Security agencies have identified three terrorists involved in plotting the Pahalgam terror attack in which 25 tourists and a Kashmiri pony ride operator were shot dead in cold blood. Two of them — Lashkar-e-Taiba chief Hafeez Saeed and his deputy Saifullah Kasuri — are in Pakistan, and the third, Hashim Moosa, is believed to be hiding in Jammu and Kashmir.
Sources in the security establishment have said Hashim Moosa is hiding somewhere in the forests of south Kashmir and an all-out operation has been launched to track him down. The terrorist, security agencies fear, will try to flee to Pakistan. Jammu and Kashmir police have announced a bounty of Rs 20 lakh for any information about Hashim Musa and assured that the informer’s identity will be kept secret.
According to sources, the objective is to arrest Hashim Moosa alive, as that would establish Pakistan’s role in the heinous terror attack. Hashim Musa, it is learnt, has served as a para-commando in Pakistan’s Special Service Group. He later joined Lashkar-e-Taiba and has been part of multiple terror attacks since. He is learnt to have entered India in 2023.
In October last year, Hashim Moosa was involved in a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Ganderbal district that left seven people dead. He was involved in an attack in Baramullah that left four security personnel dead. According to security agencies, Hashim Moosa has been part of at least six terror attacks in the Valley.
The investigation into the Pahalgam tragedy has found that Hashim Moosa was among the key perpetrators of the chilling terror attack that targeted innocents. Others involved have been identified as Adil Thoker and Asif Sheikh. Police have announced a bounty of Rs 20 lakh for each of them.
The Pahalgam tragedy has brought relations between India and Pakistan to rock bottom. New Delhi has suspended the Indus Waters Treaty and visa services for Pakistan nationals. Islamabad has responded by threatening that it can suspend all bilateral pacts, including the Simla Agreement that validates the Line of Control.
