NEW DELHI: Post ‘Operation Sindoor’ in which the terror infrastructure in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) was heavily damaged, sources in the intelligence and security agencies said that Pak-based terror outfits Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) have begun relocating their bases to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province from their original base.
According to the sources, the decisions of the terror outfits to relocate reflect a significant “tactical adaptation”, which now view PoK as vulnerable to Indian strikes, while KPK offers greater depth due to its proximity to the Afghan frontier.
Under Operation Sindoor, India destroyed several terror hubs in Bahawalpur, Muridke, Muzaffarabad, and several other places in response to the Pahalgam terror attack. All the targets had terror infrastructure in territories controlled by Pakistan.
The strikes triggered four days of intense aerial clashes between the forces of India and Pakistan, which ended with a call from the Director General of Military Operations of Pakistan to his Indian counterpart requesting a ceasefire.
“The inputs indicate that this movement by the terror groups is being conducted with full awareness and direct facilitation of Pakistan’s state structures,” said one of the sources.
JeM, JUI conduct public recruitment drive in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Under Operation Sindoor, India destroyed several terror hubs in Bahawalpur, Muridke, Muzaffarabad, and several other places in response to the Pahalgam terror attack.According to the sources, one of the most significant developments was observed on September 14, just hours before the India–Pakistan cricket match, when JeM staged a public recruitment drive in Garhi Habibullah town of Mansehra district, KPK. The event, ostensibly organised as a “Deobandi religious gathering,” was in fact a coordinated mobilisation led jointly by JeM and JUI.
The sources also cited holding of JeM gatherings in certain places in Pakistan recently under police protection and the “tacit involvement” of political-religious outfits like Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI).
The recruitment drive were coordinated jointly by JeM and JUI in the presence of Mulana Mufti Masood Ilyas Kashmiri, alias Abu Mohammad, a senior JeM leader for KPK and Kashmir, the sources said.
Ilyas Kashmiri is a high-value target wanted in India and he is closely connected to JeM founder Maulana Masood Azhar. His presence at a public rally guarded by both JeM cadres armed with M4 rifles and local police officers reflects the Pakistan state’s support for JeM, the sources said.