LeT Leader Saifullah Kasur Behind Pahalgam Attack Resurfaces at Anti-India Rally in Pakistan (WATCH)
Saifullah Kasuri, accused of masterminding the Pahalgam terror attack, was seen at a rally in Pakistan alongside political leaders and wanted terrorists like Hafiz Saeed's son Talha Saeed.
Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) commander Saifullah Kasuri, who is the alleged mastermind behind the deadly Pahalgam terror attack, was observed in public on Wednesday. He appeared on a stage with Pakistani political figures and other individuals designated as terrorists at a political gathering. This rally, organized by the Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML) to commemorate Youm-e-Takbeer Pakistan’s annual observance of its nuclear tests featured inflammatory speeches and anti-India slogans. Among those present was Talha Saeed, son of LeT founder Hafiz Saeed and a designated terrorist by India. “I was blamed as being the mastermind of the Pahalgam terror attack, now my name is famous in the entire world,” Kasuri stated at the rally held in Kasoor in Punjab province.
Kasuri is believed to have coordinated the brutal assault on the scenic Baisaran meadow in Pahalgam, where terrorists affiliated with The Resistance Front, an LeT proxy based in Pakistan, killed 26 people, primarily Hindu men. Addressing the crowd, Kasuri, also known by his alias Khalid, announced intentions to construct a center, road, and hospital in Allahabad, to be named after “Mudassir Shaheed.” According to intelligence sources, Mudassir Ahmad was one of several high-profile terror operatives eliminated during India’s retaliatory Operation Sindoor strikes following the Pahalgam massacre.
The rally also featured Talha Saeed, who is ranked 32nd on India’s most-wanted terrorist list. He delivered an impassioned address filled with jihadist slogans and “Naara-e-Takbeer.” Saeed, who ran unsuccessfully for Parliament from Lahore’s NA-122 seat in Pakistan’s 2024 general elections, has maintained his public association with the PMML, which is widely considered a political front for the banned LeT.
The PMML has intensified its anti-India rhetoric in recent weeks, organizing protests across major Pakistani cities including Lahore, Karachi, Islamabad, and Faisalabad. These demonstrations have called for Hafiz Saeed’s release and accused India of “water aggression” for its suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty.
While LeT remains proscribed internationally and within Pakistan, groups such as the PMML have facilitated its leadership in retaining political and ideological relevance. Hafiz Saeed, the UN-designated terrorist who masterminded the 2008 Mumbai attacks, continues to be seen as the ideological force behind the PMML’s activities.
India has strongly condemned Pakistan for allegedly mainstreaming terrorism, particularly in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor, which resulted in the elimination of multiple high-value LeT-linked targets. These included Yusuf Azhar, Abdul Malik Rauf, and Mudassir Ahmad individuals implicated in the IC-814 hijacking and Pulwama bombing.