How a terrorist exposed Pakistan army chief Asim Munir’s support to terrorism

Pakistan’s government supports terrorism — India has repeated this time and again, providing evidence in the past. However, Islamabad has officially denied sponsoring terrorist groups operating from its soil. But now, New Delhi’s claim has got credence from an unexpected corner; a terrorist from the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) outfit.

What are we talking about?

At a recently held event, a JeM terrorist claimed that the Pakistan army and its chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir had “sent generals to funerals” of those killed in India’s Operation Sindoor.

Here’s what he said and what we know so far.

Stunning revelation by JeM terrorist

On Sunday (September 14), JeM’s top commander, Masood Ilyas Kashmiri urged the audience at the 38th annual Mission Mustafa conference in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to support jihad, claiming that they would receive support from the Pakistan army and its chief, Asim Munir.

Recounting Operation Sindoor during which the Indian military struck key terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir — one of the camps destroyed was JeM’s headquarters situated in Bahawalpur — Kashmiri said that Munir directed military honours for Masood Azhar’s family members, who died in the strike, with corps commanders being ordered to attend funerals and the Air Force providing security.

In a video from the event which has since gone viral, Kashmiri can be heard saying, “Embracing terrorism, we fought Delhi, Kabul and Kandahar for protecting the borders of this country. After sacrificing everything, on May 7, Maulana Masood Azhar’s family was torn apart by the Indian forces in Bahawalpur.”

For those unaware, JeM’s founder Masood Azhar lost 10 of his family members , his older sister and her husband, his nephew and his nephew’s wife, his niece and five children from his family, in the strikes in early May.

Kashmiri further alleged that the Pakistan Air Force “avenged the killing of Jaish militants” and said the army had been brought “under the umbrella of jihadi ideology” after decades of cooperation with the group.

India’s stance vindicated

With this remark made by Kashmir, India’s stance on Pakistan and its support to terrorists is vindicated.

In the past, New Delhi has often stated and provided credible proof that the Pakistan establishment is cognisant and supportive of terror groups operating from its soil. In fact, in the aftermath of the military strikes during Operation Sindoor, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri had released a photograph showing Abdur Rauf, designated by the US as a terrorist, leading prayers at the funeral of those slain in the military actions.

Misri noted that the killers were wrapped in Pakistan’s national flag and even accorded ‘state honours’. “As far as we are concerned, the individuals eliminated at these facilities were terrorists. Giving terrorists state funerals may be a practice in Pakistan. It doesn’t seem to make much sense to us,” Misri remarked.

But that’s not it.

In 2016, following the terror attack at Pathankot Air Force base by Jaish-e-Mohammed, which left eight people dead, India called on Pakistan for a joint investigation. However, Islamabad violated the terms of reciprocity and didn’t share any evidence with India.

In the same year, 19 Indian soldiers were killed by terrorists from Pakistan-based group Jaish-e-Mohamed (JeM) at an army brigade headquarters in the town of Uri in Jammu and Kashmir. Following the attack, a Letter Rogatory (LR) or judicial request was sent to Pakistan with details of DNA samples of the terrorists. Islamabad, however, failed to act on the evidence.

Even after the Mumbai 26/11 attacks , in which Pakistani terrorists rained terror on the country’s financial capital, India handed dossier after dossier to Pakistan containing evidence against LeT chief Hafiz Saeed, and other handlers. A judicial panel from Pakistan was also allowed to visit India. However, Islamabad never took any concrete action against the perpetrators. In fact, Saeed has been held and released several times over the past decade.

Moreover, Pakistan also has a track record of exporting terror across the globe. The mastermind of the 9/11 attacks in the United States, Osama bin Laden, was found living near a military academy in Pakistan’s Abbottabad. He was eliminated by the US forces in 2011. Additionally, 9/11 conspirator, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, was also caught in Pakistan.

Pakistan’s ‘victim’ narrative

However, Islamabad has rejected India’s claim that it supports terrorism. Instead, it has repeatedly claimed that it is a victim of terrorism.

Pakistan’s former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto while acknowledging that his country has a past with terrorism, said it has since reformed. In a conversation with Sky News’ Yalda Hakim, Bhutto said, “As far as what the defence minister said, I dont think it is a secret that Pakistan has a past… As a result, we have suffered, Pakistan has suffered. We have gone through wave after wave of extremism. But as a result of what we suffered, we also learned our lessons. We have gone through internal reforms to address this problem…”

“As far as Pakistan’s history is concerned, it is history and it is not something that we are partaking in today. It is true that it is an unfortunate part of our history,” Bhutto further said.

Later, in an interview to Indian journalist Karan Thapar, he once again echoed this view. He said there was no question of the Pakistani state supporting such activities.

“Pakistan does not permit, willingly or otherwise, any group to launch attacks either outside or inside our borders,” Bilawal stated, adding that his country had suffered immensely in its own battle against terrorism.

Referring to the staggering human toll, Bilawal noted that Pakistan has lost over 92,000 lives due to terrorism over the past few decades. “Just last year alone, we lost more than 1,200 civilians in over 200 separate attacks,” he said. “If this trend continues, 2025 could turn out to be the bloodiest year in our history.”

With inputs from agencies