Abdul Rauf Azharofficially took over the reins of JeM on April 21, 2007, after Masood Azhar went underground under ISI protection. During his tenure, JeM intensified attacks on Indian soil, including the 2001 Parliament attack, the 2008 Mumbai attacks, the 2016 Pathankot airbase strike, and the 2019 Pulwama suicide bombing. During the IC 814 hijacking, a flight traveling from Kathmandu to Delhi with 190 passengers was rerouted to Kandahar. To secure the hostages' release, the Indian government was compelled to free three terrorists, including Masood Azhar . A statement attributed to Masood Azhar on Wedesday said that 10 members of his family and four of his aides were killed when India targeted Jaish-e-Mohammed headquarters, Jamia Masjid Subhan Allah, in Bahawalpur. Also Read: Who was Abdul Rauf Azhar ... India News: India's Operation Sindoor has led to the neutralization of top Jaish-e-Mohammad leader Abdul Rauf Azhar , a critical figure in terrorist activities linked to major attacks including the ... The hijacking resulted in the release of three dreaded terrorists jailed in India — Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, Mushtaq Zargar and Masood Azhar — in exchange for the nearly 150 passengers of the hijacked Indian Airlines Flight. Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh was involved in the killing of the United States journalist Daniel Pearl in Pakistan. Masood Azhar went on to establish the Jaish-e-Mohammad group after his release.
