Top News

New Delhi, May 10 (IANS) More than 100 hardcore terrorists belonging to Pakistan-based terror outfits, including Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Muhammed (JeM), are said to have perished in the Indian military strikes on May 7.

Mudassar Khadian Khas alias Abu Jundal, one of the infamous LeT commanders, turned out to be a high-value casualty for the Indian military, as the latter carried out precision strikes at five locations in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and four inside Pakistan, in response to the savage terror attack in J&K’s Pahalgam.

Top Defence sources have confirmed his death.

Notably, Muridke and Bahawalpur were among the most prominent targets of the armed forces in their counter-terrorism operation. Mudirke is the Lashkar Headquarters, while Bahawalpur served as the JeM nodal centre in Pakistan.

Abu Jundal was the in-charge of the Markaz Taiba in Muridke of Punjab province. This centre served as the hiring ground for new terror recruits and also doubled up as an indoctrination centre. The facility was earlier financed by Al-Qaeda’s Osama Bin Laden and served as the mushrooming ground for the radicalisation of students to motivate them to join jihad.

It was at this facility that the perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai attack, including Ajmal Kasab, were imparted intelligence training. Other conspirators like David Coleman Headley and Tahawwur Hussain Rana also maintained links with Muridke.

India made Muridke camp one of its first targets and pulverised the base with targeted strikes on May 7, leading to the killing of Abu Jundal and many of his close associates.

The LeT HQs chief also drew the wrath of the global community, even after his death. His ‘state funeral’ in Muridke, in the presence of top Pakistani military officers, sparked a wave of anger and outrage from across the globe.

The Pakistani Army gave the dreaded terrorist a guard of honour, and also wreaths were laid on behalf of the Pakistan Army Chief and the Punjab Chief Minister, Maryam Nawaz, said reports.

His funeral prayer was led by Hafiz Abdul Rauf of JuD (a designated global terrorist) in a government school, and this sent ripples in the global community, with many governments calling out Pakistan’s brazen nurturing of terror elements on its soil.

Abdur Rauf was seen in videos on Wednesday flanked by military officers. As the picture circulated on social media, many called for exposing Pakistan and its duplicity.

Notably, out of the nine terror camps, Muridke and Bahawalpur always remained on the radar of India’s intel and security agencies, but it was for the first time that the Centre targeted these terror hubs.

The direct hit on LeT and JeM HQs is not just a strike on terror infrastructure in the neighbouring nation but also holds symbolic value for India’s war on terror, sending a message to the world that India will pull no punches in bringing terrorists and their masters in bringing to justice.

--IANS

mr/dan