New Delhi/Colombo: In a major development following the recent terror attack in Pahalgam, intelligence agencies suspect that the perpetrators may have fled to Colombo, Sri Lanka. Based on credible inputs from Indian intelligence, a high-security search operation was conducted at Colombo International Airport.
The operation targeted passengers on SriLankan Airlines flight UL122 from Chennai. During the searches, six individuals were detained by airport security and local police on suspicion of having links to the Pahalgam incident. They are currently under interrogation.
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Meanwhile, the National Investigation Agency (NIA), which is handling the probe, has intensified its efforts. The agency has questioned two Lashkar-e-Taiba operatives—Nissar Ahmad and Mustaq Hussain—who are currently lodged in Kot Bhalwal Jail in Jammu. Both were earlier arrested in connection with a 2023 terror case in Rajouri.
Preliminary findings by the NIA indicate that the banned Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba, with support from Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI, orchestrated the attack. Investigators believe the operation was planned at Lashkar’s headquarters in Pakistan.
Security has been heightened across key installations in Delhi following the developments, as central agencies continue to track the wider network involved in the attack.