Top Lashkar-e-Taiba Commander Killed in Bandipora Encounter Following Pahalgam Terror Attack

World

Altaf Lalli, a top commander of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant group, was killed in an encounter with Indian security forces in Bandipora, Jammu and Kashmir, on 25 April. This operation comes days after the deadly terror attack on 22 April in Pahalgam, which left 26 people dead. The attack has been linked to LeT operatives, and the security forces' operation is part of a broader campaign targeting militants involved in the assault.

Acting on specific intelligence, a joint operation was launched by the Indian Army and J&K Police on Friday morning. The forces engaged in a firefight with terrorists, resulting in the death of Altaf Lalli. During the initial phase of the operation, one terrorist was injured, and two police personnel, part of a senior officer’s security detail, were also injured.

Indian Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi, who arrived in Srinagar later, was briefed on the encounter and is scheduled to conduct a security review while assessing the ongoing operations targeting LeT operatives connected to the Pahalgam attack.

In a related development earlier in the day, security forces and J&K authorities demolished the homes of two terrorists suspected to be linked to the Pahalgam attack. The residence of Lashkar terrorist Adil Hussain Thoker in Bijbehara was destroyed using IEDs, while the house of Asif Sheikh in Tral was demolished with a bulldozer.