While Operation Sindoor has put some crimp in Lashkar-e-Taiba’s operations, they are now out to win over political allies in PoK and put some of their old infrastructure back in play, say our sources. It is all part of a plan to be in a position to launch attacks from across the border and to set the tone in PoK before the polls, which means new risks for us along the Line of Control.
PoK outreach after Operation Sindoor
There have been reports of Hafiz Talha Saeed calling on former PoK prime minister Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan at his home. The entourage was made up of people like Qari Muhammad Yaqoob Sheikh and Irfan-ul-Haq, who have ties to various religious and social outfits in Pakistan.
What you had there was an effort to get some sway in the conversation on Kashmir and to put support systems in motion. They also talked shop about the state of play in the country and what lies ahead for the PoK elections, as per the assessments.
Infrastructure push near the LoC
With Saeed and others at the helm, LeT is putting some of its terror launch pads and training grounds in Rawalakot, Muzaffarabad and other nooks near the LoC back in order. We’ve heard that even places like Markaz-ul-Quds have been done up to act as forward operating bases for those looking to slip in.
It is not just a matter of fixing up a building. You have local roads, cover and the whole logistics side of things being put in place to make it easier for terrorists and their hardware to move, the word is. The idea is to make up for the ground we have put them on in recent times.
Some of the things we have put on our radar:
– Forward facilities in PoK being put in order
– Better lines of supply for when they try to infiltrate
– Putting the pieces of their training and launch apparatus back together
Political signalling and recruitment networks
If you ask intelligence, they will tell you LeT is using PoK to find recruits and as a staging post, with madrassas in the mix. Talking to politicians is one way of making their presence acceptable and getting some local buy-in so they can rebuild without too much of a fight.
You can see the thinking behind it: put your capacity back where it was and plant your flag at the same time. If we don’t put a stop to it, having both the political and the physical side of things in motion is going to make our job harder.
NIA probes foreign supply chains
All this while the infrastructure in PoK is coming back, we are looking at where the militants are being supplied from. The NIA has put in a full chargesheet for the Pahalgam case and is following the trail of a GoPro made in the US but sent to China that found its way to LeT, we are told.
We got our hands on it from some of the ones we put down in the Dachigam woods last July. Now we are into a matter of how these groups in Jammu and Kashmir are being fed with money and equipment.
These days, they like to put a camera on an ambush for the propaganda value. If we can map out how they are getting their hands on this kind of tech, we may well find some weak spots in the underground and cut off the flow of optics and gear for good.
What to watch next
Our agencies have their eyes on two things: the PoK build-up and the tangle of logistics behind the gadgets the terrorists are using. That is where you pre-empt an infiltration or a media stunt.
Here is what the numbers show to be on the horizon:
– Any overtures from the usual suspects in PoK
– A new or fixed-up site in the vicinity of the LoC
– Some imported hardware in a seizure
Put it all together – the politics, the work on the ground, the new tech – and you have the story of how LeT is making a come back. The question is how fast we can close the book on their outside help and put an end to their staging areas. That will define what comes next in the valley.
