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{{Dablink|This article is about the Pakistani al-Qaeda militant. For the actor, see [[Ilyas Kashmiri (actor)]].}}
{{Dablink|This article is about the Pakistani al-Qaeda militant. For the actor, see [[Ilyas Kashmiri (actor)]].}}


'''Ilyas Kashmiri''', also referred to as '''Commander Inchief Mohammad Ilyas Kashmiri'''<ref>{{cite web|first=Syed Saleem|last=Shahzad|title=Afghanistan: the neo-Taliban campaign|url=http://mondediplo.com/2008/10/08neotalibans|publisher=''[[Le Monde Diplomatique]]''|date=October 2008|accessdate=2009-09-21}}</ref> and '''Muhammad Ilyas Kashmiri'''<ref name=Telegraph>{{cite news |title=Pak frees terrorist leaders|url=http://www.telegraphindia.com/1040223/asp/foreign/story_2926635.asp|publisher=''[[The Telegraph (Kolkata)|The Telegraph]]''|agency=[[Press Trust of India]]|date=2004-02-22|accessdate=2009-09-21}}</ref> (10 February 1964<ref name=AsiaTimes2009_10_15>{{cite news|first=Syed Saleem|last=Shahzad|title=Al-Qaeda's guerrilla chief lays out strategy|url=http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/KJ15Df03.html|publisher=Asia Times Online|date=2009-10-15|accessdate=2010-01-07}}</ref>&nbsp;– 3 June 2011<ref name="dead">{{cite news|url=http://www.dawn.com/2011/06/04/ilyas-kashmiri-killed-in-us-drone-strike.html|title=Deadly US drone targeted Ilyas Kashmiri|accessdate=4 June 2011|newspaper=Dawn|date=4 June 2011}}</ref><ref name="meat">{{cite news|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/26/11-mastermind-Ilyas-Kashmiri-killed-in-US-drone-strike-in-Pak-Report/articleshow/8723456.cms|title=Ilyas Kashmiri killed in US drone strike, confirms HuJI|accessdate=5 June 2011|newspaper=The Times of India|date=4 June 2011}}</ref>), was a senior [[al-Qaeda]] member connected with the [[Soviet-Afghan war]], the [[Kashmir conflict]] and attacks against [[India]], [[Pakistan]] and the [[United States]].<ref name=TheNews/> In August 2010, the US and the [[United Nations]] designated him a [[terrorist]].<ref name=AFP20100807/><ref name=USState/> NBC News reported that United States officials had mentioned him as a possible successor to [[Osama Bin Laden]] as head of al-Qaeda.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://ibnlive.in.com/news/ilyas-kashmiri-may-succeed-osama-us-officials/151946-2.html|title=Illyas Kashmiri may succeed Osama: US officials|accessdate=4 June 2011|newspaper=Dawn|date=4 June 2011}}</ref>
'''Ilyas Kashmiri''', also referred to as '''Maulana Ilyas Kashmiri'''<ref>{{cite web|first=Syed Saleem |last=Shahzad |title=Afghanistan: the neo-Taliban campaign |url= http://mondediplo.com/2008/10/08neotalibans |publisher=''[[Le Monde Diplomatique]]'' |date=October 2008 |accessdate=2009-09-21}}</ref> and '''Muhammad Ilyas Kashmiri'''<ref name=Telegraph>{{cite news |title=Pak frees terrorist leaders |url= http://www.telegraphindia.com/1040223/asp/foreign/story_2926635.asp |publisher=''[[The Telegraph (Kolkata)|The Telegraph]]'' |agency=[[Press Trust of India]] |date=2004-02-22 |accessdate=2009-09-21}}</ref> (10 February 1964<ref name=AsiaTimes2009_10_15>{{cite news |first=Syed Saleem |last=Shahzad |title=Al-Qaeda's guerrilla chief lays out strategy |url= http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/KJ15Df03.html|publisher=Asia Times Online |date=2009-10-15 |accessdate=2010-01-07}}</ref>&nbsp;– 3 June 2011<ref name="dead">{{cite news |url= http://www.dawn.com/2011/06/04/ilyas-kashmiri-killed-in-us-drone-strike.html |title=Deadly US drone targeted Ilyas Kashmiri |accessdate=4 June 2011 |newspaper=Dawn |date=4 June 2011}}</ref><ref name="meat">{{cite news |url= http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/26/11-mastermind-Ilyas-Kashmiri-killed-in-US-drone-strike-in-Pak-Report/articleshow/8723456.cms |title=Ilyas Kashmiri killed in US drone strike, confirms HuJI |accessdate=5 June 2011 |newspaper=The Times of India |date=4 June 2011}}</ref>), was a senior [[al-Qaeda]] member connected with the [[Soviet-Afghan war]], the [[Kashmir conflict]] and attacks against [[India]], [[Pakistan]] and the [[United States]].<ref name=TheNews/> In August 2010, the US and the [[United Nations]] designated him a [[terrorist]].<ref name=AFP20100807/><ref name=USState/> NBC News reported that United States officials had mentioned him as a possible successor to [[Osama Bin Laden]] as head of al-Qaeda.<ref>{{cite news |url= http://ibnlive.in.com/news/ilyas-kashmiri-may-succeed-osama-us-officials/151946-2.html |title=Illyas Kashmiri may succeed Osama: US officials |accessdate=4 June 2011 |newspaper=Dawn |date=4 June 2011}}</ref>


==Military career and militant activities==
==Military career and militant activities==

Revision as of 08:14, 6 June 2011

This article is about the Pakistani al-Qaeda militant. For the actor, see Ilyas Kashmiri (actor).

Ilyas Kashmiri, also referred to as Maulana Ilyas Kashmiri[1] and Muhammad Ilyas Kashmiri[2] (10 February 1964[3] – 3 June 2011[4][5]), was a senior al-Qaeda member connected with the Soviet-Afghan war, the Kashmir conflict and attacks against India, Pakistan and the United States.[6] In August 2010, the US and the United Nations designated him a terrorist.[7][8] NBC News reported that United States officials had mentioned him as a possible successor to Osama Bin Laden as head of al-Qaeda.[9]

Military career and militant activities

Kashmiri hailed from the Kotli District[6] or Mirpur District[3] in Pakistan-administered Kashmir. According to several sources, he became a member of the elite Pakistani Special Service Group,[6][10][11] although in an interview he denied this.[3] Kashmiri also spent a year studying communications at the Allama Iqbal Open University.[3]

He was an active participant in the 1980s Soviet-Afghan War, training the Afghan mujahideen in mine warfare in Miranshah on behalf of Pakistan.[6] During the fighting he lost an eye and an index finger.[6][12] He continued his official terrorist work in Kashmir after the war as a member of Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HuJI), though disagreements with leader Qari Saifullah Akhtar several years after initially joining in 1991 led Kashmiri to establish his own new unit within HuJI known as the 313 Brigade.[6][13]

During the mid-1990s Kashmiri and Nasrullah Mansoor Langrial were near Poonch when they were seized by the Indian Army and sent to prison, where he would spend the next two years before escaping and returning to Pakistan.[6] Upon his return Kashmiri continued to conduct operations against India, once reportedly being rewarded personally with cash by then Army Chief General Pervez Musharraf for presenting the head of an Indian army sepoy to him.[6][14]

Post-Kashmir activities

Kashmiri rejected orders to serve under Maulana Masood Azhar in the newly founded mujahideen organization Jaish-e-Mohammed and was once even targeted by the group.[6] Falling out of favor with the Pakistani military, he was even taken into custody and tortured in late 2003 in the wake of an attempt to assassinate President Musharraf.[6] From his release in February 2004[2] until the 2007 Siege of Lal Masjid he apparently did little, but later returned to the 313 Brigade in the terrorist organization Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HUJI), which is closely tied to Al-Qaeda. Kashmiri rebuilt its strength while collaborating with the Taliban. This was part of a broader movement of Kashmir militants moving to Waziristan,[15] and Kashmiri reportedly moved personnel from his Kotli (Kashmir) training camp to a new one in Razmak (North Waziristan).[16] A U.S. indictment of Kashmiri states that he "was in regular contact with al Qaeda [their italics] and in particular with Mustafa Abu al Yazid..."[17]

He has been associated with a number of attacks, including the killing of Ameer Faisal Alavi.[6] According to Asia Times Online, Kashmiri was behind a 2008 plan to assassinate Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani as he stepped out of his car during daily visits to a gym; however, the al-Qaeda leadership rejected the plan on strategic grounds.[18] According to The News International, Kashmiri is accused of organizing the December 2009 Camp Chapman attack against the CIA and the United States was seeking his arrest and extradition.[19]

In early 2010, Kashmiri was reported to be the new leader of al-Qaeda's Lashkar al Zil, or Shadow Army, following the apparent death of its former leader Abdullah Said al Libi by an American drone.[20] Kashmiri was also said to have replaced al-Qaeda military chief for Afghanistan and Pakistan Mustafa Abu al-Yazid after al-Yazid was killed in a drone strike on 21 May 2010. According to journalist Amir Mir, citing Pakistani security sources, Kashmiri was subsequently assigned the role of organizing attacks against Western targets after the regional command was taken by Saif Al-Adel, a former Egyptian army colonel newly released from Iran.[21]

In the wake of the killing of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden on 2 May 2011 during an American operation in Abbottabad, Pakistan, terrorism analysts put forth Kashmiri's name as one of several possible successors to lead the organization.[22][23][24]

U.S. indictment

On 27 October 2009, a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice named Kashmiri as a conspirator to whom an American citizen from Chicago, David Headley, arrested on terrorism related charges, "allegedly reported and attempted to report". The statement also noted that Kashimiri "issued a statement this month that he was alive and working with al Qaeda".[25] A report on details of the investigation stated that Kashmiri "was in regular contact with Headley for some time and their communications suggested that they were in the process of plotting fresh attacks in India."[26] Headley was reportedly distraught at news of Kashmiri's death, but after receiving confirmation that he was still alive, set off for Pakistan, at which time he was arrested by the FBI.[27]

Kashmiri was officially indicted on two counts, for "conspiracy to murder and maim in Denmark" (against the newspaper Jyllands-Posten) and "conspiracy to provide material support to terrorism in Denmark".[17]

During court testimony on 31 May 2011, Headley indicated that he had conducted preliminary research for Kashmiri in a plot targeting Robert J. Stevens, the CEO of Lockheed-Martin, the defense contractor.[28]

Blacklisted as a terrorist by US and UN

On 6 August 2010 the United States labeled Kashmiri a "Specially Designated Global Terrorist" while the United Nations added him and his group HuJI to its blacklist established under UN Security Council Resolution 1267. The label allows the United States to freeze any of his assets in US jurisdiction and to "prohibit US persons from engaging in any transactions with him." The UN resolution requires UN member states to freeze assets, ban travel and ban the sale of arms to Kashmiri and HuJI.[7][8]

Assassination attempt

Kashmiri was reported killed along with Hanifullah Janikhel and Kaleemullah in Machikhel, North Waziristan on 7 September 2009 when they were hit by a missile fired from a U.S. drone.[29] At the time he was reportedly one of the top 10 most wanted militant commanders in Pakistan.[16] However, in mid-October Kashmiri was reported to have survived the airstrike and granted an interview to Asia Times Online's Syed Saleem Shahzad.[30] A senior American official was later quoted by The Washington Times as saying "While there were preliminary indications that Kashmiri may have been dead, there is now reason to believe that he could be alive".[31] One rumor among militants asserted that Kashmiri had been outside urinating when the house he was staying at was hit.[32]

Death

On 3 June 2011, a US drone attack targeted a compound in the Ghwakhwa area of South Waziristan, a Taliban stronghold. Nine militants, including Kashmiri, were reportedly killed in the missile strike.[4][5][33] Three other militants were badly injured in the attack.[5] Local officials reported that the militants in the compound were all members of the Punjabi Taliban.[5] Kashmiri had moved to Wana from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 10 days earlier.[5] A spokesman for the Tehrik-i-Taliban stated that Kashmiri was alive and well,[34] and United States officials have not yet confirmed that he was killed.[35] Kashmiri's death was, however, reported by an e-mail from Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami, by an anonymous Pakistani security official[36] and by Lala Wazir, a spokesman for Mullah Nazir, a militant commander associated with the owner of the compound which was attacked.[34]

References

  1. ^ Shahzad, Syed Saleem (October 2008). "Afghanistan: the neo-Taliban campaign". Le Monde Diplomatique. Retrieved 21 September 2009. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  2. ^ a b "Pak frees terrorist leaders". The Telegraph. Press Trust of India. 22 February 2004. Retrieved 21 September 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  3. ^ a b c d Shahzad, Syed Saleem (15 October 2009). "Al-Qaeda's guerrilla chief lays out strategy". Asia Times Online. Retrieved 7 January 2010.
  4. ^ a b "Deadly US drone targeted Ilyas Kashmiri". Dawn. 4 June 2011. Retrieved 4 June 2011.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Ilyas Kashmiri killed in US drone strike, confirms HuJI". The Times of India. 4 June 2011. Retrieved 5 June 2011.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Mir, Hamid (20 September 2009). "How an ex-Army commando became a terrorist". The News International. Retrieved 21 September 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  7. ^ a b "US, UN declare Harakat-ul Jihad al-Islami a terrorist group". Google News. AFP. 7 August 2010. Retrieved 12 August 2010.
  8. ^ a b "Designations of Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami (HUJI) and its Leader, Mohammad Ilyas Kashmiri" (Press release). US Department of State. 6 August 2010. Retrieved 12 August 2010.
  9. ^ "Illyas Kashmiri may succeed Osama: US officials". Dawn. 4 June 2011. Retrieved 4 June 2011.
  10. ^ Lisa Curtis (11 March 2010). "Bad company: Lashkar-e-Tayyiba and the growing ambition of Islamist militancy in Pakistan" (PDF). The Heritage Foundation. The U.S. Department of Justice indictment that was unsealed on January 14, 2009 names... Ilyas Kashmiri, a former commando with Pakistan's elite Special Services Group, and now leader of the Harakat-ul-Jihadi-Islami, as the operational commander behind the Mumbai attacks.
  11. ^ Bill Roggio (13 October 2009). "Ilyas Kashmiri survived last month's airstrike in Pakistan". The Long War Journal. Kashmiri is also a longtime asset of Pakistan's military and intelligence services. He served as a commando in the elite Special Services Group (SSG), Pakistan's special operations unit trained by Britain's Special Air Service. In the early 1990s, Kashmiri was ordered by the military to join the Harkat-ul Jihad Islami, and later he was urged to join the Jaish-e-Mohammed, which he refused to do.
  12. ^ Sami Yousafzai; Ron Moreau; Christopher Dickey (23 October 2010), "The New Bin Laden", Newsweek, retrieved 25 October 2010
  13. ^ Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism (April 2006). "Country Reports on Terrorism 2005" (PDF). United States Department of State. Retrieved 21 September 2009.
  14. ^ According to The Indian Express, the man beheaded was Sepoy Bhausaheb Maruti Talekar of the 17 Maratha Light Infantry posted in the Nowshera sector when attacked on 27 February 2000. Pubby, Manu (22 September 2009). "24-yr-old Sepoy was beheaded in 2000 LoC raid". The Indian Express. Retrieved 22 September 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help) A memorial will be built in Talekar's memory in Kolgaon, where his parents live. Raghavan, Ranjani (23 September 2009). "Dead sepoy's village doesn't know his killer is killed in Pakistan". The Indian Express. Retrieved 23 September 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  15. ^ Shahzad, Syed Saleem (24 December 2008). "Why Pakistan's military is gun shy". Asia Times Online. Retrieved 21 September 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  16. ^ a b "Pakistan's Top 10 Militant Commanders". MEMRI. 15 September 2009. Retrieved 21 September 2009.
  17. ^ a b "United States of America v. Ilyas Kashmiri, et al" (PDF). United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division. p. 19.
  18. ^ Shahzad, Syed Saleem (23 May 2009). "Al-Qaeda keeps its eyes on Afghanistan". Asia Times Online. Retrieved 21 September 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  19. ^ Mir, Amir (6 January 2010). "US seeks Harkat chief for Khost CIA attack". The News International. Retrieved 6 January 2019. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help) [dead link]
  20. ^ Roggio, Bill (7 January 2010). "US killed al Qaeda's Lashkar al Zil commander in airstrike". The Long War Journal. Retrieved 7 January 2010.
  21. ^ Mir, Amir (14 December 2010). "Growing Pakistanisation of al-Qaeda". The News International. Retrieved 14 December 2010. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  22. ^ Raj, Yashwant (5 May 2011). "Ilyas Kashmiri ahead in race to lead Qaeda". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 7 May 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  23. ^ Roggio, Bill (7 May 2011). "Will Ilyas Kashmiri slip into Osama's shoes?". The Times of India. Retrieved 7 May 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  24. ^ Windrem, Robert (4 May 2011). "An American to head al Qaeda?". msnbc.com. Retrieved 7 May 2011.
  25. ^ "Two Chicago Men Charged in Connection With Alleged Roles in Foreign Terror Plot That Focused on Targets in Denmark". U.S. Department of Justice. Reuters. 27 October 2009.
  26. ^ Singh, Vijay V. (15 November 2009). "Headley's coded messages hint at HuJI link: Police". The Times of India. Retrieved 15 November 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  27. ^ "Omar Sheikh's Pak handler Ilyas Kashmiri also handled Headley". Express India. 16 November 2009. Retrieved 16 November 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  28. ^ "Headley: Militant had targeted Lockheed Martin". Dawn.com. AFP. 1 June 2011. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
  29. ^ Rodriguez, Alex (18 September 2009). "Pakistani Al Qaeda leader killed in U.S. strike". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 21 September 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  30. ^ Roggio, Bill (13 October 2009). "Ilyas Kashmiri survived last month's airstrike in Pakistan". The Long War Journal. Retrieved 13 October 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  31. ^ Lake, Eli (15 October 2009). "'Dead' al Qaeda terrorist surfaces for media". The Washington Times. Retrieved 16 October 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  32. ^ Yousafzai, Sami (23 October 2010). "The New Bin Laden". Newsweek. Retrieved 23 October 2010. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  33. ^ US strike 'kills' key Pakistan militant Ilyas Kashmiri, BBC News, 4 June 2011
  34. ^ a b "Drone strike kills Ilyas Kashmiri". Dawn. 5 June 2011. Retrieved 5 June 2011.
  35. ^ Toosi, Nahal (5 June, 2011). "Al Qaeda chief's death increasingly certain". Associated Press. Retrieved 6 June, 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  36. ^ "Ilyas Kashmiri killed in drone attack". Sydney Morning Herald. 5 June 2011. Retrieved 5 June 2011.

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