Over 30 operatives killed by 'Indian agents' since 2020: LeT commander

Rizwan Hanif, a commander affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba, has alleged that Indian agents have systematically killed more than thirty individuals in different Pakistani locations since 2020. He characterized these murders as acts of religious persecution and rejected the authority of foreign entities. This statement comes amid heightened rhetoric from Pakistan's military, and experts suggest it serves as a strategic narrative amidst rising tensions. In a significant public admission by terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), senior commander Rizwan Hanif has claimed that over 30 members linked to the group have been killed across Pakistani cities since 2020 by "India agents". LeT members were targeted in Peshawar, Karachi, Rawalpindi, Muzaffarabad and Rawalakot, Hanif said while addressing a crowd in Pakistan.Attempting to frame these targeted killings as religious persecution, Hanif - the wanted deputy chief of Lashkar's POK unit - launched into inflammatory rhetoric. In a video circulated on social media, he questioned the group's "crime", asserting they were targeted solely for their faith.Hanif also launched a sharp attack against other faiths in his speech which was filmed by his followers and uploaded on social media.He declared that the outfit would continue its activities, rejecting the authority of foreign powers, including the US and Israel. The hate-filled speech comes on the heels of Lt General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, the official spokesperson of Pakistan armed forces (DG-ISPR), and the son of a US-designated terrorist peddling similar extremist views on a video while alleging that Afghans were not Muslims. Security experts saw these speeches as a face-saving narrative building exercise. The escalation in sectarian rhetoric comes as Islamabad faces mounting public unrest in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir, where violent state crackdowns against anti-govt protesters at Rawalakot, in particular, and other places have drawn severe criticism while denting Pakistan's narrative about it being the champion of Kashmiris and their right to self-determination.Pakistan defence minister Khawaja Asif also labelled anti-govt demonstrators in POK as "enemies" comparable to India and ruled out any dialogue with them while defending the violent attacks on protesters. Raj Shekhar Jha is a journalist for the Times of India with over a decade of experience in reporting on national security, terrorism, crime and prisons.