Description:
Jaish-e-Mohammed? also known as the
Army of Mohammed,
Khudamul Islam, and
Tehrik ul-Furqaan among other names?is an extremist group based in
Pakistan. It was founded by
Masood Azhar in early 2000 upon his release from prison in
India. The group?s aim is to unite Kashmir with
Pakistan and to expel foreign troops from
Afghanistan; it has openly declared war against the
United States.
Pakistan outlawed
JEM in 2002. By 2003,
JEM had splintered into Khuddam ul-Islam (KUI), headed by
Azhar, and Jamaat ul-Furqan (JUF), led by
Abdul Jabbar.
Abdul Jabbar was detained for suspected involvement in the December 2003 assassination attempts against
President Pervez Musharraf, but was released from Pakistani
custody in August 2004.
Pakistan banned KUI and JUF in November 2003.
Jaish-e-Mohammed continues to operate openly in parts of
Pakistan despite a 2002 ban on its activities. Since
Masood Azhar?s release in 2000,
JEM has conducted many fatal
terrorist attacks including a
suicide bombing of the
Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly building in
Srinagar in October 2001 that killed more than 30. In July 2004 Pakistani authorities arrested a
JEM member wanted in connection with the 2002 abduction and murder of US journalist
Daniel Pearl. In 2006
JEM claimed responsibility for a number of attacks, including the killing of several Indian police officials in the Indian-administered Kashmir capital of
Srinagar.
JEM has at least several hundred armed supporters located in
Pakistan,
India?s southern Kashmir and
Doda regions, and in the Kashmir Valley. Supporters are mostly Pakistanis and Kashmiris, but also include Afghans and Arab veterans of the Afghan war against the Soviets. The group uses light and heavy machine guns, assault rifles, mortars, improvised explosive devices, and rocket-propelled grenades in its attacks.
In June 2008,
JEM was reported to be resolving its differences with other Pakistani extremist groups and shifting its focus, together with
Lashkar-e-Tayyiba, from Kashmir to
Afghanistan in order to step up attacks against US and
Coalition forces.
Observations: Activities
Jaish-e-Mohammed continues to operate openly in parts of
Pakistan despite President
Musharraf's 2002 ban on its activities. The group is well-funded, and is said to have tens of thousands of followers who support attacks against Indian targets, the Pakistani Government, and
sectarian minorities. Since
Masood Azhar?s 2000 release from Indian
custody in exchange for 155 hijacked
Indian Airlines hostages,
JEM has conducted many fatal
terrorist attacks in the area.
JEM continues to claim responsibility for several suicide car bombings in Kashmir, including a suicide attack on the
Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly building in
Srinagar in October 2001 that killed more than 30. The
Indian Government has publicly implicated the
JEM, along with
Lashkar e-Tayyiba, for the December 2001 attack on the Indian Parliament that killed nine and injured 18. Pakistani authorities suspect that
JEM members may have been involved in the 2002 anti-Christian attacks in
Islamabad,
Murree, and
Taxila, which killed two Americans.
Pakistan has implicated elements of
JEM in the two assassination attempts against President
Musharraf in December 2003. In July 2004, Pakistani authorities arrested a
JEM member wanted in connection with the 2002 abduction and murder of U.S. journalist reporter
Daniel Pearl.
Strength
JEM currently has at least several hundred armed supporters, including a large cadre of former
HUM members, located in
Pakistan and in
India?s southern Kashmir and
Doda regions and in the Kashmir valley. Supporters are mostly Pakistanis and Kashmiris, but also include Afghans and Arab veterans of the Afghan war. The group uses light and heavy machine guns, assault rifles, mortars, improvised explosive devices, and rocket-propelled grenades.
Location/Area of Operation
Pakistan and Kashmir. The
JEM maintained training camps in
Afghanistan until the autumn of 2001.
External Aid
Most of the
JEM?s cadre and material resources have been drawn from the Pakistani militant groups
Harakat ul-Jihad-i-Islami (HUJI) and the Harakat ul-Mujahedin (
HUM). The
JEM had close ties to Afghan Arabs, the
Taliban, and other Sunni extremist groups in
Pakistan such as
Lashkar e-Tayyiba,
Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, and Sipahi-e-Sahaba
Pakistan.
Usama bin Ladin is suspected of giving funding to the
JEM, which also collects funds through
donation requests in magazines and pamphlets. In anticipation of asset seizures by the Pakistani Government,
JEM withdrew funds from bank accounts and invested in legal businesses, such as commodity trading, real estate, and production of consumer goods.