ISI orchestrates Hamas-Lashkar-Jaish axis to replicate Gaza-style tunnel warfare in Kashmir

New Delhi, Aug 13 (IANS) Pakistan’s military establishment and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) are actively fostering a tactical alliance between Hamas and Pakistan-based terror outfits Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, intelligence sources and a new security report revealed.

Indian security agencies have repeatedly flagged the emerging links between Hamas and Pakistan-based terror groups in recent months. With Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) already posing a major threat to India, the reported involvement of Hamas has raised fresh concerns.

Indian security officials say that the move to bring Hamas into the picture is part of a well-planned strategy by the Pakistan Army and its intelligence agency, the ISI.

“The growing links between Hamas and outfits such as the Jaish and Lashkar are not aimed solely at carrying out terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir,” the officials warned.

If viewed in the larger context, the objective appears to be to bring the LeT and Jaish up to the operational standards of Hamas. Officials say the Pakistani establishment wants these groups to sustain a prolonged confrontation with the Indian armed forces, drawing lessons from the way Hamas has continued its conflict with Israel.

Usanas Foundation, an Udaipur-based security and foreign policy think tank, in its latest paper titled ‘Hamas-Pakistan Nexus: A Threat to India and Israel,’ says that the arrival of Hamas in Pakistan is mutually beneficial, providing safe havens to Hamas and finances to its fledgling economy, as it faces major reverses in West Asia.

“In return, Pakistani terror groups will leverage the expertise of Hamas in guerrilla warfare and creating infrastructure for tunnel-centric warfare in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK),” the paper states.

The research also states that if the vast tunnel networks are created in PoK, then the Indian army would face jihadists waging guerrilla warfare from these tunnels just like what Israel faces in Gaza. Furthermore, if a war breaks out between India and Pakistan, another Hamas expertise, which is propaganda, will be a challenge for India.

It is widely known that Hamas has successfully run its propaganda campaign on American campuses, the paper notes.

An Intelligence Bureau official said such a strategy would be highly advantageous for the Pakistan Army. It would allow terror groups to remain engaged in a sustained confrontation with the Indian armed forces, while keeping the Pakistani military largely out of direct involvement.

In such a scenario, the Pakistan Army could exert influence and provide support from the background without having to take an active role in the fighting, said the IB official.

“The Pakistan establishment will also have a deniability factor in the case of such a war. None can accuse Pakistan of launching a full-fledged war with India using its army,” the official said.

Another official said that Hamas would always be welcomed in Pakistan, even by the citizens of the country.

Pakistan’s propaganda machinery has sought to draw parallels between Gaza and Kashmir, a narrative that officials say has helped fuel anti-Israel sentiment in the country. This messaging has also contributed to hostility towards the Jewish community. At recent solidarity rallies held in Pakistan over the Gaza conflict, the rhetoric has largely focused on condemning Israel.

In recent months, several high-profile meetings and rallies have been held in Pakistan, with leaders and representatives linked to Hamas, Lashkar and Jaish taking part. Officials say the speeches at these gatherings have largely centred on a narrative of Muslim victimhood, with speakers drawing misleading comparisons between the situation in Gaza and Kashmir.

The experts say that what is more worrisome is that this is not just a nexus between a couple of terror groups. It very much has the blessing of the Pakistani establishment, and the meeting between Pakistan’s envoy to Qatar, Lt. Gen. (R) Muhammad Aamer and Basem Naim, a senior Hamas official at Doha last year is proof of the same.

During the meeting, both emphasised that the struggles in Kashmir and Gaza are the same. The research paper argues that in addition to waging a battle with the Indian army, it is highly likely that the use of drones and gliders can be repeated in Kashmir as well. This was witnessed during the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas.

–IANS

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