The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) of Pakistan has placed a bounty of PKR 70 lakh on Masood Azhar, the chief of the terrorist organization Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). The agency claims that Azhar is currently hiding in Afghanistan. This announcement marks a significant move in the ongoing efforts to combat terrorism in the region.
The latest announcement is not the first time Pakistan has announced a bounty on Azhar. Indian intelligence officials also dispute Islamabad’s version. “During Operation Sindoor, he was very much in Bahawalpur, but not at the Jaish-e-Mohammed headquarters that was hit. At the time of the operation, he was immediately shifted to the Combined Military Hospital in Rawalpindi. When he was at the Rawalpindi hospital, a mysterious explosion had taken place during which he suffered minor injuries,” the official added. The ISI has, for now, stopped recruitment in PoK and shifted its focus to other parts of Pakistan to recruit young people for terror groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed. Pakistan had also claimed at the time that Azhar was not on its soil. However, little changed in terms of JeM’s activities or Azhar’s status following that announcement.
“He is never kept in one place for long due to security reasons. In 2021, the FIA had announced a bounty of PKR 50 lakh for information leading to his capture.
An Intelligence Bureau official said intelligence tracking clearly indicates that Azhar is in Pakistan. He has been on and off at the facility as he suffers from chronic renal failure,” the official said. Another official said Azhar has been moved several times within Pakistan since the launch of Operation Sindoor last year. The JeM chief has not returned to Bahawalpur since the operation and has instead been shifted between at least three or four locations, according to the official. The PoK region has witnessed protests, prompting a change in the recruitment strategy, according to officials.
