Harkat-ul-Mujahideen

The HuA was categorised as a terrorist outfit by the US in 1997 following reports that it was linked with Osama bin Laden, and his Al Qaeda, a global terrorist network that has struck at several US targets around the world. The outfit immediately adopted the name of Harkat-ul-Mujahideen to escape the ramifications of the proscription. Despite public knowledge that the HuM was a recast version of the HuA, the US had refused to categorise the outfit as a terrorist outfit. However, following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington in the US, the outfit came under scrutiny of the US government for its extensive links with Osama bin Laden, the prime suspect in the terrorist attacks. On September 25, US President George W. Bush signed an order officially banning the outfit.

The HuM was originally formed in 1985, to participate in the Jehad against Soviet forces protecting the Communist regime in Afghanistan. It was a formed by a group that walked out of another jehadi group, the Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HuJI). With the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989, the outfit turned its attention to J&K, where terrorist violence had been unleashed by Pakistan supported outfits in 1988.

As the organisation chart shows, the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen merged with another terror outfit, the Harkat-ul-Jehad-al-Islami (HuJI), to form the Harkat-ul-Ansar (HuA) in 1993. This merger apparently failed to form an effective instrument for Pakistan’s campaign in J&K as Indian security forces (SFs) arrested three of its top leaders in quick succession. First, Nasrullah Mansur Langrayal, chief of the former Harkat-ul Mujahideen was arrested in November 1993. Three months later, the HuA’s General Secretary, Maulana Masood Azhar, and its J&K unit chief Sajjad Afghani were arrested in Srinagar.

The HuA made several attempts to obtain the release of the arrested leaders by abducting SF personnel and foreign tourists and using them as hostages. In the first attempt, made in January 1994, two SF personnel were abducted and subsequently killed when the government refused to release the leaders. A second attempt was made in June 1994 when two foreign tourists were abducted. Following local outcry against these abductions, the hostages were released without any success in their objective. In the third attempt made in October 1994, four foreign tourists were abducted in New Delhi and held in Uttar Pradesh and a demand was again made for the release of the arrested leaders. SFs however, ascertained the terrorist hideout and effected a successful rescue operation and also arrested the leader of the abductors, Umar Saeed Sheikh, a British student of Pakistani origin.

In the fourth attempt, made by a front outfit, Al-Faran in July 1995, six hostages were abducted from various locations. While one managed to escape, the body of the second was recovered in August 1995. The government refused to accept the demands of the abductors and since then there has been no news on the fate of the hostages. It is widely suspected that having failed in their mission, the abductors killed the hostages. These incidents as also reports that the outfit was linked to Osama bin Laden prompted the US government to declare the HuA as a terrorist outfit in 1997. To avoid the repercussions of the ban, the HuA decided to recast itself as the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen.

Meanwhile, Sajjad Afghani was killed during a jailbreak attempt in June 1999. Subsequently, suspected HuM terrorists, hijacked the Indian Airlines Flight IC 814 from Kathmandu, Nepal, forced the pilot to fly to Kandahar, Afghanistan and with the protection and support of the Taliban regime, successfully obtained the release of Maulana Masood Azhar, Umar Saeed Sheikh and Mushtak Ahmed Zargar, commander of the Al Umar, a militant group with a predominantly Kashmiri cadre base. The demand for the release of Zargar appeared to be a ploy to convey the impression that the hijacking was conducted for the sake of Kashmiris rather than foreign mercenaries. Certain news reports had speculated that Masood Azhar’s brother led the hijackers and his father financed the whole operation.

As mentioned before, the 1993 merger of the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen and the HuJI was not a successful venture. SF sources in India have reported that terrorists claiming allegiance to the three outfits, HuJI, HuM and HuA, have been either arrested or killed throughout the 13-year insurgency in the State.

The HuM's operational capabilities had been severely curtailed by the formation of the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) by Masood Azhar, immediately after his release. News reports from Pakistan suggested that the JeM had weaned away several HuM cadre and other resources. Subsequently, only isolated instances have been reported from J&K where cadre of the HuM have been involved.

Incident

2010

January 31: A self-styled ‘commander’ of the HuM outfit, identified as Basharat, who was holed up in an encounter with Security Forces in Baramulla District of Kashmir valley that had started in the evening of January 30 reportedly managed to escape from the incident site by taking advantage of the darkness.

March 12: The law enforcement agencies warned the authorities concerned that 19 militants were deputed in 12 cities of the province will most likely target NAB offices and ATC. Sources said that a letter had also been forwarded to the authorities concerned, mentioning that some defunct organisations, including Commander Maulana Abdul Jabbar’s fraction of JeM, LeJ, HuJI, HuM and HuA, have also joined the TTP.

August 18: A doctor allegedly belonging to the HuM outfit was shot dead near the AO Clinic in Nazimabad area of Karachi, the provincial capital of Sindh. SHO Jahanzaib said the deceased Javed, son of Abdul Shakoor, was killed by unidentified assailants on two motorcycles while he was on his way to his private clinic in a Toyota Corolla bearing registration No AHQ-177. Javed was a resident of Gulshan-e-Iqbal and belonged to the Okhai Memon Community. The SHO informed that the deceased doctor was released from the Azizabad Police Station a month ago and was to report there as scheduled, defined by the home department because of his alleged involvement with the HuM.

2009

January 2: Two HuM militants, including a foreigner, were killed in an encounter with the SFs in the Sopore area of Baramulla District. While one of the slain militants was identified as Bashir Ahmad Malla, a local militant, the other militant was believed to be a foreigner whose identity was being ascertained. Two AK rifles were recovered from their possession.

March 13: Police arrested a militant of the HuM outfit, identified as Sarafaraz Ahmad, from the Sopore area of Baramulla District. A Police spokesman said one hand grenade and 12 rounds of AK ammunition were recovered from his possession.

May 15: SFs arrested a 45-year old woman militant of the HuM from Sopore bus stand in Baramulla District and recovered three hand grenades and INR 50,000 in cash from her possession. She has been identified as Naseema, wife of Bashir Ahmad, a resident of New Colony in Sopore town.

May 21: The Karachi Police arrested two suspected Al Qaeda militants and seized explosives and weapons from their possession. The Crime Investigation Department’s Superintendent of Police (SP), Fayyaz Khan said suspect Asim hailed from Swat and belonged to the HuM.

June 10: Two militants of the HuM, including the self styled deputy chief of operations of the outfit, were killed in an encounter with the SFs in the Sopore town of Baramulla District. A Police spokesman said in Srinagar that the SFs launched an operation at Dangerpora in Sopore following receipt of specific information about the presence of two top HuM militants in the area. In the ensuing encounter, both the militants, identified as Kalimullah alias Ali Sher, a resident of Pakistan and the ‘deputy chief of operations’ and his local aide Mumtaz Ahmad Parray, a resident of Pethseer in Sopore. Two AK-47 rifles, four AK magazines, two pouches and a dairy were recovered from the possession of the slain militants. The spokesman said Kalimullah was involved in the killing of Special Police Officer Fayaz Ahmad on May 31, 2009. He was also involved in a number of grenade attacks on the troops in Sopore in the recent times.

October 20: Police arrested an over-ground worker of the HuM, identified as Jahangir Rasool Reshi, at Watin Chowgal in the Handwara area of Kupwara District. One Chinese pistol with magazine and nine rounds of pistol ammunition were recovered from his possession.