Terror groups, Jaish-e-Muhammed (JeM) and Hizbul Mujahideen, are reportedly seeking to relocate and build their hideouts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which is further away from the Indian border, following precision strikes carried out under Operation Sindoor.
As per the intelligence inputs, the shift is being planned as Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), where several establishments of the terror groups were located, is no longer considered safe due to the reach of Indian aerial and drone strikes, according to a report by the Economic Times.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province's mountainous terrain, coupled with porous borders with Afghanistan, offers natural concealment. Many areas still contain hideouts built during the anti-Soviet Afghan war of the 1980s and during the American invasion of Afghanistan following the 9/11 attacks. The depth of the terrain provides resilience against aerial strikes, unlike PoK where India has proven reach.
Sources further told the ET that move is being carried out with the direct facilitation of the Pakistani state, with JeM gatherings being held under police protection.
Recruitment drive
On September 14, a recruitment rally was carried out in Mansehra district of KPK in the presence of Mufti Masood Ilyas Kashmiri. From the stage, Kashmiri praised Osama bin Laden, proclaimed KPK as a "stronghold of Mujahideen", and said that Pakistan's army regularly attends funerals of JeM fighters.
Intelligence sources say that Pakistani army cadres stood among the crowd while police provided security, NDTV reported.
As per the sources, JeM plans to hold another event on September 25 in Peshawar's Markaz Shaheed Maksudabad to commemorate Yusuf Azhar, Masood Azhar's brother, who was killed in Operation Sindoor.
On similar lines, the Hizbul Mujahideen is also believed to have shifted focus to KPK and has been constructing a new training facility named 'HM 313' under ex-Pakistani commando Khalid Khan, according to a report by the Economic Times.
Operation Sindoor
On May 7, India carried out precision strikes and destroyed nine terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and PoK, days after 26 tourists were gunned down in the Pahalgam terror attack.
Using stand-off precision missiles, the Indian Air Force and Army hit a network of facilities belonging to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed and Hizbul Mujahideen.
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