In a significant and rare public admission, a senior operative of the Pakistan-based terror organization Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Rizwan Hanif, has claimed that over 30 of its members have been killed by "unknown men" across various locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) over the past three to four years.
This marks the first instance a high-ranking figure within the United Nations-designated terrorist group has acknowledged such a substantial number of targeted killings of its operatives. Hanif's statements were made in a video that recently surfaced on social media platforms.
Targeted Killings Across Pakistan
According to Hanif, these mysterious eliminations have taken place in key cities and regions including Peshawar, Karachi, Rawalpindi, Rawalakot, and Muzaffarabad. Indian security agencies have reportedly verified the authenticity of the video and confirmed Hanif's identity as a senior LeT terrorist wanted by India.
The Lashkar-e-Taiba, responsible for numerous terror attacks including the 2008 Mumbai attacks, was officially designated as a terrorist organization by the United Nations in 2005 due to its links with Al-Qaeda and the Taliban.
Pattern of Eliminations and Irony
The admission by the LeT operative follows a pattern of similar incidents. Notably, Hamza Burhan, believed to be one of the masterminds behind the 2019 Pulwama terror attack in India, was shot dead by "unknown gunmen" in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in May of this year. Burhan, also known as Arjumand Gulzar Dar alias Doctor, had been designated a terrorist by India in April 2022. He was reportedly living undercover as a college principal in Muzaffarabad's Gojra when he was attacked at close range.
Senior Supreme Court advocate Mahesh Jethmalani, who shared the video on X (formerly Twitter), highlighted the irony of the situation. He commented that the roles appear to have reversed for terrorists who have long targeted India, stating, "For once, the terrorists are terrorised. And apparently, the unknown gunman remains unavailable for comment." Jethmalani also suggested that Hanif implicitly accused Indian agencies of operating an "unknown gunman model" in his claims.
"The irony is exquisite. Men who trained killers, infiltrated borders and celebrated the murder of innocent Indians are now looking over their shoulders, wondering who might arrive next," Jethmalani wrote, underscoring the unprecedented nature of these events for the terror outfit.