SRINAGAR: Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar, also the mastermind of the Pathankot attack, gave instructions to his outfit members for the suicide bombing on the CRPF convoy in Pulwama from the Army base hospital in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, where he is being treated for a terminal illness for the last four months.

His illness has ensured his absence in the last six key meetings of the United Jihad Council (UJC), the Pakistan-sponsored umbrella outfit of the jehadi groups it uses against India. However, eight days before his men prepared for Pulwama terror attack, Azhar released an audio message in a feeble voice to the terror outfit's members . In the audio message, Azhar can be heard asking his men to avenge the death of his nephew Usman, who was killed by security forces in October last year in Tral. "There is nothing more pleasurable than death in this war," Azhar is heard saying in the tape. He keeps referring how he is braving the chill to egg on men to wage a war against India .

" Koi inhe dashatganj kahega, koi inhe nikamma kahega, koi inhe pagal kahega, koi inhe aman ke liye khatra kaha ....(Some people will call these terrorists savages, insane or danger to peace but let them go and disrupt...across the border)" he says.

Azhar did not share his plans for the latest attack with other constituents of the UJC. Instead Azhar secretly deputed his other nephew Mohammaed Umair and Abdul Rashid Ghazi to use these tapes to brainwash youth in the Valley and motivate them for a fidayeen attack with IED explosives.

"None of the JeM men would come forward. They are all hiding in south Kashmir with three ring leaders - Umair, Ismail and Abdul Rashid Ghazi," said a top intelligence official in Kashmir. As many as 60 Jaish terrorists are operating in Kashmir of which 35 are from Pakistan and the rest are locals.

As a result of his absence, the deliberations of UJC have been presided over by by Hizbul Mujahideen commander Syed Salahuddin. The last one being on January 19 in which new terror launchpads for infiltration were discussed. Another meeting was held at Town Hall in Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) to discuss IED-based terror attacks, said intelligence sources.

It was attended by Sayeed Usman Shah (senior commander) and Imtiyaz Alam (deputy chief ) of HM; launching chief in Jhelum Valley Dr Abu Khalid; Sheikh Jameelul Rehman, chief of Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen; Bilal Kashmiri, chief of Jaish-e-Mohammad; and Brigadier Zubair of ISI .



In Video: Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar gave instruction for Pulwama attack from Pak Army hospital