Fast Take
Abstract is AI generated, newsroom reviewed.
NIA’s report hyperlinks Pakistan’s ISI to the Pahalgam terror assault.
The assault on April 22 led to the dying of 26 people, largely vacationers.
Lashkar-e-Taiba plotted the assault underneath ISI directive, per NIA sources.
New Delhi:
The anti-terror physique Nationwide Investigation Company’s (NIA) preliminary report on the April 22 terror assault in Pahalgam’s Baisaran Valley factors to an operational nexus between Pakistan’s intelligence company, the Inter-Providers Intelligence (ISI), and the terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), sources have mentioned.
In response to NIA sources, the conspiracy behind the phobia assault that killed 26 folks, primarily vacationers, was developed inside LeT, allegedly underneath directives issued by senior ISI operatives. The plan is believed to have been formalised at Lashkar’s headquarters in Pakistan.
Two terrorists central to the assault, recognized as Hashmi Musa (alias Suleman) and Ali Bhai (alias Talha Bhai), are confirmed Pakistani nationals. Interrogations of detained operatives point out that each attackers maintained constant communication with Pakistani-based handlers, receiving particular directions on timing, logistics, and execution.
The terrorists allegedly entered Indian territory weeks earlier than the assault and have been aided by a community of Over Floor Staff (OGWs) who supplied native logistical help, together with shelter, navigation, and reconnaissance.
Proof Assortment
The NIA has performed intensive forensic and digital knowledge gathering. Over 40 cartridges recovered from the crime scene have been despatched for ballistic and chemical evaluation. Investigators additionally carried out 3D mapping of the assault web site and extracted dump knowledge from cell towers across the valley.
Satellite tv for pc cellphone exercise within the area spiked within the days main as much as the assault. Not less than three satellite tv for pc telephones have been operational in and round Baisaran, and indicators from two have been traced and analysed.
Interrogation and Detention
In whole, over 2,800 people have been questioned by the NIA and safety businesses. As of Could 2, greater than 150 individuals stay in custody for additional interrogation. These embody each suspected OGWs and people with hyperlinks to banned teams like Jamaat-e-Islami and varied factions of the Hurriyat Convention.
Raids have been carried out in a number of districts, together with Kupwara, Pulwama, Sopore, Anantnag, and Baramulla. The residences of a number of people suspected of aiding cross-border terror infrastructure have been searched.
Searches have been performed on the residence of Mushtaq Ahmad Zargar, alias Latrum, a key determine within the IC-814 hijack case of 1999 and presently believed to be working from Pakistan. Zargar’s Srinagar residence was beforehand hooked up underneath the stringent Illegal Actions (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in 2023.
Tech Surveillance and Eyewitness Accounts
The NIA has retrieved CCTV footage from key transit and public areas round Pahalgam to hint the attackers’ motion. They’re additionally reviewing knowledge from safety checkpoints in adjoining areas for sample mapping.
Dozens of eyewitnesses, together with households of the victims, pony operators, and meals distributors, have supplied testimonies to reconstruct the timeline of the assault. Many described the attackers as utilizing body-mounted cameras, presumably to report the incident for propaganda functions. These accounts are underneath forensic scrutiny.
Assault Linked to Earlier Incident
The NIA has additionally established connections between the Pahalgam killings and a previous terror assault in 2024 close to the Z-Morh tunnel in Sonamarg, Ganderbal district, by which seven people, together with six labourers and a health care provider, have been killed. Operatives from the identical LeT-backed unit are believed to have executed each assaults. One recognized operative, Junaid Ahmed Bhatt, was neutralised in an encounter in December 2024. One other suspect, now recognized as Hashim Musa, had reportedly participated in each assaults.
Left: Adil Ahmed Thoker, Proper: Junaid Ahmed Bhatt
In response to sources, the terrorists arrived in Pahalgam round April 15, per week earlier than the assault. Detailed reconnaissance was carried out at 4 potential websites together with Baisaran Valley, Aru Valley, Betaab Valley, and a neighborhood amusement park. Finally, Baisaran was chosen attributable to a comparatively thinner safety presence on the time.
The attackers spent no less than two days surveying vacationer actions in Baisaran, with help from 4 key OGWs.