Big Reward for Masood Azhar’s Whereabouts as Pakistan Lists Him as Most Wanted

India has repeatedly alleged that Jaish-e-Mohammed chief and most-wanted terrorist Masood Azhar is operating from Pakistan, but Islamabad has continued to deny the claim. In a fresh development, Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has included Azhar’s name in its Red Book of most-wanted terrorists and announced a reward of PKR 7 million for information leading to his whereabouts. Pakistan had announced a PKR 5 million reward five years ago and has now increased it by another PKR 2 million. The announcement is significant as it comes ahead of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) plenary meeting scheduled for October.

Indian intelligence officials believe the move could be aimed at projecting that Pakistan is taking action against terrorists and easing international pressure. Pakistan has claimed since 2021 that Azhar is hiding in Afghanistan, but Kabul has rejected the allegation. Indian intelligence agencies, meanwhile, have assessed that Azhar is in Nawabshah in Pakistan’s Sindh province. The FIA Red Book also contains the names of 19 individuals allegedly linked to the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. India has maintained that several of these individuals remain in Pakistan and that placing them on the most-wanted list could be an attempt to divert international scrutiny. Masood Azhar has been accused of masterminding several terror attacks in India. He was arrested by India in 1995 but was released in 1999 after militants hijacked an aircraft to secure his release. He later founded Jaish-e-Mohammed. He has also been accused of involvement in the 2001 Parliament attack and the 2008 Mumbai attacks. The United Nations designated him an international terrorist in 2019.