India strikes at core of Pak's terror infrastructure, targets nerve centres of JeM and LeT

New Delhi | Striking at the core of Pakistan's terror infrastructure in a series of precision attacks, Indian jets early Wednesday hit training camps, launch pads and headquarters of the Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba without breaching Pakistan's airspace, officials said.

A large number of terrorists were present at the nine high value sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir when India attacked in the darkness of the night, they said.

Codenamed Operation Sindoor, the sites included the JeM's sprawling headquarters in Bahawalpur and the LeT's in Muridke, both in Pakistan Punjab.

The retaliatory action follows the "savage killing" of 25 male tourists, gunned down in front of their wives and families, and one local guide in the higher reaches of Kashmir's Pahalgam town on April 22.

The armed forces chose four targets in Pakistan and five in PoJK based on "credible intelligence" about terror camps operating at these sites, camouflaged as health centres to evade detection and circumvent sanctions from international organisations, including the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), officials said.

A Pakistani armed forces spokesperson confirmed to BBC in an interview that the IAF had targeted Bahawalpur and Muridke.

LeT's nerve centre in Muridke, about 30 km from Lahore, was hit four times in quick succession during the operation, they said. Muridke, the base of the terror group since 1990, is where Ajmal Kasab and nine other terrorists were trained ahead of the 26/11 terror siege of Mumbai. Besides, 26/11 accused David Headley and Tahawwur Rana also visited the LeT hub.

Al Qaeda terrorist Osama Bin Laden, killed in 2011 in Pakistan's Abbotabad town, had donated Rs 10 lakh for the construction of a guesthouse in Muridke.

Headed by the shadowy Hafiz Saeed, the LeT has also carried out terror strikes in many other parts of the country, including Jammu and Kashmir, Bangalore and Hyderabad, officials said.

The Markaz (centre) Taiba at Muridke, dubbed a 'terror factory', is the most important training centre for the LeT. Recruits, officials said, are brainwashed, given physical training and a two-week-long indoctrination course. Around 1,000 students in different courses get enrolled in this camp, they said.

The other big ticket target is Bahawalpur, which became the hub of the JeM after the release of Masood Azhar in exchange for the hijacked passengers of IC-814 in 1999.

The group has since been involved in a series of terror attacks in India, including the Parliament attack in 2001, the strike on the Jammu and Kashmir assembly in 2000, the attack on the IAF base in Pathankot in 2016 and the Pulwama suicide bombing in 2019.

The elusive Azhar, a designated global terrorist, has not been seen in public since April 2019. He started the terror outfit in January 2000 and received assistance from Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), the then Taliban leaders in Afghanistan, bin Laden and Sunni sectarian outfits in Pakistan, officials said.

The Markaz Subhanallah at Bahawalpur is where the JeM trains and indoctrinates its recruits. The Pulwama terror strike of February 2019 in which 40 CRPF personnel was planned at this camp, the officials said.

Giving details of the targets chosen, they said the JeM camp at Sarjal Tehra Kalan in Narowal district of Pakistan's Punjab was the central launching pad for the terror group and was being operated from a primary health centre looked after by its de facto chief Abdul Rauf Asgar.

The facility, just six kilometres from Jammu's Samba sector, is used for identifying places and digging cross-border tunnels to enable infiltration, and the operation of drones for dropping arms and narcotics across the border.

Among the other targets hit in Wednesday's operation to avenge the Pahalgam terror attack are Markaz Abbas in Kotli and Syedna Bilal camp in Muzaffarabad in PoJK (all JeM camps).

Besides, the Markaz Ahle Hadith at Barnala and the Shwawai Nalla camp at Muzaffarabad (all belonging to the LeT) and the Markaz Raheel Shahid in Kotli and Mehmoona Joya in Sialkot (of the banned Hizbul Mujahideen) were also hit in Operation Sindoor.

Giving details of some of the strikes, the officials said the Shawai Nallah camp at Muzaffarabad in PoJK is a crucial LeT camp where the 26/11 attackers had received training. Started in 2000, the Pakistani army and ISI frequently visit the camp, which can accommodate up to 200-250 terrorists at a time, they said.

The terrorists from these camps infiltrate mainly into orth Kashmir, they said, adding the facility is also used for radicalisation and map reading to fresh terror recruits.

Markaz Abbas camp in Kotli in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir was selected because it is headed by Qari Zarar, a close aide of Asghar, and has a presence of 100-125 JeM terrorists. Zarar is wanted by the NIA.

This facility is used for the infiltration of terrorists from Poonch and Rajouri sectors, and all terror strikes are planned in this camp, the officials said.

Another JeM camp known as Markaz Syedna Bilal, located at Muzaffarabad, has a presence of 50-100 terrorists. The Special Services Group of the Pakistan army provides training to the JeM cadres at this facility.

The Mehmoona Joya terror facility at Sialkot is concealed in a health unit, and is used for the infiltration of Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists into Jammu region. It is also a place for training, including in handling weapons.

The camp, housing about 30 terrorists, is headed by Irfan Tanda, who has been responsible for carrying out attacks in Jammu city, the officials said.

Markaz Raheel Shahid camp at Kotli in PoJK was also hit by the IAF. It is also used for the Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists, especially to train them in Border Action Team (BAT) and sniper attacks.

India has categorically stated that its actions have been "focused, measured and non-escalatory" in nature and that no Pakistani military facilities have been targeted.

"A little while ago, the Indian Armed Forces launched 'Operation Sindoor', hitting terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir from where terrorist attacks against India have been planned and directed," the Defence Ministry said in a statement released at 1.44 am.

"India has demonstrated considerable restraint in the selection of targets and method of execution," it said.