A mystery called Ilyas Kashmiri

There is hardly anything known about his childhood other than that he was born in 1964. The only attribute of his that has been confirmed regularly by several international security agencies is his expertise in terrorism and his capacity to take over the operations of the al-Qaeda,especially after the killing of Osama bin Laden.

According to Pakistani journalist and al-Qaeda expert Hamid Mir,Kashmiri was a former SSG commando of the Pakistan Army and a mine expert who was deputed to train the Afghan Mujahideen fighting against the Russian Army in the mid-80s.

Mir claims Kashmiri joined the Harkat-e-Jihad-e-Islami HEJI a militant group that fought the Russians of Maulvi Nabi Muhammadi and was based in the Miramshah area of North Waziristan where he was working as an instructor at a training camp.

And as the Harkat-e-Jihadi-e-Islami became the first outfit of the Afghan veterans to enter Kashmir after the Russian withdrawal from Afghanistan,its possible that Ilyas Kashmiri might have got involved with Kashmir. Harkat first came into the limelight when it banned the Amarnath Yatra in 1993 in retaliation to the demolition of Babri Masjid. The group again made news when it kidnapped two Britons from Pahalgam on June 6,1994 and was also suspected to be involved in the abduction of five Western tourists in July 1995 by allegedly masquerading as Al-Faran.

The two Britons were released unhurt after the intervention of then Mirwaiz South Kashmir,late Qazi Nisar. However,Harkat denied any role in the second abduction. One Norwegian national was beheaded while the fate of the other tourists is still not known.

The Harkat that had sent its Afghan veterans into Jamp;K was Harkat-ul-Mujahideen,a splinter group of the Harkat-ul-Jihadi-e-Islami,which was first set up in 1985. The parent HEJI was launched in 1980 with its headquarters in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Security agencies in the Valley believe that the first-ever involvement of this group in Kashmir insurgency was as early as 1989. However,its role then was limited to imparting arms training to Kashmiri youth.

Sources said Maulana Shahadatullah took over as the chief Amir of HEJI after the killing of Maulana Irshad in 1991. It is said that Shahdatullah wanted to re-unite the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen with HEJI so that by combining the sources of finance,weapons and cadre,the outfit could operate effectively and make its presence felt.

The two factions finally agreed to merge as Harkat-ul-Ansar. The unification process took a few years and police said that Maulana Masood Azhar,who was then general secretary of the unified outfit,was specially sent to the Kashmir Valley to implement the merger.

In Jamp;K,however,Ilyas Kashmiris name has never cropped up as a top militant commander. However,his commander in HEJI and a veteran of Afghan war,Nasrullah Mansoor Langrial,did enter Jamp;K. He was one among the first foreign militant commanders to set base,shuttling across the Pir Panjal range. He was arrested on November,17,1993 ahead of Masood Azhar and is currently in Tihar jail.

Did Ilyas Kashmiri operate in Kashmir or in the hill districts of Poonch,Rajouri and Doda in Jammu province? The security agencies here have no records available. A few reports had suggested that Kashmiri had been arrested in Poonch along with Langrial and escaped jail after two years. There is,however,no official confirmation.

In fact,it is highly unlikely that if Ilyas Kashmiri had operated in Kashmir,he would have stayed away from the security radar here. His credentials as an effective military strategist both during the war against Russians and later turned him into a legend among jihadis. It is said that he lost his eye and an index finger during the Afghanistan war. This is perhaps why he sports dark sunglasses in every photograph available with security agencies.

Kashmiris split from HEJI,however,is better known. Soon after Masood Azhar was released in December 1999 as part of the Governments deal to free the hostages of the hijacked Indian Airline flight,IC-814,he set up the Jaish-e-Mohammad. Kashmiri didnt agree to operate under Azhar and broke away with Harkats 313 Brigade,which was under his exclusive command,and chose to distance from Kashmir militancy.

After the split,Kashmiri had stayed in Kotli in PoK where he survived an attack by the rival Harkat faction. After the September 11 attacks in the United States,Pakistan banned his 313 Brigade. He was arrested after an attack on the life of then president Pervez Musharraf in 2003. Kashmiri was released in February 2004.

Pak journalist Hamid Mir writes that,he Kashmiri was a shattered man after his release and remained silent for at least three years. The latest twist happened soon after the Lal Masjid operation in 2007.

Kashmiri moved to North Waziristan,reorganised his 313 Brigade and aligned with the Taliban. This time his target was Pakistan itself. Apart from the recent attack on a Naval facility in Karachi,Kashmiri was said to have played a role in the killing of Major General retd Faisal Alvi and in the planning of several terror strikes inside Pakistan.

WHO IS ILYAS KASHMIRI?

Top al-Qaeda commander

Born in 1964,family is of mixed Pahari-Punjabi origin

Believed to be from Bhimber in PoK.

Known for his expertise in terror.

Former SSG commando of Pak Army and a mine expert

Trained Afghan Mujahideen against Russia in the mid-80s.

Lost his eye and an index finger during Afghanistan war

Reports suggest that he was arrested in Poonch though there is no record.

Believed to be a key planner behind the 26/11 terror strikes in Mumbai