Overview
- The Ministry of Home Affairs issued a government gazette on Saturday listing 23 individuals based in Pakistan and Pakistan‑occupied Kashmir as 'terrorists' under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
- The notification names senior Jaish‑e‑Mohammad and Lashkar‑e‑Taiba operatives including Masood Ilyas Kashmiri, Mohammad Mussadiq, Abdul Rauf, Firdous Ahmad Bhat and Bilal Ahmad Mir.
- Listing these people raises the total number of individually designated terrorists under the UAPA to 80 and is an administrative step, not a criminal conviction.
- The MHA says the named operatives were involved in recruiting, training, infiltration, drone‑enabled arms smuggling and in past attacks such as the 2016 Nagrota camp strike and the 2022 Sunjwan attack.
- The change builds on a 2019 UAPA amendment that allows naming individuals and could prompt financial freezes, asset seizures and diplomatic pressure on Pakistan while giving investigators tools to disrupt networks and reduce local security threats.