India carried out targeted killings of terrorists in Pakistan? Report claims link to PM Modi, Indian intelligence sleeper-cells
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In a significant development, the British media Guardian has claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's office ordered the assassination of individuals in neighbouring Pakistan. According to the report, the Research & Analysis Wing (RAW), an agency that PM Modi's office directly controls, had undertaken the strategy to “eliminate terrorists living on foreign soil" specifically in Pakistan.
Notably, this is the third time India has been accused of assassinating or attempting to assassinate people on foreign soil. Earlier, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had claimed that there were ‘credible allegations’ against India in the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Later, the United States had also claimed that they had thwarted an assassination attempt on another Khalistani separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
While no confirmation is coming for the story, & if the story is correct (difficult to say), who would have thought the Indian Govt would one day be eliminating anti-India terrorists based in Pakistan. India's image of a soft state, a victim of early 90s to 20s is over. https://t.co/gzQt3Fx0D2
— Sidhant Sibal (@sidhant) April 4, 2024
The Guardian report said, "Almost 20 killings since 2020, carried out by unknown gunmen in Pakistan. While India has previously been unofficially linked to the deaths, this is the first time Indian intelligence personnel have discussed the alleged operations in Pakistan, and detailed documentation has been seen alleging RAW’s direct involvement in the assassinations".
Also Read: NB In List | Who is Shahid Latif, the Pathankot attack mastermind, shot dead by unidentified assailants in Pakistan?
Indian sleeper cells
Further, it also claimed that killings of terrorists "whom PM Modi's office thought were hostile towards India, were orchestrated by Indian intelligence sleeper cells, mostly operating out of the United Arab Emirates." The sleeper cells paid millions of rupees to local criminals or poor Pakistanis to carry out the assassinations. Indian agents also allegedly recruited jihadists to carry out the shootings, making them believe they were killing “infidels". The Pulwama terror attack by Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed prompted Indian intelligence to focus more on terrorists outside of India.
Also Read: Targeted killing on spree! Lashkar-e-Taiba recruiter Habibullah killed by 'unknown gunmen' in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
How is PM Modi featured in these attacks?
In order to "target the elements outside the country before they are able to launch an attack or create any disturbance, they "had to get to the source" which was in Pakistan. To conduct such operations, we "needed approval from the highest level of government," an Indian intelligence operative told the Guardian.
India's extrajudicial killings
Senior officials from two separate Pakistani intelligence agencies said they suspected India’s involvement in up to 20 killings since 2020. They pointed to evidence relating to previously undisclosed inquiries into seven of the cases – including witness testimonies, arrest records, financial statements, WhatsApp messages and passports – which investigators say showcase in detail the operations conducted by Indian spies to assassinate targets on Pakistani soil. The Guardian has seen the documents but they could not be independently verified.
Also Read: NB In List | Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, wanted in India, shot dead in Canada's Surrey; 10 key points-
According to the evidence gathered by Pakistan, the killings were regularly coordinated out of the UAE, where Raw established sleeper cells that would separately arrange different parts of the operation and recruit the killers.
In the case of Shahid Latif, the commander of Jaish-e-Mohammed and one of India’s most notorious militants, several attempts were allegedly made to kill him. In the end, the documents claim, it was an illiterate 20-year-old Pakistani who carried out the assassination in Pakistan in October, allegedly recruited by Raw in the UAE, where he was working for a minimal salary in an Amazon packing warehouse.