An investigation indicates that the Pahalgam terror attack, which took the lives of 25 tourists and a civilian on April 22, was masterminded and directed by Pakistan’s political and military leaders. The ISI and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) carried out the operation. The planning was similar to the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, with only Pakistani terrorists involved. The ISI, to maintain secrecy, instructed LeT commander Sajid Jutt to utilize foreign terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir, minimizing the participation of local Kashmiri militants. The attack was led by Sulaiman, a former Pakistani special forces commando trained at LeT’s Muridke center, who infiltrated Jammu in 2022. Satellite phone records place Sulaiman near the attack location a week before the incident. He was also involved in a prior attack on an Army truck in April 2023. Initially, J&K Police suspected involvement from Hashim Musa and Ali Bhai, but the investigation points to Sulaiman’s role.
