Jaish videos expose Pakistan's terror nexus, military's hand in terror attacks: MEA

The ministry of external affairs (MEA) on Friday said recent video messages from Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) leaders threatening retaliation against India — along with their past admission of involvement in terror attacks — underline the group’s deep links with the Pakistani state.

The videos , circulated on Telegram channels, show JeM leaders urging people to join jihad against India while conceding that Indian military strikes in May damaged their bases in Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack.

“The world is well aware of the nexus between terrorists and the Pakistan state and military. Such statements make it even more glaring,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at a briefing.

Jaiswal was responding to JeM leaders’ claims that Indian strikes on Bahawalpur in Punjab province killed family members of JeM chief Masood Azhar, and that Pakistan Army chief Asim Munir instructed officers to attend the funerals of the slain terrorists.

On mediation between the two countries, Jaiswal reiterated New Delhi’s stance: “So, I clarify this – there is absolutely no role for third party mediation in India-Pakistan issues.”

His comments followed Pakistan foreign minister Ishaq Dar’s interview with Al Jazeera, where Dar said US secretary of state Marco Rubio had initially suggested a “ceasefire” followed by dialogue. However, Dar noted that during a July 25 meeting in Washington, Rubio clarified that all matters between India and Pakistan were strictly bilateral.

The May 7 Indian strikes on terrorist facilities in Pakistan triggered four days of hostilities, which ended after senior military officials from both sides agreed to halt operations. Indian officials have consistently maintained the US played no role in the understanding.

In a major admission, Jaish-e-Mohammed commander Masood Ilyas Kashmiri said on video that Indian strikes at Bahawalpur “tore into pieces” the family members of JeM chief Masood Azhar. The Markaz Subhanallah facility in Bahawalpur, JeM’s headquarters used for training and indoctrination, was one of nine sites targeted by India under Operation Sindoor.

Kashmiri said, “For these borders, we fought with Delhi, we fought in Kabul, we fought with Kandahar. After sacrificing everything, on May 7 at Bahawalpur, family members of Maulana Masood Azhar, including children, were torn into pieces.”

Azhar himself admitted that among those killed were his elder sister and her husband, his nephew and the nephew’s wife, his niece, five children from his family, a close associate and his mother, along with two other companions.