Terror organisation Jaish-e-Mohammed Chief Masood Azhar, who is a wanted terrorist in India, was reportedly spotted in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
According to a report by India Today, the wanted terrorist Masood Azhar was seen in the PoK region, which is over 1,000 kilometres away from Bahawalpur, known base of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JEM).
The report further clarified that Masood Azhar was recently seen in Skardu, specifically around the Sadpara Road locality.
Who Is JEM Chief Masood Azhar?
This is significant information for India as the JEM Chief is one of the most-wanted terrorists in India for his involvement in several major terrorist incidents in the country, the 2001 Parliament attack, the 2008 Mumbai attacks, the 2016 Pathankot airbase attack, and the 2019 Pulwama attack.
Masood Azhar was in Indian custody at one time; however, his associates hijacked an Indian aircraft and demanded his release in exchange for over 160 passengers.
After he was released by India, Masood Azhar founded the terror outfit JeM.
Bilawal Bhutto’s Claim
This spotting of the JeM Chief comes weeks after Pakistan’s former Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, in an interview with Al Jazeera, claimed that Masood Azhar could be in Afghanistan.
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman, Zardari, also claimed in the interview that if the Indian government shared the information of his presence in Pakistan, he would be arrested.
Azhar’s Family Member Killed In Op Sindoor
After the Indian Armed Forces launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK). Later, Jaish-e-Mohammad Chief, Azhar Masood, admitted that ten of his family members were killed in the Indian missile strikes.
According to IANS, in a Urdu statement released to the media, Masood stated that his family members, including five children, his elder sister and her husband, his nephew, his wife, and niece, were killed in India’s Operation Sindoor.
Following India’s precision strikes, the Pakistan Army had indulged in heavy mortar shelling to violate the ceasefire on the Line of Control (LoC) and launched drone attacks on Indian territory.
