LeT co-founder Amir Hamza injured in Lahore, being treated at military hospital: Report

Hamza is reportedly receiving treatment at a military hospital in Lahore.

Amir Hamza, a founding member of the proscribed terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), has reportedly been hospitalised following an incident at his residence in Lahore.

Pro-Lashkar Telegram channels reacted to the incident on Tuesday evening, with sympathisers urging members to stay strong amid the “crisis” and insisting that Hamza’s injuries were the result of an “accident", it has been learnt from a Times of India report.

Hamza is currently receiving treatment at a military hospital in Lahore, where security around his ward has been significantly heightened, under the watch of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), further states the report.

Notably, the incident comes close on the heels of the killing of Abu Saifullah, a senior LeT operative and recruiter, who was killed by unidentified assailants in Pakistan just days ago. According to officials cited in a PTI report, Nizamani was under government protection but was attacked near a road crossing in Matli shortly after leaving his residence.

Hamza, 66, is widely seen as one of the chief ideologues behind Lashkar-e-Taiba’s extremist narrative.

A veteran of the Afghan jihad, he is known for his passionate speeches and extensive writings, including the 2002 book Qafila Da’wat aur Shahadat ("Caravan of Proselytising and Martyrdom").

He has also served as editor of LeT’s official publication.

Following financial crackdowns on LeT-affiliated charities Jamaat-ud-Dawah and Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation in 2018, Hamza reportedly distanced himself from the group. He later launched a splinter outfit, Jaish-e-Manqafa, believed to have continued militant operations, particularly in Jammu and Kashmir.

The U.S. Treasury Department has designated Lashkar-e-Taiba as a terrorist organisation and lists Hamza as a sanctioned terrorist. He is believed to have been a member of LeT’s central committee, playing a significant role in fundraising, recruitment, and securing the release of jailed operatives.

Hamza’s incident also comes just a fortnight after India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terror hideouts in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). The operation followed the horrific terror attack on April 22 in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, which claimed the lives of 26 civilians, mostly tourists.

The precision strikes triggered an escalation in cross-border hostilities between the two nuclear-armed neighbours, lasting nearly 100 hours, marking one of the deadliest flare-ups between India and Pakistan in recent decades, between May 7 evening and May 10 morning.

On the evening of May 10, both nations declared an immediate ceasefire on all cross-border military operations.