After India’s Operation Sindoor pulverized at least nine major terror hubs in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), the epicenter of jihadist activity is shifting. Reliable sources and visuals confirm that Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) are relocating to Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK).
The move is not random – it’s a deliberate, strategic repositioning with Pakistan’s full complicity.
The story here is not just about terror camps changing their postal address. It is about Pakistan recalibrating its proxy war, bringing terror groups under deeper protection, and beyond the reach of India’s precision strikes. For India, this signals a dangerous new phase in the shadow war.
From PoK to KPK: Why the Shift Matters
Until recently, PoK was the hub of Pakistan’s terror war on India. Camps in Balakot, Muzaffarabad, and Kotli trained fighters. Pakistan-sponsored terrorists used infiltration routes maintained by these terror hives across the Line of Control. However, Operation Sindoor changed the equation. Indian air power and ground-based precision strikes demonstrated that no camp in PoK or Punjab was safe.
By contrast, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa offers geographical depth – mountainous terrain, porous Afghan borders, and established jihadi networks from the Afghan war.
The area hosts Pakistan’s prodigy and now-enemy Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Sources state that remnants of Al-Qaeda also exist in the zone. Now, JeM and HM are embedding themselves into this militant ecosystem, creating what can only be called a terror fortress beyond India’s immediate reach.
Mansehra: Recruitment Under Police Protection
The most striking evidence came from Garhi Habibullah in Mansehra district, where on 14 September 2025 – hours before the India–Pakistan cricket match – JeM staged a public recruitment drive.
- The rally was disguised as a Deobandi religious gathering.
- It was personally addressed by Masood Ilyas Kashmiri, JeM’s Amir for KPK and Kashmir, a high-value terrorist directly connected to JeM founder Masood Azhar.
- The event was protected not just by JeM cadres with M4 rifles, but also by local police led by Inspector Liaqat Shah.
Kashmiri’s 30-minute speech glorified Osama bin Laden as the “Prince of Arabs.” Thereafter, he painted KPK as the eternal sanctuary of the mujahideen. He recalled how, after the IC-814 hijack and Masood Azhar’s release, Balakot in KPK became JeM’s bastion. Most chillingly, he described in graphic detail how Indian bombs “minced” Azhar’s family during Operation Sindoor.
And he highlighted how Pakistan’s Army Chief ordered GHQ, PAF, and uniformed soldiers to honor JeM terrorists at funerals.
Kashmiri’s words were not just rhetoric – it was a rallying cry to jihadis. Attendees were openly urged to join JeM’s training facility at Marakaz Shohada-e-Islam in Mansehra, which is currently expanding.
JeM’s New Cover: Al-Murabitun
JeM plans another large gathering on 25 September 2025 in Peshawar, at Marakaz Shaheed Maksudabad, to commemorate Masood Azhar’s slain brother, Yusuf Azhar. Pamphlets distributed across KPK confirm the rally will be staged under JeM’s new alias Al-Murabitun.
Al-Murabitum is a name JeM borrows from an Al-Qaeda affiliate in West Africa!
This rebranding is calculated. By avoiding the JeM name, Pakistan attempts to sidestep international scrutiny and FATF grey listing. Even as the JeM doubles down on recruitment and training of the jihadis under the pseudonym. The literal meaning of JeM’s alter ego is “Defenders of the Land of Islam,” which is a chilling proclamation of intent.
Hizbul Mujahideen: Building HM 313 in Pakistan
JeM isn’t alone. Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) is also relocating its operations to KPK. Under ex-Pak Army commando Khalid Khan, HM is constructing a new training facility, HM 313, in Bandaai, Lower Dir.
- The “313” is a symbolic tribute to both the Battle of Badr and Al-Qaeda’s Brigade 313, signaling an ideological fusion.
- The land was quietly acquired in August 2024, and the construction has stepped up post-Operation Sindoor.
- Satellite coordinates confirm visible infrastructure, boundary walls, and early training activity.
This new camp is intended to replace destroyed PoK facilities and to serve as a fresh hub for indoctrination and cross-border planning against India.
Masood Ilyas Kashmiri: The Face of Pakistan’s Proxy War
Understanding this shift requires focusing on Masood Ilyas Kashmiri (alias Abu Mohammad).
- Born in Rawalkot, he joined JeM in 2001, fought NATO in Afghanistan, and later became the district commander in PoK.
- He masterminded the 2018 Sunjuwan Army Camp attack in Jammu, killing six Indian soldiers and a civilian.
- By 2019, he was leading the Hilal-ul-Haq Brigade, rebranded as PAFF (People’s Anti-Fascist Front), JeM’s shadow outfit designed to appear “indigenous” in Kashmir.
Now, Kashmiri is consolidating JeM’s hold over KPK, overseeing recruitment, radicalization, and coordination with Afghan networks. His open coordination with Pakistan’s police and his invocation of GHQ orders underscore one fact: this isn’t rogue militancy, it is state-sanctioned jihad.
Implications for India
The relocation of JeM and HM into KPK carries five major implications for India:
- Reduced Vulnerability to Strikes: With camps deeper inside Pakistan, India’s ability to target them without escalating into a full-blown war diminishes.
- Closer Afghan Nexus: KPK’s proximity to Afghanistan ensures easier collaboration with Al-Qaeda remnants.
- Radicalization Pipeline: Recruitment drives under religious cover normalize jihad as political activism, creating a steady stream of fighters.
- State Complicity Laid Bare: Police and army protection at rallies destroy Pakistan’s claims of “plausible deniability.”
- International Double Standards: Pakistan, currently chairing the UNSC, continues to host designated terror groups openly, yet faces little global censure. Thus, it clearly fails as a democracy that shuns terrorism.
The Bigger Picture
For India, this is a test of both hard power and diplomacy. Operation Sindoor is still on. The Indian military proved that Bharat can strike into Pakistan without ever crossing international borders.
But with JeM and HM shifting into KPK, New Delhi faces a dilemma: how far inside Pakistan is India willing to go?
At the same time, the international community’s silence is deafening. Washington collaborates with Islamabad for “regional stability.” Saudi Arabia signs a defence pact promising mutual collaboration against attacks. China joined its voice to Pakistan, trying to declare Balochi freedom fighters as terrorist groups in the UN – a move blocked by the West. As Pakistan provides stage, police, and uniforms to known terrorists, the world mutely watches.
This is Pakistan’s known double game during the U.S.-led “War on Terror.”
The relocation of JeM and HM into KPK marks a strategic evolution of Pakistan’s terror apparatus. Increased camps in PoK with high-tech equipment and camouflage should worry Bharat. What was once a proxy war fought just from PoK’s ridges is now being entrenched in KPK’s jihadi heartland.
For India, the message is clear: the war is shifting, the terrain is expanding, and the stakes are rising.
Precision strikes may no longer be enough. What is needed is a comprehensive strategy—military, diplomatic, and ideological—that exposes Pakistan’s duplicity and counters the radicalization pipeline before it floods the Valley again. Because every rally in Mansehra, every speech in Peshawar, and every wall built in Lower Dir is not just about Pakistan – it’s about the next infiltration attempt across the LoC, the next Sunjuwan, and the next bloodied headline in India.
