Covert, targeted and politically motivated killings are nothing new across the world. Equally true is the fact that intelligence agencies and terrorist organisations often undertake such killings. Of late, Pakistan has been the epicentre of such killings, with hardly any of the incidents having been probed in enough depth to arrive at a possible common thread that binds the killers together, politically, ideologically or otherwise.
The dramatic killings in Pakistan merit deeper examination. The spate of killings started more than a year back. To recall just a few of them, Shahid Latif, associated with Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), a key conspirator in the 2016 Pathankot terror attack, was killed in October 2023. Paramjit Singh Panjwar, leader of Khalistan Commando Force, has its sights focussed on creating a separate state of Khalistan in India, was killed in Lahore. Hanzala Adnan (Adnan Ahmed), a top Lashkar-e-Taiba commander involved in the 2016 attack on a CRPF convoy in Pampore, was shot down in Karachi in December 2023.
The 2024 calendar also witnessed blood being spilt with the killing of Amir Sarfaraz Tamba. Tamba was a close associate of Hafiz Saeed and also the man responsible for the killing of Sarabjit Singh, a death row prisoner. He was shot in Lahore in April 2024.
The bloody trail has continued in 2025 with the killing of Abu Qatal, known to be a close confidant of Hafiz Saeed of Lashkaar-a-Taiba and the mastermind behind the deadly Mumbai attack of 26/11. He was also intimately involved in multiple terrorist attacks in Jammu & Kashmir. Abu Qatal met his end in March 2025 in Punjab, Pakistan. Among the other reported killings is that of Mufti Abdul Baqi Noorzai of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam. He was targeted in Quetta. Incidentally, Hafiz Saeed’s residence has reportedly been converted into some jail by the ISI to obviate the chances of an attack on him.
Who are the Killers: ISI of Pakistan!
The obvious question that comes to mind is who could be engineering these killings in Pakistan. The fact of these incidents targeting terrorist group leaders, and that too, high profile and top-rung leadership, is intriguing. Pakistan has made oblique references to an Indian hand in the killings; however, that’s perhaps more out of a deeply ingrained habit of putting all ills that ail the country in the Indian court rather than diligently undertaking an investigation process.
Could it be the handiwork of the Pakistani Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), and if so, why? The terrorist leadership eliminated in the killings are all from groups that operate out of Pakistan and are funded and controlled by the ISI. Most such groups are utilised to orchestrate terror attacks in India. Their leadership functions align with the directions of the ISI.
Possibly, another reason could stem from the fact that Pakistan has missed being blocked by the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force by a whisker and is under pressure to display positive action to contain and eliminate terrorism, money laundering, and related activities. The killings could be a display of Pakistani intent to combat terrorism. A down gradation for Pakistan would also severely degrade its ability to obtain funds for a spluttering economy from global financial institutions.
Another reason could be these terrorist groups have, over the years, managed a sizeable support base in Pakistan. With the current political turmoil in that country, the declining popularity of the army, and the fallouts of Imran’s incarceration, the terror groups may have become more assertive, much to the ISI’s chagrin. A few groups have, in any case, launched their political parties, and ISI has utilised these political entities, too. However, with ISI’s writ diminishing, there was perhaps a requirement to eliminate the more ambitious leaders while simultaneously sending a message to the huge, pervasive jihadi establishment.
The fact of these killings being in different places and the assailants using similar tactics is also intriguing. In most cases, bike-borne terrorists have shot the victim at close quarters with no collateral damage. The shooters have sped away into the grey without leaving substantial evidence to trace them. The terrorists involved were well-trained and equipped, and the operations were planned professionally. No misses have been reported.
Involvement of Pak Based Terror Groups
The other possibility is internecine battles between terror groups or friction within such groups. Both possibilities could be real. The fact that no group has claimed responsibility for even a single incident is also surprising. Most operations were carried out without botching up, which led to the conclusion that enough intelligence was available. To be able to plan and execute such successful operations, adequate intelligence is a major prerequisite. Any single terror group collecting and collating the mounds of information required about the targets is barely conceivable. Terror groups coming together to undertake such dangerous missions that will lead to reprisals is also a difficult bargain. The ISI would have got a whiff of it when such plots were being hatched or executed.
Foreign Hand in Assassinations
Is there a foreign hand, as Pakistan would like the world to believe? Is it, by any stretch of imagination, an Indian agency that’s working behind the scenes? It’s hardly imaginable that any foreign intelligence agency has the wherewithal to undertake such operations in another country with such savvy, impunity and consummate skill. R&AW, India’s intelligence agency, has never displayed such capabilities, even when there have been far more provocative circumstances. To be able to recruit sharpshooters in multiple Pakistani towns, arming, training and deploying them repetitively at the right place and time is an impossible call for any intelligence agency.
Assessment
In all probability, it’s the Pakistani deep state’s own doing to keep the leash tight around the terror groups operating from its soil. The groups have become more defiant, taking advantage of the political instability, with Imran Khan having somewhat humbled the ‘deep state’ at some stage.
Even at best, Gen Asim Munir has a difficult time ahead, with Imran seemingly unrelenting, even though behind bars. Allowing the terror establishments to operate, flouting his dictates or nursing hopes of greater political power in Pakistan isn’t exactly what the army has bred and baked them for. They have to be supplicant to the deep state.
If Pakistan has undertaken the strategy of eliminating the terror leadership to stem the rise in terror levels, then an assault focused only at the top would be insufficient. The rot has spread too wide and deep; an all-out effort is the starting point. The cure also includes reining in the madrassas that spew violence and inculcate hatred in impressionable minds.
Brig SK Chatterji (Retd), Editor, BharatShakti.in
