Musa's killing 'serious blow to LeT ecosystem in J&K'

Srinagar | New Delhi: Security forces on Tuesday killed a top Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) commander Musa, alias Asif Fauji, at Budgam's Gurwatkalan.

Musa, who hailed from Pakistan, was active in J&K for over five years now. According to officials, the security forces were pursuing Musa for a long time. Recently, a specific plan for his neutralisation was put in place after receiving technical and human intel about his movement and presence, according to an official statement.

"Neutralization of Musa by security forces is a serious blow to the LeT ecosystem in J&K. With Musa's killing, the entire group of four senior LeT commanders operating in the UT since 2022, and responsible for sensational attacks, like Halan attack (August 2023), DKG attack (December 2023), Kandi attack (May 2023), Shahsitar attack (May 2024), Shiv Khori attack (June 2024), Gagangir attack (October 2024), Bootapathri attack (October 2024) and Baisaran attack (April 2025), stands neutralised," according to an official statement.


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The three other members of the group were neutralized in separate encounters: Junaid Bhat (December 3, 2024, Dachigam), Suleman (July 28, 2025, Operation Mahadev), and Yasir (September 4, 2026, Operation Asdhar). The current encounter to neutralise Musa was part of an ongoing long-sustained operation, the statement noted.

"As per our information he crossed the border in 2020-21 and came on radar around 2023 when his name surfaced in some attacks. He was involved in several attacks in Rajouri-Poonch belt on the other side of Pirpanjal mountain and in the upper reaches of Budgam area and Gulmarg in Kashmir on this side of the same range," a senior Army official said.

Officials said he was also involved in three major incidents in 2024 - an ambush of an IAF convoy in Poonch district, an attack on construction workers near Sonamarg and an attack on the Army in Bota Pathri in Gulmarg area. Earlier on September 17, two Pakistani infiltrators of Jaish-e-Mohammad were killed in a remote high-altitude area of Udhampur district.