Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), the Pakistan-based terror organisation, has announced the formation of its first women’s wing, “Jamaat-ul-Mominaat”. The development was revealed through a letter issued in the name of JeM chief and UN-designated terrorist Maulana Masood Azhar. Recruitment for the new unit reportedly began on Wednesday, October 8, at Markaz Usman-o-Ali in Bahawalpur, Pakistan.
According to the letter circulated by JeM’s propaganda outlet Al-Qalam Media, Jamaat-ul-Mominaat will function as the women’s brigade of the outfit.
Sadiya Azhar to Lead New Wing
WION, citing unnamed sources, reported that the women’s wing will be led by Sadiya Azhar, the sister of Masood Azhar. Her husband Yusuf Azhar was killed during Operation Sindoor on May 7, when Indian forces targeted JeM’s Markaz Subhanallah base.
Recruitment drives are reportedly focused on the wives of JeM commanders and economically vulnerable women studying at the group’s centres in Bahawalpur, Karachi, Muzaffarabad, Kotli, Haripur, and Mansehra.
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Notably, the Indian military had targeted JeM’s headquarters in Bahawalpur, southern Punjab, during Operation Sindoor. Following the strike, JeM commander Ilyas Kashmiri claimed in a video released last month that several members of Masood Azhar’s family were killed in the attack.
JeM Breaks Tradition by Including Women
Traditionally, JeM, a Deobandi-rooted terror organisation, had barred women from joining armed jihad or participating in combat roles. However, after the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor, the group appears to have revised its policy. Intelligence inputs indicate that Masood Azhar and his brother Talha al-Saif jointly approved the inclusion of women in JeM’s operational structure.
Similar women’s wings have been previously deployed by terror outfits like ISIS, Boko Haram, Hamas, and LTTE. Organisations such as JeM, Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) had largely avoided this approach.
Post-Operation Sindoor, several Pakistan-based terror organisations, including JeM, HM, and LeT, have reportedly shifted base to Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province. In an attempt to rebuild their destroyed infrastructure, handlers are reportedly seeking public donations.
