Meet Hashim Moosa: Top Pakistan-based Lashkar terrorist linked to Pahalgam terror attack neutralised during encounter with security forces in Budgam of Kashmir; “war-like” stores recovered

In Budgam, a prominent Lashkar terrorist was killed after an altercation with security personnel.
Image via Andhrajyothy

On 29th September (Tuesday), a high-ranking Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist, who was sought for involvement in multiple attacks, was eliminated during a confrontation with security personnel in the Budgam district of Jammu and Kashmir. He has been identified as Mohammad Asif, also known as “Hashim Moosa (Musa).”

He was linked to the Pahalgam terror attack. The body was located “during the search early morning in General Area Palmaidan.” For many years, Moosa was wanted due to his involvement in attacks on both sides of the Pir Panjal range. He had also managed to elude a security operation in the Yousmarg hills earlier on 5th September. Furthermore, “war-like” stores were also uncovered during the operation, which continues to be in progress.

According to the Indian Army’s Chinar Corps, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), police, and the army worked together “based on specific intelligence input” to conduct “Operation Korag” in Budgam, close to Yousmarg. It conveyed, “Vigilant troops observed suspicious activity, and upon being challenged, terrorists opened fire, prompting a fierce exchange of gunfire during which one terrorist was neutralised.”

Moosa also went by “Fauji,” a name inspired by his military-style training and appearance, which security agencies believe resembled those of the Pakistan Army or its elite Special Services Group (SSG), reported News 18. Insiders disclosed that he lived in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and that his father was a member of the Pakistani Army.

Security officials disclosed that the group Moosa belonged to was connected to attacks in Poonch and other areas of Jammu and Kashmir that killed many army and security personnel between 2021 and 2024. This terrorist faction also included Yasir, Junaid Ahmad Bhat, and Sulaiman Shah. Shah was slain in an operation on the outskirts of Srinagar in July 2025, while Junaid was killed in December 2024.

Yasir were eliminated in an altercation in the upper parts of Yousmarg on 5th September. Afterwards, security personnel stepped up their hunt for Moosa as he had reportedly fled farther into the Pir Panjal range’s jungles and rugged terrain. He was essentially the last significant part of the terrorist group being traced in that specific mountain range.

The group has been connected to the Dera Ki Gali ambush in December 2023, the attack on an IAF convoy in Poonch in May 2024, and the Bota Pathri attack near Gulmarg in October 2024.

Written by OpIndia Staff
Last modified at