BUDGAM, Sept 30: A top Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) commander, identified as Mohammad Asif alias Hashim Musa, was killed in an intelligence-led anti-terror operation in the upper reaches of Budgam district, officials said on Wednesday.
The encounter broke out late Tuesday after security forces launched a joint search operation in the Gurwatkalan area of Khansahib following specific intelligence inputs about the presence of terrorists. The operation involved the Army, Jammu and Kashmir Police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).
According to the Army’s Chinar Corps, troops noticed suspicious movement during the operation and challenged the terrorists, who opened fire, triggering an exchange of gunfire. The body of Musa, a Pakistan-based LeT terrorist, was recovered from the Palmaidan area during searches early Wednesday. Arms, ammunition and other war-like stores were also seized.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said Musa had been under surveillance for a considerable period and that security agencies had coordinated an operation to neutralise him after receiving technical and human intelligence inputs regarding his movements.
The MHA described Musa as part of a four-member group of senior LeT commanders active in Jammu and Kashmir since 2022 and alleged that the group was linked to several major terror attacks.
According to the Ministry, the other three members—Junaid Bhat, Suleman and Yasir—were killed in separate operations between December 2024 and September 2026.
The MHA alleged that the group was linked to attacks at Halan, Kandi, DKG, Shahsitar, Shiv Khori, Gagangir, Bootapathri and Baisaran.
Musa’s killing comes weeks after Yasir was eliminated in the Ashdar Gali area of Budgam. Officials said Musa had escaped during that operation, following which searches were intensified across the mountainous and forested Pir Panjal region.
The MHA said the operation was part of Operation Sheruwali, an ongoing counter-terrorism campaign launched in May 2026.