Islamabad: Lashkar-e-Taiba leader Saifullah Kasuri has openly acknowledged links between his banned terrorist organisation and the Pakistani military, offering rare public confirmation of long-suspected ties between Pakistan’s armed forces and militant groups operating against India. Speaking at a public event, Kasuri claimed that he is routinely invited by Pakistani soldiers to attend official functions and even to lead funeral prayers for fallen military personnel. Kasuri, the deputy chief of the Hafiz Saeed-led Lashkar-e-Taiba and the alleged mastermind of the Pahalgam terror attack, made these remarks while addressing students at a school in Pakistan.
During his speech, he issued provocative statements against India, claiming that the Indian state was afraid of him and his organisation. “The Pakistani army invites me to lead the funeral prayers of their soldiers,” Kasuri said, in a statement that directly contradicts Pakistan’s repeated claims before the international community that it is taking decisive action against terrorist groups operating within its territory. His remarks provide further evidence of the extent of coordination, protection, and ideological alignment between Pakistan’s security establishment and internationally banned extremist organisations. Kasuri also openly admitted that India had successfully destroyed terrorist infrastructure inside Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, which he described as a major setback for militant groups.
However, he claimed that India made a “strategic mistake” by targeting only terrorist hideouts rather than broader support networks. Reiterating Lashkar-e-Taiba’s long-standing agenda, Kasuri declared that the organisation would “never back down” from what he described as its mission in Kashmir.
Addressing a Lashkar-e-Taiba rally, Kasuri stated that being accused as the mastermind of the Pahalgam terror attack had made him widely known. He attempted to project the allegation as a badge of honour, further highlighting the absence of fear of legal or diplomatic consequences while operating openly within Pakistan.
India launched Operation Sindoor in response to the terror attack in Pahalgam on April 22. The attack claimed the lives of 26 tourists and left more than 20 others injured. The incident triggered widespread outrage across India and prompted swift military retaliation. On May 7, Indian forces struck terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, destroying nine major terror camps and killing over 100 terrorists. Following Pakistan’s attempted retaliatory actions, India further escalated its response by targeting and destroying Pakistani air bases, signalling a firm shift in India’s counter-terror posture.
Masood Azhar audio threats surface, signalling renewed escalation attempts
Meanwhile, an audio recording purportedly featuring Masood Azhar, the chief of Jaish-e-Mohammed, has surfaced, in which he issues fresh threats of suicide attacks against India. In the recording, Azhar claims to command a vast number of suicide bombers ready to strike at any time. He asserts that revealing the exact number would cause panic in global media, stating that it is “not one or two, not a hundred, not even a thousand.”
Azhar, who has been designated a global terrorist by the United Nations, has long been accused of orchestrating major attacks against India, including the 2001 Parliament attack and the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. In the audio message, he claims that suicide bombers are being actively prepared and pressured to infiltrate India. However, the authenticity and date of the recording remain unverified.
On April 22, the Indian Army struck Jaish-e-Mohammed’s headquarters in Bahawalpur, Pakistan, in retaliation for the Pahalgam attack. Reports suggest that several of Azhar’s close relatives were killed in the strike. The emergence of this latest threat message soon after that operation has drawn attention, raising concerns about renewed attempts at escalation by Pakistan-based terror groups.
