A prime Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) commander, wished by Indian safety companies for a number of lethal terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, was eradicated by gunmen in an assault in Pakistan, officers mentioned on Sunday (March 16, 2025).
Zia-ur-Rehman alias Nadeem alias Abu Qatal alias Qatal Sindhi was gunned down in the Jhelum space of Punjab on Saturday (March 15, 2025) night. His safety guard was additionally killed, the officers mentioned, quoting data obtained from the neighbouring nation.
Considered probably the most trusted handler of LeT founder and 26/11 Mumbai terror assault mastermind Hafiz Saeed, they mentioned 43-year-old Rehman was the primary handler of the fear outfit concerned in the planning of varied attacks in the Poonch-Rajouri area of Jammu and Kashmir.
Network operated by Abu Qatal
The officers mentioned Rehman had infiltrated the Jammu area in early 2000 and exfiltrated in 2005. He had a large community of Over Ground Workers in Poonch and Rajouri via his previous contacts, they mentioned.
In the varied investigations carried out by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) into the ugly terror incidents in Poonch-Rajouri area, his involvement was discovered, officers mentioned.
He was charge-sheeted by the NIA underneath the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and different sections for an assault on Hindu minorities in Dhangri Village of Rajouri District in 2023, they added.
Terrorists struck Dhangri village on January 1, 2023, and focused villagers earlier than fleeing the scene, leaving behind an Improvised Explosive Device (IED). While 5 folks have been killed in the firing by terrorists, two others died in the IED explosion the subsequent morning. As many as 14 villagers have been injured in the dual attacks.
Mastermind of the Reasi Bus Attack
The officers mentioned Rehman can also be the mastermind of the Reasi Bus Attack which was orchestrated on the day of the oath-taking ceremony of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led authorities on June 9, 2024.
In this assault, terrorists killed 9 pilgrims and injured 41 by firing on a bus carrying pilgrims to Shiv Khori temple.
He was additionally concerned in the Bhatta-Durian terror incident on April 20, 2023, in which 5 Army personnel have been killed. He can also be accused in the Kandi assault on officers and personnel of the 9 Para Special Forces on May 5, 2023. The assault claimed the lives of 5 personnel, officers mentioned.
They mentioned Rehman, together with Saifullah Sajid Jutt, one other Pakistan-based terrorist, was the primary handler of terrorists of the outfit working in the Poonch-Rajouri belt of Jammu and Kashmir.
Born on February 4, 1982, in the Sanghar district of Sindh province of Pakistan, Rehman was in cost of LeT’s Khuiratta dets (small group of terrorists able to infiltrate) positioned in Kotli district of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
He was the primary hyperlink between the LeT cadres and its operators in PoK and Sindh Province of Pakistan, the officers mentioned, including he was probably the most trusted handler of Saeed.
On a number of events, the LeT founder tasked Rehman with guaranteeing management over the dets in PoK, the officers mentioned. Rehman’s associates — Riyaz Ahmed alias Abu Qasim and Hanzla Adnan — have been killed in separate incidents in Pakistan in September and December 2023.
Over a dozen terrorist commanders of various outfits, together with the LeT, Jaish-e-Mohammad and Hizbul Mujahideen, have been eradicated by unidentified gunmen in Pakistan and PoK over the past three years.
Published – March 16, 2025 05:04 pm IST
