Counterterrorism Blog

I just published one in depth report in Jamestown Foundation's Militant Leadership Monitor on Azam Cheema, LeT's intelligence chief, explosive trainer, jihadi recruiter and strategist who headed India operation.

"A Portrait of Azam Cheema: LeT’s India Strategist," Militant Leadership Monitor, Vol. I (11), November 2010.

Excerpt

Mohammed Azam Cheema (a.k.a. Baba/Babaji) is widely regarded as the “number three” of Lashkar-e-Taiba’s (LeT) anti-Indian operations. Azam Cheema has masterminded several high-profile attacks against India over the years from his safe haven in the dusty city of Bahawalpur in Pakistan’s southern Punjab Province on the edge of the Cholistan Desert.

A militant strategist with years of deadly experience under his belt, Azam Cheema’s finger prints can be found on the majority of the LeT’s attacks on Indian soil prior to the November 26, 2008, Mumbai attacks. The Mumbai commuter train blast, however, remains his biggest operation so far. He always wanted to perpetrate several spectacular terror attacks in India, especially targeting major establishments by imparting jihadi training and pumping arms and ammunitions into Indian territory. Cheema’s in-depth knowledge of India’s vital installations and terrain coupled with a keen eye to assess the country’s vulnerabilities makes him a grand asset for Lashkar-e-Taiba despite his temporary quiescence.

For Complete Article Visit Jamestown's Website