Hizbul commander warns of more fidayeen attacks in future

A week after the Pulwama IED blast that claimed the lives of more than 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel, terror group Hizbul Mujahideen has warned of more fidayeen (suicide bomb) attacks.

Riyaz Naikoo, Hizbul Mujahideen’s operational chief, said in a 17-minute audio clip released on social media, that the recent attacks in Kashmir are a consequence of the Indian government not keeping promises made to Kashmiris. He pointed at army atrocities, saying that is what pushed the young suicide bomber to give up his life.

“The person responsible for the fidayeen attack on forces was a Kashmiri and the atrocities committed on him by the army forced him to carry out the attack. No power in the world can stop these types of attacks. The attacks will continue till Indian forces remain in Kashmir,” he said.

(Image Credit: Basit Zargar/Twitter)

In the clip that is yet to be verified by the police, he said: “We will keep on sacrificing our lives. We prefer to die than surrender. The day is not far when our 15-year-old children will strap explosives on their bodies and barge into your army vehicles. We prefer death over slavery.”

Commenting on reports of Kashmiri nationals being roughed up across the nation the terrorist threatened to kill non-local labourers if they don’t stop.

He added, "Those mourning the loss of the troopers and calling them terrorists should be reminded that India killed more than 400 people since 2018 alone."

What’s alarming here is that this is the first time Hizbul ranks were heard asking for the use of explosive devices to attack the security forces in the valley.

For years, fidayeen attacks have been a trademark of foreign outfits such as the Lashkar-e-Taiba and the Jaish-e-Mohammad.

One must note here that Naikoo didn’t exactly spell out if it will be his organisation that will carry out the suicide bombing attacks.

Back in 2007, the outfit had signed a declaration stating its members would never use landmines to fight the Indian security forces.

The UJC is a conglomerate of 13 militant groups headed by Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin. The group has five “observer members”, including the LeT and JeM.

Notably, the incidence of fidayeen attacks had plummeted considerably in the past few years. The last such attack before Pulwama took place on December 31, 2017, when JeM terrorists lobbed grenades at a CRPF training centre.

On Tuesday, Lt Gen KJS Dhillon, had said the forces are aware of the challenges such attacks may pose. He said, “This type of suicide car bomb attack happened after a long time in Kashmir. We are keeping all our options open to deal with it in future.”