Home News Pathankot attack mastermind Shahid Latif shot dead by unidentified assailants in Pakistan

Pathankot attack mastermind Shahid Latif shot dead by unidentified assailants in Pakistan

Shahid Latif, one of India’s most wanted terrorists and the mastermind behind the Pathankot attack, was reportedly killed by unidentified gunmen in Sialkot, Pakistan, on Wednesday. Latif was a key figure sought by the National Investigative Agency (NIA) in connection with a case under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), as reported by India Today.

As a high-ranking leader of the terrorist organization Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Latif was implicated in orchestrating the 2016 assault on the Pathankot Air Force Base. In January of that year, a heavily armed group carried out an attack on the Pathankot Air Force Station, and JeM claimed responsibility for the incident.

On January 2, 2016, a prolonged gun battle lasting approximately 17 hours unfolded between security forces and assailants, resulting in the deaths of five attackers and six security personnel. Tragically, an additional three soldiers succumbed to injuries sustained during the encounter after being hospitalized, bringing the total casualty count to nine security forces personnel.

The following day, another security forces officer lost his life in an improvised explosive device (IED) explosion. The operation in Pathankot persisted into January 4, culminating in the elimination of a fifth attacker. The JeM-sponsored Pathankot attack had severe consequences, leading to heightened tensions and a strain in India-Pakistan relations, an issue that remains largely unresolved to this day.

In 1994, Shahid Latif was apprehended in Jammu on charges related to narcotics and terrorism. Following a 16-year-long prison sentence, he was deported back to Pakistan through the Wagah border in 2010.

The Indian government designated Shahid Latif as a terrorist based on findings from the National Investigative Agency (NIA), asserting that Latif returned to engaging in extremist activities in Pakistan after his release in 2010.

Notably, during the hijacking of Indian Airlines plane IC814 to Kandahar in Afghanistan in 1999 by five armed men, Shahid Latif was among those whose release was demanded by the terrorists. Ultimately, Masood Azhar was released, along with two others, in exchange for 189 passengers and crew members held hostage on the plane.

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