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New Indian Express
13-05-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
India has avenged my friend Daniel Pearl's killing in Bahawalpur
I still remember the chill I felt when I first heard of Bahawalpur. It was late January 2002. My dear friend and colleague, Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, had just left a home I had rented on Zamzama Street in Karachi for an interview from which he never returned. We soon learned terrorists in Pakistan had kidnapped Danny. As we tried to trace Danny's steps, one name kept surfacing: the dusty city of Bahawalpur. In the days that followed, we learned terrorists had murdered Danny, brutally beheading him and cutting him into pieces. Twenty-three years have passed, but the chain of events that led to Danny's murder continues to haunt us—and it runs straight through Bahawalpur. This week, India's Operation Sindoor launched an airstrike on Bahawalpur and other terrorist targets, killing terrorist chief Abdul Rauf Azhar. To be clear, Abdul Rauf did not kidnap or murder Danny. But in 1999, he masterminded the hijacking of Indian Airlines flight 814, which forced India to release three terrorists - including his brother, Masood Azhar, and a British Pakistani, Omar Sheikh, who would go on to lure Danny into captivity. Another brother, Ibrahim Azhar, was a hijacker on Flight 814. Abdul Rauf opened the prison door that allowed a kidnapper to walk free. His killing is a reminder that those who enable terror must answer for their actions. Bahawalpur, where Abdul Rauf enjoyed a safe haven, is more than just a city. Since the 1990s, it has been a hub for a state-sponsored terrorism industry that has enabled global violence—killing innocents in India, Pakistan and around the world. It's where the story of Danny's murder began.
New Indian Express
10-05-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
India has avenged Daniel Pearl's killing in Bahawalpur
I still remember the chill I felt when I first heard of Bahawalpur. It was late January 2002. My dear friend and colleague, Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, had just left a home I had rented on Zamzama Street in Karachi for an interview from which he never returned. We soon learned terrorists in Pakistan had kidnapped Danny. As we tried to trace Danny's steps, one name kept surfacing: the dusty city of Bahawalpur. In the days that followed, we learned terrorists had murdered Danny, brutally beheading him and cutting him into pieces. Twenty-three years have passed, but the chain of events that led to Danny's murder continues to haunt us—and it runs straight through Bahawalpur. This week, India's Operation Sindoor launched an airstrike on Bahawalpur and other terrorist targets, killing terrorist chief Abdul Rauf Azhar. To be clear, Abdul Rauf did not kidnap or murder Danny. But in 1999, he masterminded the hijacking of Indian Airlines flight 814, which forced India to release three terrorists - including his brother, Masood Azhar, and a British Pakistani, Omar Sheikh, who would go on to lure Danny into captivity. Another brother, Ibrahim Azhar, was a hijacker on Flight 814. Abdul Rauf opened the prison door that allowed a kidnapper to walk free. His killing is a reminder that those who enable terror must answer for their actions. Bahawalpur, where Abdul Rauf enjoyed a safe haven, is more than just a city. Since the 1990s, it has been a hub for a state-sponsored terrorism industry that has enabled global violence—killing innocents in India, Pakistan and around the world. It's where the story of Danny's murder began.
Indian Express
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Operation Sindoor targets 9 locations: Links to LeT and JeM, how they've attacked India in the past
India's Operation Sindoor on Wednesday (May 7) targetted 21 terrorist camps across nine locations in Pakistan and PoK — in Bahawalpur and Muridke in Pakistan's Punjab, and Muzaffarabad and Kotli in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). These terrorist camps are linked with the Jaish-e-Mohamed or the Lashkar-e-Taiba. As The Indian Express has reported, Bahawalpur, which faces the Rajasthan frontier across the Thar desert, has been a stronghold of the Jaish-e-Mohammed, led by Maulana Masood Azhar. The Jamia Masjid Subhan Allah, which was among the sites targetted, is believed to be a hub of the JeM. Muridke near Lahore is the home of the Hafiz Saeed-led terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba. It houses the Markaz-e-Taiba, the base camp of the Lashkar-e-Taiba. These two terror outfits have a long history of attacks against India. Here's what to know about Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba's anti-India activities, and their hubs targeted today. Jaish-e-Mohammed Jaish-e-Mohammed or the Army of Mohammed (other names include Khuddam Ul Islam and Tehrik ul-Furqaan) was founded by Masood Azhar in the early 2000s. Azhar was designated a global terrorist by the UN in 2019. India had arrested Azhar in 1994, but in 1999, Indian Airlines Flight 814 was hijacked, and Azhar was freed in return for the safety of the flight passengers. After his return to Pakistan, Azhar formed the Jaish-e-Mohammed, with the group's main aims being 'uniting' Kashmir with Pakistan and expelling the foreign troops then present in Afghanistan. 'Supporters [of the JeM] are mostly Pakistanis and Kashmiris, but also include Afghans and Arab veterans of the Afghan war against the Soviets. The group uses light and heavy machine guns, assault rifles, mortars, improvised explosive devices, and rocket-propelled grenades in its attacks. The US State Department designated JEM a Foreign Terrorist Organization in 2001,' the US National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) says. The attacks against India by the JeM include the 1999 IC-814 Hijack, the 2001 J&K Assembly Attack, which killed 38 people; the 2001 Parliament Attack, which killed seven; attacks in Kashmir during 2014-15 following the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, leading to the deaths of over a dozen security personnel; the 2016 Pathankot attack, which killed six security personnel; the 2016 Uri attack in which 17 Army personnel were killed; and the 2019 Pulwama attack, which killed over 40 CRPF personnel. Lashkar-e-Taiba The Lashkar-e-Taiba and its co-founder Hafiz Saeed became household names in India after the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, which killed more than 170 people. The Let also had a role in the 2006 Mumbai local train bombings, which killed more than 180 people, and in the 2010 German Bakery blast in Pune. The LeT was formed before the JeM, in the late 1980s. It wants to bring Kashmir under Pakistan. According to the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP), 'The LeT's professed ideology goes beyond merely challenging India's sovereignty over the State of Jammu and Kashmir. The Lashkar's 'agenda'… includes the restoration of Islamic rule over all parts of India.' 'The outfit's headquarters (200 acres) is located at Muridke, 30 kms from Lahore, which was built with contributions and donations from the Middle East, with Saudi Arabia being the biggest benefactor. The headquarters houses a Madrassa (seminary), a hospital, a market, a large residential area for 'scholars' and faculty members, a fish farm and agricultural tracts. The LeT also reportedly operates 16 Islamic institutions, 135 secondary schools, an ambulance service, mobile clinics, blood banks and several seminaries across Pakistan,' the SATP says. The LeT's front organisation is Jamaat-ud-Dawa, a charitable organisation. The USA's NCTC says, 'The group recruits internationally, as evidenced by the arrest in the United States of Jubair Ahmed in 2011, [David] Headley's arrest in 2009, and the indictment in 2003 of 11 LT terrorists in Virginia.' David Headley is an accused in the Mumbai attacks.
News18
07-05-2025
- News18
Who Is Masood Azhar, Jaish-e-Mohammed Chief Who Was Let Off After IC-814 Hijacking?
Last Updated: Masood Azhar, the founder of Jaish-e-Mohammed, was released by India in 1999 after the hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight 814. The JeM is responsible for several terror attacks. Operation Sindoor: India carried out military strikes as part of 'Operation Sindoor' against terrorist camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in retaliation for the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, which killed 10 family members of Jaish-e-Mohammed Chief Masood Azhar. Masood Azhar released a statement, admitting that 10 of his family members were killed in the Indian strikes. Their funeral will take place at Bahawalpur in Pakistan's Punjab. Terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba's headquarters in Muridke and designated terrorist and Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar's madrassa were among the nine sites India struck on Wednesday as India retaliated to Pahalgam attacks by launching Operation Sindoor. Who Is Masood Azhar? Masood Azhar is a UN-proscribed terrorist who is the founder and leader of the Pakistan-based terrorist organisation Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), which was responsible for the Pulwama terror attack where 40 Indian soldiers were killed, bringing the neighbours to the brink of war. Azhar was born in Bahawalpur in 1968 and was sent to a madrasa in Karachi after completing his Standard 8 examination. The madrasa was affiliated with Pakistani jihadist groups, from where Azhar graduated in 1989. He joined the Soviet-Afghan war and also enlisted to fight for Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, but failed to complete his training due to 'poor physique". As militancy grew in Jammu and Kashmir, Azhar was tasked with merging two jihadist groups – Harkat-ul-Jihad Islami and Harkat-ul-Mujahideen into the Harkat-ul-Ansar (HuA). He became the general secretary of the group and recruited followers from several countries, including the United Kingdom. Azhar arrived in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir in 1994 under a fake identity to meet with the cadre, when Indian security forces arrested him. He was imprisoned in Tihar Jail in Delhi and was later taken to Kot Balwal Jail in Jammu. HuA commander Sajjad Afghani was killed in a failed attempt to help Azhar out of prison. Four years later, in December 1999, an Indian Airlines Flight 814 (IC-814) carrying 179 passengers and 11 crew members was en route from Kathmandu to Delhi, when it was hijacked by five members of the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen and taken to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. The plane which was hijacked was then rerouted towards Pakistan, instead of Delhi. Since it did not have enough fuel, it landed at Amritsar. When there was delay in Amritsar, the hijackers stabbed two people with knives. One of them succumbed to his injuries inside the plane. Though the hijackers were ready to release some women and children, the Pakistani authorities did not give permission. The plane was refueled at Lahore and then took off for Kabul. Since there was no facility to land at Kabul at night, the plane was again diverted towards Dubai. A total of 27 passengers, which included children and women, were released in exchange for fuel. The Harkat-ul-Mujahideen demanded the then-Atal Bihari Vajpayee government to release Mazood Azhar, Ahmed Zargar, and Sheikh Ahmed Umar in exchange for the hostages. The then Foreign Minister, Jaswant Singh, escorted these terrorists to Kandahar, bringing an end to the eight-day hijack. After his release, Azhar founded JeM, which was responsible for several attacks, including the Parliament bombing in 2001 and the Pathankot attack in 2016. JeM was officially banned in Pakistan after the 2001 attack, but it is still operating under the shadows. The group even attempted to assassinate then-Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf in 2003. First Published: May 07, 2025, 13:27 IST
Hans India
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
Pahalgam handlers same as those behind 26/11, Uri, Pulwama: Farooq Abdullah
New Delhi: Hinting at Pakistan's role in the Pahalgam terror attack, former Union Minister and president of the National Conference party Farooq Abdullah on Friday said the same handlers who perpetrated 26/11, Uri, Pulwama and Pathankot strikes are behind the April 22 tragedy in the Baisaran Valley. Talking to IANS, the former J&K Chief Minister described the Pahalgam strike as 'very painful' and 'murder of humanity', adding, 'Anyone could be involved in the Pahalgam incident. Until we catch them, we cannot say who it is. The handlers must be the same ones who did it before. It's not just about today. They did it in URI too. You must have seen what happened in Pulwama. Who did it in Mumbai? Who did it in Pathankot? Who did it in Rajouri and Poonch? The handlers are sitting there.' He suggested that Pakistan's objective behind the Pahalgam strike was to disrupt J&K's journey of progress. 'They feel that we are living in peace, living calmly, thousands of tourists are roaming here. They didn't like it. They want us not to stay with them. Since 1947, they have tried to destroy as much as they can and will continue to try,' he said. Seeking strict action against the accused in the Pahalgam terror strike that left 26 dead, Abdullah said, 'The culprits should be caught and given exemplary punishment.' The former Union minister was also suspicious about the involvement of local Kashmiris in the Pahalgam terror attack. 'I don't think this kind of thing can happen without some kind of help. Unless someone supports them, how did they come, from where did they come?' he said. Amid indications that Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist Rauf Asghar, brother of Jaish chief Masood Azhar, could be among the masterminds of the Pahalgam strike, Abdullah regretted the release of Masood Azhar by the Indian government in exchange for freeing the hostages of the hijacked Indian Airlines Flight 814 in Kandahar in December1999. 'I said earlier too, when Azhar was released, I said don't release him. He has already made his paths. Who knows if he is involved in this too? But no one listened to me. They took him to Pakistan. Children were killed here. They shot my cousin at his home. We caught him with great difficulty, but they took him in a plane to Kandahar. No one listened to us in that,' he said.
