Hamza Burhan, one of the alleged masterminds behind the 2019 Pulwama terror attack that killed 40 CRPF personnel, has reportedly been shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (POK), according to multiple media reports.
Burhan, also known as “Doctor”, sustained multiple bullet injuries in an attack in Muzaffarabad. Media reports said that his original name was Arjumand Gulzar Dar, and he was designated a terrorist by the Union Home Ministry in 2022.
A native of Pulwama's Ratnipora area in Jammu and kashmir, Hamza Burhan had reportedly travelled to Pakistan in 2017 under the pretext of higher studies before joining the banned terror outfit Al-Badr. He later emerged as a commander within the group and was allegedly involved in radicalising youth in South Kashmir.
Security agencies had linked Hamza Burhan to several terror-related incidents in Jammu and Kashmir, including the February 14, 2019 Pulwama attack. According to investigators, he allegedly supplied explosives and grenades to the terrorists involved in the attack.
The Pulwama attack, carried out by Pakistan-based terror outfit Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM), remains one of the deadliest attacks on Indian security personnel. A suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into a CRPF convoy at Lethpora, killing 40 personnel.
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The incident triggered retaliatory airstrikes by the Indian Air Force on Balakot in Pakistan days later, significantly escalating tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad.
According to reports, Hamza Burhan had managed to flee back to POK despite a prolonged manhunt by security agencies.
His killing comes amid a series of mysterious attacks targeting designated terrorists and senior operatives linked to outfits such as Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), JeM and Hizbul Mujahideen in Pakistan and POK.
Last month, Amir Hamza, a founding member of LeT, was reportedly shot dead by unidentified bike-borne assailants in Lahore. In March, Muhammad Tahir Anwar, elder brother of JeM chief Masood Azhar, reportedly died under “mysterious circumstances” in Pakistan.
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