Bilawal Bhutto says Pakistan has no objection to extraditing 'individuals of concern' to India

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari (Image: Al Jazeera)

Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, during a recent interaction, stated that Islamabad is unaware of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar’s location, and asserted that the country would arrest him if India provided credible evidence that he is on Pakistani soil.

“We have been unable to arrest him (Azhar) or identify him. Given his past within Afghan Jihad context, it is our belief that he is in Afghanistan. If and when the Indian government shares information with us that he is on Pakistani soil, we would be more than happy to arrest him,” he told Al Jazeera. He added that the Indian government had not done so till now.

“If India is willing to be cooperative in that process, I am sure there will be no hurdle in extraditing any individual of concern,” he added.

Azhar has been linked to several high profile attacks in India – including the 2001 Parliament attack, the 26/11 Mumbai strikes, the 2016 Pathankot airbase assault, and the 2019 Pulwama suicide bombing – and was designated a global terrorist by the United Nations in 2019.

On being asked about a May 2025 New York Times report that said Jamaat-ud-Dawa leader Hafiz Saeed remained a free man apart from short stints in custody, Bhutto countered, “That’s not accurate. That’s factually not correct that Hafeez Saeed is a free man. He is in the custody of the Pakistani state.”

Bhutto also defended Pakistan’s position on Azhar’s unknown whereabouts, saying, counter-terrorism partnerships work through mutual exchange – with each country identifying groups of concern. “That’s how we managed to thwart attacks in London, thwart attacks in New York, thwart attacks in Pakistan.”

“As far as Masood Azhar is concerned, if he is in Afghanistan, that the West has now handed over to a group that once upon a time they called terrorists, and now they call the people in charge of Afghanistan. It’s not possible for Pakistan to go and do what all of NATO was unable to do within Afghanistan. There’s no reason for Pakistan to want to see this individual or any individual of concern to be active,” he said referencing to the current situation in Afghanistan.

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Bhutto’s comments come in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor launched in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, that claimed 26 lives. The operation reportedly targeted multiple terrorist installations -- including Jaish-e-Mohammed’s base in Bahawalpur and Lashkar-e-Taiba’s headquarters in Muridke.

Masood Azhar reportedly claimed that ten members of his family and four aides were killed during India’s strikes.