF's operations are backed by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), which uses the group as part of its strategy to keep the Kashmir region unstable.
The April 22 attack, carried out in the Baisaran Valley, a popular tourist destination often called "mini Switzerland" -- is being described as the worst terror strike on civilians in Kashmir since the 2019 Pulwama bombing.
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