1

Lashkar-e Taiyyiba

The Lashkar-e-Taiyyiba (LeT), is believed to be one of the largest terrorist outfits operating in India. It was suspected of involvement in the ecember !", #$$! attack on the %arliament.&arlier, they were also accused of the attack on the 'antonment section of the (ed )ort in *ew elhi on ecember ##, #$$$. +nder the %revention of Terrorism ,rdinance ( POTO), the Indian government banned the LeT on ,ctober #-, #$$!. The +. .ecretary of .tate 'olin %owell in a notification on ecember #/, #$$! designated the outfit as a foreign terrorist organistation. &nglish newspapers and those who learn from them mistakenly write its name as Lashkar-e-Toiba. It is pure ignorance. Taiyyibah is a respectful form of address of 0edna-t-ul-0unawwara. 1ence Lashkar-e-Taiyyiba means 2rmy of 0edina. )ormed in !33$ in the 4unar province of 2fghanistan, the LeT is the military wing of the 0arka5-udawa-wal-Irshad (0 I), 6 marka5 means a center, dawa means summons or call, and irshad means guidance7 an Islamic fundamentalist organisation of the 2hle-1adis sect in %akistan. This is actually a huge seminary, a seat of theological learning where even a science college is to be found. The 0 I is based in 0uridke near Lahore, %akistan and is headed by %rof. 1afi5 0uhammad .aeed, who is also the 2mir of the LeT. .aeed has incidentally been a professor of engineering. 1e was recently detained by the %ak government. 1e got release orders from the court but was detained again. 1e was clever enough to form a new organi5ation called 8amat-ud- awa before the +. could heat things up for them through 9en. 0usharraf. *ow the 8amat is involved even in relief works and the %ak government has no intention of taking any action against it. In effect the LeT has now gone underground and believed to be operating from %o4. :estern sources claim its new command structure as; a new 9eneral 'ouncil under the leadership of 0aulana 2bdul :ahid 4ashmiri, with 0r. <aki ur (ehman Lakhwi as the =.upreme 'ommander= within 8ammu > 4ashmir. ,ther members of the the 9eneral 'ouncil are - 0r. 2bdullah of 2nantnag (Islamabad) 0r.1a?i 0ohammad 25am of %oonch - 0r. 0u5ammil @utt of oda - 0r. 0ohammad +mair of @aramullah - 0r. 'haudhri 2bdullah 4halid 'hauhan of @agh - 0r. (afiA 2khtar of 0u5affarabad - 0r. 2ftab 1ussain of 4otli - 0r. )aisal ar of .rinagar - 0r. 'haudhri Busuf of 0irpur - 0r. 0aulana 0ohammad .harif @alghari of @altistan - 0r. (a?a 0ohammad Irshad 2dvocate - 0r. 0asood Lone 2dvocate. Its first presence in 8ammu and 4ashmir (8>4) was recorded in !33" when !# %akistani and 2fghan mercenaries infiltrated across the Line of 'ontrol (Lo') in tandem with the Islami InAuilabi 0aha5, a terrorist outfit then active in the %oonch district of 8>4. The LeT was first involved in the 0u?ahideen resistance against .oviet forces in 2fghanistan in the *ineteen &ighties and early *ineties. .ubseAuently, it began operations in 8>4. It was actively promoted by %akistanCs eDternal intelligence agency, the Inter .ervices Intelligence (I.I), since !33/. This support was more so after another outfit, the 1arkat-ul-2nsar ( HuA) was declared as a )oreign Terrorist ,rganisation by the +. in !33E. The 1u2 was an outfit that also traces its origins to the

2 0u?ahideen movement against .oviet forces in 2fghanistan. )urthermore, it was also primarily composed of %akistani and 2fghan mercenaries, followed a hard-line eDtremist Islamic ideology and was actively promoted by the I.I, along with other outfits, to ensure that %akistan would have control over the 4ashmir insurgency and promote its ob?ectives. &ven while promoting terrorist outfitsC such as the 1i5b-ul-0u?ahideen (HM), which comprise local 4ashmiri terrorists, the I.I infiltrates a considerable number of %akistani and 2fghan mercenaries in the state. This is to ensure control over the terrorist violence and promote an Islamic orthodoDy, a goal that the %akistani state has been following since the *ineteen .eventies. The LeTCs professed ideology goes beyond merely challenging India=s sovereignty over the .tate of 8ammu and 4ashmir. The Lashkar=s FagendaC, as outlined in a pamphlet titled Why are we waging jihad includes the restoration of Islamic rule over all parts of India. :hile the primary area of operations of the Lashkar-e-ToibaCs terrorist activities is the 4ashmir valley, the outfit is also active in the 8ammu region besides having undertaken isolated attacks in other parts of India. The Lashkar is reported to have conducted several of its ma?or operations in tandem with the 1i5b-ul-0u?ahideen. The 4ashmiri cadre of the 10 provide vital knowledge of the ground conditions in the target 5one, while the highly trained and motivated LeT mercenaries undertake the attack. This was also the strategy during the 2ugust #-, #$$$ massacre, when a 1i5b terrorist acted as a guide for a Lashkar group, which massacred "- .ikhs at 'hattisinghpora in 2nantang district. The LeT was also reported to have been directed by the I.I to widen its network in the 8ammu region where a considerable section of the populace comprised %un?abis. The LeT that has a large number of activists who hail from %akistani %un?ab can thus effectively penetrate into 8ammu society. The Lashkar-e-Toiba was created to participate in the 0u?ahideen conflict against the *a?ibullah regime in 2fghanistan. In the process, the outfit developed deep linkages with 2fghanistan and has several 2fghan nationals in its cadre. The outfit had also cultivated links with the former Taliban regime in 2fghanistan and also with ,sama bin Laden and his 2l Gaeda network. &ven while refraining from openly displaying these links, the LeT office in 0uridke was reportedly used as a transit camp for third country recruits heading for 2fghanistan. The outfit collects donations from the %akistani community in the %ersian 9ulf and +nited 4ingdom, Islamic *on-9overnmental ,rganisations (*9,s), and %akistani and 4ashmiri businessmen. The amount of LeT funding is unknown. The LeT maintains ties to various religiousHmilitary groups around the world, ranging from the %hilippines to the 0iddle &ast and 'hechnya primarily through the 0 I fraternal network. The LeT has also been part of the @osnian campaign against the .erbs.

Harkat-ul-Jihad-e-Islami

The 1arkat-ul-8ihad-i-Islami (1u8I) was launched in !3I$ as part of the %akistan-based Jehad network fighting troops of the then .oviet +nion who were deployed in 2fghanistan. 1akat means a FmovementCJhence the name means Fmovement of the Islamic ?ihadC.It has undergone several changes during the past two decades and spread its area of activities to 8ammu and 4ashmir (8>4), other parts of India and Bangladesh. 1u8I cadres are suspected to be involved in the terrorist attack on the 4olkata office of the +nited .tates Information .ervice (+.I.) on 8anuary ##, #$$#. Two %akistan-based eobandi religious bodies, the 8amaat-ul-+lema-e-Islami (8uI) and the Tabligh-i8amaat (Ti8), set up the 1u8I in !3I$, at the outset of the 2fghan war. It was first formed to run relief camps for the 2fghan mu?ahideen and was led by 0aulvi Irshad 2hmed. The support base of the group lay in the %akistani %un?abi business community with 8uI and Ti8 affiliations. 2s the 2fghan resistance developed, the 1u8I developed links with %akistanCs Inter-.ervices Intelligence (I.I) and was subcontracted to recruit and train the mu?ahids as well. The group then developed links with an 2fghan mu?ahideen group, the 1i5b-e-Islami-Bunus 4halis (1eI-4) faction. 2 power-struggle was reported within the group after the death of 0aulana Irshad 2hmed, in !3I- during the 2fghan Jihad. )a5al-ur-(ehman 4halil, the groupCs Fcommander-in-chiefC split with the new 2mir (chief), Ga5i .aifullah 2khtar and formed the 1arkat-ul-0u?ahideen ( HuM). The 1u0 retained links with the 1eI-4. .aifullah 2khtar stayed on to lead the 1u8I, but it soon split again, with 0aulana 0asood 4ashmiri starting a third splinter group, the 8amait-ul-0u?aheddin (8u0K different from the 8amiat-ul0u?ahideen, a splinter group of the 1i5b-ul-0u?ahideen - HM). Later, in !33!, the eobandi ulemas (religious leaders) of 4arachi asked the three splinter factions to reunite in order to increase the effectiveness of their participation in the 4ashmir insurgency. This reunited version was named the 1arkat-ul-2nsar (HuA). :hile the 1u2 was formally formed in %akistan, the merger of the three factionsC units in 8>4 was to be achieved by the 1u2 general secretary 0aulana 0asood 25har who arrived in India on a false %ortuguese passport and reached .rinagar in )ebruary !33L. 1e convened a meeting, on )ebruary !$, of !3 leaders of the 1u8I, 1u0 and the 8u0 at 0atigund, 2nantnag district, to discuss the merger. :hile returning from the meeting, 0asood 25har and .a??ad 2fghani, the 1u2Cs 8>4 Fmilitary chiefC, were arrested in .rinagar. &arlier, in *ovember !33", *asrullah 0ansur Langrayal, 1u0Cs Fchief 'ommanderC was arrested in oda. :ith these arrests, the move to reunite the three 1u8I factions into the 1u2 remained unsuccessful. 1owever, stray incidents of terrorist violence perpetrated by the 1u8I in 8>4 continued to be reported. 0eanwhile, a @angladesh unit of this outfit was set up allegedly with ,sama bin LadenCs aid in !33#, under the leadership of .hawkat ,sman alias .heikh )arid, and with Imtia5 Guddus as its F9eneral .ecretaryC. The 1u8I, like other %akistan-based terrorist outfits functions under the patronage of the Inter .ervices Intelligence. :hile in 8>4, it strives to ensure the secession of the .tate from India through terrorist violence, in other parts of India it aims to spread terror and conseAuently endanger the

4 internal security scenario. The 1u8I has formed alliances with the proscribed .tudents Islamic 0ovement of India (SIMI) and other Islamist eDtremists to spread violence in India. The outfit, particularly its @angladeshi unit appears more active aiding terrorists in IndiaCs north-east and eDtremist and criminal forces in other parts of India. The 1u8I @angladesh unit was assigned the task of recruiting @angladeshi and Indian 0uslims to fight in 4ashmir under the command of the 1arkat-ul-0u?ahideen. .everal hundred recruits of this unit have also been trained in 2fghanistan and its activists freAuently cross over to India from @angladesh for terrorist activities. The cadres of the outfit who style themselves as the F@angladeshi TalibanC are alleged to infiltrate regularly into IndiaCs eastern corridor and maintain contacts with terrorist and subversive outfits of the region. The 1u8I is part of the eobandi eDtremist network of %akistan and receives support from the I.I for its activities. I.I support has also been eDtended to the 1u8ICs @angladesh unit and for this unitCs activities with its Indian eDtremist and terrorist affiliates. @esides, the 1u8ICs @angladesh unit was set up with assistance from ,sama bin Laden.