Bilawal Bhutto Admits Uncertainty Over Masood Azhar’s Whereabouts, Suggests He ‘May Be in Afghanistan’

Pakistan Unaware of Masood Azhar’s Whereabouts, Believes He May Be in Afghanistan.

In a recent interview with Al Jazeera, Pakistani politician and former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari stated that Islamabad does not know the current location of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar, one of India’s most-wanted terrorists. Bhutto added that Pakistan would be willing to act if credible evidence is provided by New Delhi regarding Azhar’s presence on Pakistani soil.

“If and when the Indian government shares information with us that he is on Pakistani soil, we would be more than happy to arrest him,” Bhutto said, suggesting that India had not yet provided such actionable intelligence.

Masood Azhar has been linked to several high-profile terrorist attacks in India, including the 2001 Parliament attack, the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, the 2016 Pathankot airbase strike, and the 2019 Pulwama bombing. He was declared a global terrorist by the United Nations Security Council in 2019. Notably, Azhar was released from Indian custody in 1999 during the Kandahar hijacking incident, in which Indian Airlines flight IC-814 was hijacked and taken to Afghanistan.

India has consistently pressed for Azhar’s extradition, along with that of Lashkar-e-Taiba founder Hafiz Saeed, accusing Pakistan of providing safe haven to internationally designated terrorists. Pakistan has repeatedly denied these allegations.

‘Hafiz Saeed is Not Free, Masood Azhar Likely in Afghanistan’
Responding to a report by The New York Times, Bhutto disputed claims that Hafiz Saeed is freely roaming in Pakistan. “That’s not accurate. That’s factually not correct. Hafiz Saeed is in the custody of the Pakistani state,” he said.

Addressing the issue of Masood Azhar, Bhutto added, “We have been unable to arrest or locate him. Given his background and links to the Afghan jihad, we believe he may be in Afghanistan.”

His remarks come amid ongoing scrutiny of Pakistan’s counterterrorism efforts, with India and the international community repeatedly calling for concrete action against terror outfits operating in the region.