Pakistan terror groups Lashkar, Jaish may use Nepal route to target India, warns Nepalese official

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, July 11, 2025: Pakistan-based terrorist groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) pose serious risks to India and could use Nepal as a transit route, warned Sunil Bahadur Thapa, Advisor to the President of Nepal.

Thapa made the remarks during a high-level seminar organised by the Nepal Institute for International Cooperation and Engagement (NIICE) in Kathmandu on July 9. The event focused on addressing terrorism threats in South Asia and saw participation from key regional experts and policymakers.

Speakers at the seminar noted that terror attacks in India often have spillover effects on Nepal, undermining regional peace and stability. They pointed to Pakistan’s support for terrorism as a major hurdle to the effectiveness of SAARC and broader regional integration.

The seminar urged stronger counter-terrorism cooperation, including stricter action against money laundering, enhanced intelligence sharing, and joint patrolling of borders with India. It also called on regional actors to avoid applying double standards while tackling terrorism.

India’s recent Operation Sindoor, in which the Indian armed forces struck nine terror camps in Pakistan and PoK, was cited as a forceful and effective response to cross-border threats.

At the same time, participants were reminded that Nepal remains vulnerable due to incidents like the IC-814 hijacking and the LeT-led Pahalgam attack that killed 26 civilians, including one Nepali national.

Concluding the discussion, participants stressed the urgent need for a dedicated regional mechanism to combat terrorism in a unified and effective manner.

Why Nepal Is Considered A Transit Risk

India and Nepal share a 1,751 km-long open border, which operates with minimal security checks. This porous boundary makes it easier for terrorists to infiltrate India, often using forged Nepalese documents to conceal their identities.

Over the years, several operatives from Pakistan-based outfits like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed have been arrested while attempting to enter India through Nepal.

A notable example is the 1999 hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight IC-814. The aircraft, which was en route from Kathmandu to New Delhi, was hijacked after the perpetrators boarded with weapons– exposing serious lapses in security at Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport.

Headquarters and training facilities of the LeT and JeM were targeted during India’s precision strikes under Operation Sindoor on May 7 in Pakistan and PoK. These two terror groups have carried out several attacks in India, including the Parliament attack in 2001, the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, the 2016 Pathankot Air Base Attack and the 2019 Pulwama terror attack.

The Resistance Front (TRF), an offshoot of the LeT, had claimed responsibility for the Pahalgam attack, where terrorists shot down 26 tourists in the picturesque resort town in Jammu and Kashmir.