Pahalgam attack: Days after the three terrorists involved in the dastardly Pahalgam attack in Jammu and Kashmir were eliminated under Operation Mahadev, security agencies have gathered documents, including biometric data, confirming that they were Pakistani nationals, officials said on Monday.
As per the evidence collected, none of the slain terrorists were locals, the officials confirmed, reported PTI.
The documents collected by the security agencies that helped officials confirm the Pakistani nationality of the terrorists include:
Not just the voter slips and other documents, personal items were also discovered that offered more clues to their identities — including candy wrappers from 'CandyLand' and 'ChocoMax', both popular Pakistani brands made in Karachi.
Officials also said that the post-encounter investigation, including ballistics weapon-to-cartridge match and statements of two detained Kashmiri helpers, further corroborated the terrorists' involvement in the Pahalgam attack.
The slain terrorists were identified as Suleman Shah alias "Faizal Jatt", an A-category terrorist, mastermind and lead shooter; his close associate Abu Hamza alias 'Afghan', an A-grade commander and the second gunman; and Yasir alias 'Jibran', also an A-grade commander and the third gunman.
All three slain terrorists had their addresses in Kasur district's Changa Manga and Koiyan village near Rawalakot, Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
The officials said a micro-SD recovered from a damaged sat-phone contained the NADRA biometric records (fingerprints, facial template, family tree) of all three men, which helped trace their addresses to those regions.
While speaking at the Lok Sabha last week, Home Minister Amit Shah said that Operation Mahadev involved the questioning of around 1,055 individuals within a span of over three hours.
"Based on the inputs gathered, composite sketches were prepared. Subsequently, on June 22, two individuals — Bashir and Parvez — were identified as those who had harboured the terrorists,” said Shah.
