ISI wants daring attacks on Indian security forces

The directive follows India’s ‘Operation All Out’ of 2017, in which more than 200 terrorists were eliminated in the Kashmir valley.

Pakistani intelligence agency, the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), has asked Jaish-e-Mohammad to carry out aggressive and daring fidayeen attacks on the Indian security forces in the coming months. The directive follows India’s “Operation All Out” of 2017, in which more than 200 terrorists, mostly from the Lashkar-e-Tayyaba and Hizbul Mujahideen, were eliminated in the Kashmir valley.

Earlier last year, as part of its new strategy, the ISI had asked the Lashkar-e-Tayyaba (LeT) and the Hizbul Mujahideen to focus on North Kashmir, while leaving South Kashmir to the more “aggressive” Jaish-e-Mohammad, which is almost entirely made up of foreign mercenaries.

However, now the entire Kashmir has been left to Jaish and both LeT and Hizbul have been asked to provide support to Jaish, which is seen as more ruthless and is “more motivated” .

As per the intercepts between Pakistan based handlers and Jaish terrorists, the decrease in the number of damaging and “daring” attacks on the security forces in the recent times, because of the killing of terrorists, was not being appreciated by their handlers who have been heard rebuking the terrorists for not inflicting “enough” damage.

“Lashkar and Hizbul have suffered a lot of damage in the last one year and they are right now operating without local commanders, as a majority of them were eliminated. In view of this, Jaish, which was earlier asked to concentrate only on South Kashmir districts such as Shopian, Pulwama, Kulgaam, Anantnag, Tral, has been now asked to focus on the entire Kashmir valley. The larger picture in this is that ISI is now limiting the role of Hafiz Saeed in terror activities, as he is now being projected as a politician in Pakistan, leaving the bloodbath on the more radicalised Masood Azhar who has deep hatred for India and has no political ambitions,” an officer working in the security apparatus said.

The intelligence agencies have warned the Army and other paramilitary organisations, including the BSF and CRPF, to increase the security at the outermost corridor of their camps substantially and not to commute from one place to another, even during non-operation movements, without adequate security cover as Jaish cadre are desperate to carry out suicide operations.