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Foreign Secretary Muhammad Syrus Sajjad Qazi on Thursday said Islamabad had \u201ccredible evidence\u201d of links between Indian agents and the assassination of two Pakistani nationals in Sialkot and Rawalakot.<\/p>\n
Qazi was referring to the deaths of two Pakistanis, identified as Shahid Latif and Muhammad Riaz, in 2023. Similar allegations regarding the Indian government\u2019s involvement in murders in other countries were also made by the US<\/a> and Canada<\/a> last year.<\/p>\n At a press briefing in Islamabad today, the foreign secretary said India was running a \u201csophisticated and sinister\u201d campaign of \u201cextra-territorial and extra-judicial killings\u201d inside Pakistan. He stated that these were \u201ckilling-for-hire cases\u201d and involved a \u201csophisticated international set-up spread over multiple jurisdictions\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cIndian agents used technology and safe havens on foreign soil to commit assassinations in Pakistan. They recruited, financed and supported criminals, terrorists and unsuspecting civilians to play defined roles in these assassinations,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n According to Qazi, Indian media and social media accounts immediately claimed and glorified these killings as \u201csuccessful retribution against enemies of India and projected their capacity to carry out these illegal acts\u201d.<\/p>\n He said potential assassins were recruited using social media, talent spotters and fake Daesh accounts. \u201cTeams of financiers, locaters and assassins were employed in the operation,\u201d Qazi stated, adding that deliberate exit plans were also developed to obscure all potential tracks.<\/p>\n Revealing details about the assassinations, he said: \u201cOn October 11, 2023, Mr Shahid Latif was assassinated outside a mosque in Sialkot. A detailed investigation revealed that an Indian agent, Yogesh Kumar, based in a third country orchestrated the assassination.\u201d<\/p>\n Qazi said Kumar recruited Muhammad Umair, a labourer in the third country, to act as a contact with local criminals in Pakistan to trace and assassinate Shahid Latif. \u201cThey recruited local criminals who were able to locate and trade Shahid Latif, however, they were unable to carry out the execution.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAfter some of the failed attempts, Umair himself was personally sent to Pakistan to carry out the assassination,\u201d the foreign secretary said, adding that Umair organised a team of five target killers and succeeded in assassinating Shahid Latif.<\/p>\n \u201cBased on the confessional statements and technical evidence, law enforcement authorities quickly apprehended the target killers, including Muhammad Umair, who were trying to flee the country on Oct 12, 2023,\u201d Qazi said.<\/p>\n He added that all those involved in the killings were apprehended and a case was being tried in the court of law. \u201cWe have evidence of transactions made in the process linking the entire chain to Indian agent Yogesh Kumar,\u201d Qazi said.<\/p>\n Talking about the second assassination, the foreign secretary said another Indian agent was involved in the killing of a Pakistani man, identified as Muhammad Riaz, who was \u201cassassinated during Fajr prayers inside a mosque in Rawalakot on September 8, 2023\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cLaw enforcement agencies tracked the killer, Muhammad Abdullah Ali, and arrested him on September 15, 2023, while boarding a flight at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi,\u201d Qazi stated, adding that interrogation revealed Ali was recruited and guided by Indian agents Ashok Kumar Anand and Yogesh Kumar.<\/p>\n He said Indian agents used the social media platform Telegram to recruit Ali, elaborating that Ali received payments and was provided with weapons and ammunition. Qazi added that the case was being tried in the court of law.<\/p>\n The foreign secretary went on to say that the investigators \u201cquickly identified\u201d Ali\u2019s facilitators on the basis of confessional statements and technical evidence. \u201cWe have documentary, financial and forensic evidence of the involvement of the two Indian agents who masterminded these assassinations,\u201d he said, adding that the Pakistan government was releasing the passport details of these agents.<\/p>\n Qazi further said that Islamabad had also reached out to the governments of relevant third countries. \u201cThere are a few other cases of similar gravity at various stages of investigation,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n He stated that these cases revealed a \u201cgrowing sophistication and brazenness of Indian-sponsored terrorist acts in Pakistan\u201d, highlighting that such incidents were also reported in Canada and the US. \u201cClearly the Indian network of extra-judicial and extra-territorial killings has become a global phenomenon,\u201d the foreign secretary said.<\/p>\n He asserted that it was critical to bring the killers, their facilitators and financiers to justice. \u201cIndia must be held accountable internationally for its blatant violation of international law. India\u2019s assassination of Pakistani nationals on Pakistani soil is a violation of its sovereignty and a breach of the UN charter,\u201d Qazi stressed, calling it \u201ccompletely unacceptable\u201d.<\/p>\n He maintained that Pakistan remained committed to protecting its people and securing its sovereignty, asserting that the protection of Pakistan and any foreign national on Pakistani soil \u201cis a high priority\u201d for the government.<\/p>\n \u201cIndia\u2019s reckless and irresponsible act calls into question India\u2019s reliability as a credible international player and its claims for enhanced global responsibilities,\u201d Qazi added.<\/p>\n In September last year, Canada accused<\/a> the Indian government of its involvement in the June murder<\/a> in a Vancouver suburb of Canadian citizen and Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, whom India called a \u201cterrorist\u201d. India denies the allegation.<\/p>\n The claims had prompted hundreds of Sikh protesters to rally outside Indian diplomatic missions in Canada. They also burnt flags and trampled on pictures of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.<\/p>\n Canada called for India to cooperate<\/a> in the investigation into his death and expelled an Indian diplomat over the affair. In a tit-for-tat response, New Delhi expressed outrage and took countermeasures such as shutting down<\/a> visa services for Canadians.<\/p>\n The Indian government had also advised its nationals not to travel to parts of Canada \u201cgiven the increase in anti-Indian activities\u201d.<\/p>\n Separately, in November 2023, the United States charged<\/a> an Indian man accused by the US of involvement in an unsuccessful plot to kill a Sikh separatist on American soil.<\/p>\nAllegations by US, Canada<\/h2>\n