In a decisive military move following the April 22, 2025, Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 civilians, India launched Operation Sindoor, a meticulously coordinated tri-service response targeting key terrorist infrastructure across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu & Kashmir (PoJK). The operation destroyed nine strategic terror camps operated by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) — two groups long linked to cross-border terror and backed by Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
This detailed report profiles each camp’s location, operational role, and affiliations, offering rare insights into how deep-rooted and militarily embedded the terror infrastructure had become on Pakistani soil.
1. Athmuqam Camp – Neelum Valley, PoK
Affiliated Groups: Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT)
Pakistani Involvement: Direct ISI logistical support. Pakistani military units frequently conduct joint drills in the area to mask militant activities.
Activities: Served as a training and logistics hub for LeT recruits. Due to its proximity to the Line of Control (LoC), it played a crucial role in launching infiltrators into the Kupwara and Gurez sectors in North Kashmir.
Facilities: Tunnels, weapons caches, surveillance posts.
2. Kel Camp – Neelum Valley, PoK
Affiliated Groups: Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM)
Pakistani Involvement: Pakistani Army permits the free movement of militants and provides cover fire during LoC crossings.
Activities: Specialized in winter survival and infiltration training. The camp also held indoctrination sessions for suicide bombers.
Facilities: Barracks, winter warfare training modules, encrypted communications units.
3. Dudhnial Camp – Kupwara Sector, PoK
Affiliated Groups: Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT)
Pakistani Involvement: Frequent ISI visits for indoctrination and operational planning.
Activities: Used as a launch pad for foreign militants entering via Afghanistan and Pakistan. It also served as a transit point for arms and narcotics smuggling.
Facilities: Arms depot, underground hideouts, radio towers.
4. Leepa Camp – Leepa Valley, PoK
Affiliated Groups: Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM)
Pakistani Involvement: Operates under the Pakistan Army’s 12th Infantry Division. Movement is heavily restricted with several military checkpoints.
Activities: Functioned as a command center for mid-level JeM operatives. Training included bomb-making and IED placement.
Facilities: Satellite communication stations, drone launch pads, intelligence storage facilities.
5. Kotli Camp – Kotli District, PoK
Affiliated Groups: Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT)
Pakistani Involvement: Located near military cantonments with suspected collaboration from local officers. ISI safe houses were found nearby.
Activities: Used for arms storage and logistical support. It also served as a temporary base for jihadists rotating from southern Punjab.
Facilities: Ammunition bunkers, training dummies, explosives labs.
6. Bagh Camp – Bagh District, PoK
Affiliated Groups: Mixed (LeT & JeM)
Pakistani Involvement: Fully supported by Pakistan’s Frontier Corps. Financial links discovered via hawala networks connected to Pakistan-based charities.
Activities: Focused on the recruitment and indoctrination of teenage fighters from both PoK and Pakistan’s interior.
Facilities: Makeshift classrooms, propaganda media rooms, child soldier training areas.
7. Nikial Camp – Forward Base near LoC, PoK
Affiliated Groups: Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM)
Pakistani Involvement: Actively used by Pakistani Rangers and ISI for cross-border operations targeting Rajouri and Poonch.
Activities: Served as a frontline base for militants, often protected by sniper fire and diversionary shelling from Pakistani posts.
Facilities: Mud bunkers, infiltration tunnels, encrypted mobile networks.
8. Mansehra Camp – Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Affiliated Groups: Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM)
Pakistani Involvement: Operated under full ISI control and guarded by local police and paramilitary units.
Activities: Provided advanced guerrilla and suicide mission training for elite JeM fighters. The camp also ran sessions on psychological warfare and online radicalization.
Facilities: Indoor training zones, explosives laboratories, dark web operations centers.
9. Balakot Camp – Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan (Masood Azhar’s Base)
Affiliated Groups: Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM)
Pakistani Involvement: Rebuilt after India’s 2019 airstrike and operates under complete military protection. Frequently visited by ISI leadership.
Activities: JeM’s strategic headquarters for planning major terror attacks like Pulwama and Pahalgam. Masood Azhar reportedly coordinated new modules from this site.
Facilities: Command bunkers, Afghan Taliban trainers, communications intercept labs.
Conclusion
These terror camps were not isolated incidents of extremism—they were fully integrated into Pakistan’s state-sponsored proxy warfare strategy. They facilitated infiltration, ideological conditioning, weapons stockpiling, and propaganda dissemination, often with direct or tacit backing from Pakistan’s military and intelligence networks.
