Pulwama Attack Mastermind Burhan Hamza Shot Dead in PoK

Arjumand Gulzar, alias Burhan Hamza, a designated terrorist and the key mastermind behind the 2019 Pulwama terror attack on a CRPF convoy, has been shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (Pok), officials said here on Thursday.

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Hamza, who was operating under heavy ISI-vetted security, was ambushed in Muzaffarabad.

He was critically injured and airlifted to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Rawalpindi, where he succumbed to his injuries, the officials said.

The assailants managed to flee the scene before local security forces could intervene, they added.

Originally from Khar in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district, Hamza was once associated with Al Badr, moved to Al Baraq, and maintained a close alliance with Pakistan's espionage agency, the ISI, after an acrimonious exit from the outfit.

He was declared a designated terrorist under UAPA for his involvement in orchestrating the February 14, 2019, suicide terror attack conducted by Pakistan-based terrorist organisation Jaish-e-Mohammad, on a CRPF convoy in Pulwama, which killed 40 personnel.