MUZAFFARABAD, May 21 — Hamza Burhan, a highly ranked Al-Badr commander linked by security analysts to the planning of the 2019 Pulwama convoy strike, has reportedly been shot dead by unknown assailants in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Unconfirmed regional media dispatches emerging on Thursday indicated that Burhan, whose administrative legal name was Arjumand Gulzar Dar, was targeted under unclear circumstances in the capital city of Muzaffarabad. Local accounts stated that the operative sustained multiple fatal bullet wounds during the targeted ambush, after which the unidentified attackers successfully managed to retreat from the scene.
The deceased commander, originally a resident of the Kharbatpora pocket within the Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir, had reportedly crossed the border line in 2017 before advancing through the administrative ranks of the banned Al-Badr insurgent formation. Given his extensive involvement in regional operations, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs had formally designated him an individual terrorist under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act in 2022.
The 2019 Pulwama strike remains one of the most critical security flashpoints on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway, where a major explosion targeted a Central Reserve Police Force transit convoy, resulting in the loss of 40 security personnel. While the news of Burhan’s elimination has circulated widely within regional journalistic circles, official spokespersons from Indian national security agencies and Pakistani administrative departments maintained that formal verification of the identity remains pending.
