Zakir Rashid Bhat or Zakir Musa was a former Hizbul Mujahideen commander, and founder of the Indian wing of Al-Qaeda, Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind in 2017. Musa split with the political objectives of the Hizbul Mujahideen for Kashmir in favour of Al-Qaeda's radical religious objectives of imposing Shariah in the region. He was killed by Indian security forces at Tral area of south Kashmir in May 2019, as the "most wanted militant of India".
Early life
Zakir Rashid Bhat was born in Noorpora, Tral in South Kashmir. His father was Abdul Rashid Bhat, a senior engineer working with the state government. Musa studied at Noor Public School up to Class 10, and then attended the governmenthigher secondary institution at Noorpora where he passed his 12th in 2011. Musa attended Ram Dev Jindal College, in Chandigarh but left in 2013 due to unknown reasons and joined the militant group Hizbul Mujahideen.
Hizbul Mujahideen
Musa joined the Sayeed Salahudeen's group Hizbul Mujahideen in 2013. He became the commander of the Hizbul Mujahideen after the death of Burhan Muzaffar Wani; discontent over Wani's death led to the 2016 Kashmir Unrest. In August 2016, Musa issued his first video in Kashmir. He has been described as "part of a new generation of tech-savvy, well-educated militants" who became involved in the conflict after the 2010 Kashmir unrest. In 2017, Musa threatened to behead the Hurriyat leaders for calling the Kashmir conflict a political, rather than a religious, objective to establish Islamic rule; he warned them not to become a "thorn" in the imposition of Shariah in Kashmir. Hizbul Mujahideen immediately disassociated itself from Musa's statement, and Musa, in response, quit the organization. In 2017, he left the group after it refused to back his public statements supporting his argument that the struggle in Kashmir was for Islam, and not for political purposes.
Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind
In July 2017, the Global Islamic Media Front claimed that Zakir Musa had been named the head of Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind, a newly created cell of Al-Qaeda. After the killing of militant commander Abu Dujana and Arif Lelhari, a statement purported to be from Musa was released. The statement claimed that Dujana and Lelhari had joined Al-Qaeda and helped establish it. Officials stated that the voice of the message matched those of the earlier audio clips by Musa, though the state's DGP S.P. Vaid stated there was no way of authenticating the clips even though there were reports that Dujana and Musa were close at the time. Meanwhile, an audio-clip circulated on media that claimed to be the last message from Dujana and Arif during their encounter. Two voices claim allegiance to Al-Qaeda; however, no gunfire is heard and the authenticity of the clip was not proven. It was reported on 12 August 2017 that Musa and his aide evaded an Indian Army and JK Police operation with locals, pelting security forces with stones in Noorpora Village in Tral. In an audio message released on 31 August 2017, Musa attacked Pakistan for "betraying Kashmir jihad." He also stated that the objective of Al-Qaeda's Kashmir cell was to clear it from the Pakistan government, army and their sponsored agents. He also threatened to "liberate India" from the Hindus. Hizbul put up posters in Soporein September 2017, which held him responsible for helping Indian security forces kill Kashmiris, asking people to chase him to death and calling him an "Indian agent."
Musa, like his predecessor Burhan Wani, asked the Kashmiri Pandits to return to their homeland. He stated during a video released after the killing of Burhan Wani in 2016, “We request Kashmiri Pandits to return to their homes. We take the responsibility of their protection. But he had given no proof for that
Death and aftermath
Zakir Rashid Bhat, was killed after an 11-hour operation. Musa was killed by Indian security forces in an encounter in Tral, South Kashmir on 23 May 2019. The Indian authorities closed the Internet on mobile phone network to manage anti-India protests; curfews were also imposed across much of the Kashmir Valley, including in the main city ofSrinagar, and schools and colleges were closed. At the time of his death, the BBC News described him as "India's most wanted militant."
