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Operation Sindoor briefing: How Pakistan brought 26/11 plotter Sajid Mir 'back to life'

Operation Sindoor briefing: How Pakistan brought 26/11 plotter Sajid Mir 'back to life'

Anmol Singla May 7, 2025, 14:38:26 IST

Once declared dead by Pakistan, 26/11 mastermind Sajid Mir was suddenly ‘found alive’ and arrested in 2022. His mention in the Operation Sindoor briefing sheds light on Pakistan’s duplicity in tackling terror and its attempts to dodge global scrutiny

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Operation Sindoor briefing: How Pakistan brought 26/11 plotter Sajid Mir 'back to life'
Sajid Mir is widely known as the chief planner of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. Image/FBI

In the wake of India’s precision air strikes on nine terror-linked sites across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) in the early hours of May 7, the re-emergence of Sajid Mir — a name long associated with global terror — has drawn sharp attention.

During the media briefing that followed the strikes — dubbed ‘Operation Sindoor’, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri highlighted Pakistan’s continuing duplicity in sheltering terrorists.

Central to his remarks was the extraordinary case of Sajid Mir, the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) operative once declared dead, only to reappear under international pressure.

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The strikes came as a direct retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam attack that killed 26 people.

Addressing the press, Misri highlighted Pakistan’s “long track record of perpetrating cross-border terror in India” and pointed to its international reputation as a haven for terrorists. He cited the case of Sajid Mir as a prime example of Pakistan’s habitual deception on terrorism.

“The Sajid Mir case, in which this terrorist was declared dead and then, in response to international pressure, brought back to life, found alive and arrested, is the most glaring example,” Misri said.

India’s foreign office used the opportunity to underline Islamabad’s continued failure to act meaningfully against high-profile terrorists despite repeated demands from international bodies like the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

Who is Sajid Mir?

Sajid Mir, a Pakistani national born in either 1976 or 1978 in Lahore, is known globally as the chief architect of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks that killed over 170 people.

A senior Lashkar-e-Taiba figure, Mir was responsible for managing the terror group’s international operations and was once described by Indian intelligence as “the most dangerous man in Pakistan.”

He first gained global infamy for recruiting David Coleman Headley, the American operative who conducted reconnaissance for the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.

According to the FBI, Mir even instructed Headley to change his name from Daood Gilani and suggested he open an immigration office in Mumbai to maintain his cover.

After the attacks, Mir was indicted in the United States in 2011. He was added to the US Treasury Department’s Specially Designated Nationals list in 2012 and remains on the FBI’s Most Wanted list with a $5 million bounty on his head.

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Sajid Mir FBI warrant
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation, USA

The US also sought his designation as a global terrorist at the United Nations, but the proposal was blocked by China in 2023.

Despite his notoriety, Pakistan long claimed that Mir did not exist — then later alleged he was dead.

However, French magistrate Jean-Louis Bruguière confirmed Mir’s existence and military ties in 2009, stating he was a regular officer in the Pakistan Army.

In 2012, Indian national Sayed Zabiuddin Ansari, handler of the 26/11 attackers, revealed during interrogation that Mir had even visited Mumbai in 2005 under a fake identity and passport and created a miniature model of the Taj Mahal Hotel to prepare the terrorists.

How Mir was brought back from the dead by Pakistan

Pakistan’s denial of Mir’s presence persisted until mounting international scrutiny and pressure from FATF forced a change.

In 2022, in a dramatic U-turn, Pakistan arrested Mir and convicted him in a Lahore anti-terrorism court for terror financing. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison and fined PKR 420,000.

Pakistan reported this arrest to the FATF, hoping to strengthen its case for removal from the grey list. As Misri noted, this case became emblematic of how Pakistan “wilfully misleads the world and international forums” to avoid meaningful accountability.

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Even after his conviction, the controversy around Sajid Mir did not die down. In 2023, reports emerged that Mir had been hospitalised and placed on a ventilator, allegedly due to poisoning in jail.

This incident triggered speculation that the Pakistani state might be staging another cover-up or using health issues as a ploy to sidestep international pressure.

Willie Brigitte, a convicted French terrorist and former associate of Mir, has gone on record to confirm that Mir operated freely in Pakistan and enjoyed protection from the army.

He also testified that Mir orchestrated a failed terror plot in Australia in 2003, for which Brigitte was later sentenced in France.

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With inputs from agencies

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Inhaling global affairs on a daily basis, Anmol likes to cover stories that intrigue him, especially around history, climate change, polo and even the politically-charged election cycles around the world. He has far too many disparate interests with a constant itch for travel. You can follow him on X (_anmol_singla) & please feel free to reach out to him at anmol.singla@nw18.com for tips, feedback and travel recommendations. see more

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