With a Red Corner notice issued against him by the Interpol, an executive order by US treasury department designating him as a global terrorist and a UN declaration of 2003 against him, Dawood Ibrahim has nowhere to go outside Pakistan. With India launching a war against terrorism under Operation Sindoor, the question arises over the whereabouts of India's most wanted terrorist Dawood. Is he still in Karachi's Clifton area, or has he been moved to a more secure location?
According to unconfirmed reports, Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI has relocated Dawood Ibrahim and his family from Karachi to other locations within Pakistan, in light of the current conflict between India and Pakistan. Dawood had been living in Karachi since 2001. As the Indian military continues to target terrorist hideouts with precision, there were fears that Dawood might also be killed. Indian agencies have made three unsuccessful attempts to eliminate him.
Dawood fled India in 1986 and went to Dubai. There, he purchased a bungalow named 'White House' and operated his gang from that location. The planning for the March 12, 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts also took place in this bungalow, where he met with Tiger Memon and his landing agents.After the blasts, the Indian government declared Dawood a terrorist. He continued to shuttle between Dubai and Karachi afterward.
In 2001, after the 9/11 attacks in the United States, a global crackdown on terrorism began. As India and the US grew closer, Dawood became nervous and decided to make Karachi his permanent base.
In Karachi, he settled in an area called Clifton, located next to the Defence Colony which is deemed as one of the most secure localities in the city. Dawood lived there with his wife Mahzabeen, son Moin, brothers Anees, Humayun, Mustafa, and Noor. Noor passed away a few years ago. Alongside his family, several key members of Dawood’s gang also lived nearby. For instance, his right-hand man Chhota Shakeel had a house very close to Dawood’s.
It is said that after the Pahalgam attack and rising tensions between India and Pakistan, Dawood, his family, and close aides were moved out of Karachi even before Operation Sindoor began. Munna Jhingada, the same D-Company shooter who attacked Chhota Rajan in Bangkok in 2000, has also reportedly been hidden at an undisclosed location.
Dawood has been a major "asset" for Pakistan. Not just in the 1993 bombings, but also in various violent incidents and high-profile assassinations that followed. The smuggling of counterfeit currency and weapons has also been carried out through D-Company.
Dawood can no longer leave Pakistan because India has issued a Red Corner Notice against him through Interpol. The United States has also declared him a terrorist, and he is listed as an international terrorist by the United Nations. If he attempts to flee Pakistan, there is a significant risk that he could be caught.
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