PIB rubbishes Pakistan claims about LeT leader Hafiz Abdul Rauf: 'A globally sanctioned terrorist’

The funeral ceremony of terrorists was attended by senior Pakistani military and police officials.

The Fact Check Unit of the Press Information Bureau (PIB) has dismissed Pakistan’s claim that Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) leader Hafiz Abdul Rauf is an “innocent man”.

Rauf, who led the funeral of the terrorists killed in Indian airstrikes during Operation Sindoor, is a US-designated global terrorist.

At a recent press conference, Pakistan's Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, attempted to portray Rauf as a common man with "three daughters, son”.

In a post on X titled “Is Hafiz Abdur Rauf really a Common man?", PIB said, “DG ISPR's "COMMON MAN" is a Globally Sanctioned Terrorist - clearly visible in the viral terrorist funeral picture.”

Is Hafiz Abdur Rauf really a Common manPakistans DG ISPR claims that LeT terrorist Hafiz Abdur Rauf is an 'Innocent Man'#PIBFactCheckDG ISPR's "COMMON MAN" is a Globally Sanctioned Terrorist - clearly visible in the viral terrorist funeral pictureThe identity pic.twitter.com/Dy8mN72hfo
PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) May 12, 2025

PIB also said the identity details shared by DG ISPR completely overlap with the details of Hafiz Abdur Rauf, a member of LeT's senior leadership since at least 1999 and part of the US Sanctions List.

The PIB Fact Check Unit also shared a link to the US Sanctions List, where Rauf is officially named as a designated terrorist. Listed under multiple aliases, Rauf is linked to several addresses across Lahore, including 4 Lake Road, Choburji Dola Khurd, Jinnah Block. Rauf is also believed to be a close associate of the November 2008 Mumbai terror attack mastermind, Hafiz Saeed.

According to the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), Rauf has served in several key roles within LeT. These include Director of Public Service in 2003, Director of Humanitarian Relief in 2008, and operational head of LeT's charity fronts, initially Idara Khidmat-e-Khalq (IKK), later renamed Falah-e-Insaniyat Foundation (FIF).

This comes after Rauf was seen in a viral video leading funeral prayers for terrorists killed at the Lashkar-e-Taiba headquarters in Mudrike during precision Indian strikes under Operation Sindoor on May 7. The funeral ceremony of terrorists was attended by senior Pakistani military and police officials.

In a press briefing in New Delhi, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri recently had held up the viral photograph and highlighted the contradictions between facts and what the Pakistani military leadership claims.