Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) is grappling with an acute leadership crisis, accelerated by the aftermath of Operation Sindoor and a string of mysterious killings of senior operatives, according to intelligence officials. The Pakistan-based terror outfit — whose headquarters in Bahawalpur was razed during the Indian armed forces' strike — has been struggling to reconstitute its command structure, even as ground cadres reportedly wait at launchpads in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

ISI Takes the Helm, but Cannot Fill the Void

According to an Intelligence Bureau (IB) official, Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) has assumed complete operational control over Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and Hizbul Mujahideen, directing the activities of all three outfits and instructing them to operate on a unified front in Jammu and Kashmir.

'Technically, Masood Azhar, Hafiz Saeed and Syed Salahuddin are the chiefs of JeM, LeT and Hizbul Mujahideen, respectively. However, all decisions are taken by the ISI, and these leaders have to report to the spy agency. The ISI has assigned Brigadier Iqbal and Colonel Owaiz to oversee the operations of the three terror outfits,' the official said.

The ISI's direct intervention, however, has not resolved the structural vacuum left by Azhar's effective withdrawal. 'The ISI may have taken complete control, but the agency still cannot fill in the void owing to Azhar's absence,' the official added.

Azhar's Retreat and the Cult of Command

Masood Azhar has stepped back from active leadership, reportedly due to deteriorating health and the personal losses he suffered when his closest family members were killed during Operation Sindoor in May last year. His absence has hollowed out the outfit's ideological core.

Officials describe Azhar as a 'towering personality' with cult status not only within Jaish but across allied terror groups. His personal authority was the primary mechanism keeping the second rung of leadership in check. Without him, disputes over delegation of assignments and control of the outfit have reportedly intensified at internal meetings, with mid-level commanders unwilling to accept the authority of ISI-appointed military officers who, in their view, lack ideological legitimacy.

Mystery Killings: 30 Operatives Dead Since 2020

Compounding the internal strife is a wave of targeted killings. According to officials, at least 30 operatives belonging to Jaish and Lashkar have been killed by unknown gunmen since 2020. Several of those killed held key positions within the outfits, deepening the leadership vacuum further.

The most recent high-profile death involves Muhammad Asim, a Lahore-based operational commander of the Jaish. Asim, his wife Huma Asim, and their son Talha Asim were killed when a heavy trailer rammed their vehicle from behind. Many within JeM and surviving family members reportedly suspect foul play — with some suggesting it may have been an internal hit job linked to financial disputes. Asim was in charge of fundraising, including managing international money pipelines and, according to officials, handling direct financial dealings with Hamas.

Other operatives who died under suspicious circumstances include Shahid Latif — described as the mastermind of the 2016 Pathankot attack — as well as Maulana Salman Azhar and Maulana Raheem Ullah Tariq.

Operation Sindoor's Lasting Impact on JeM

The cracks within Jaish had begun emerging well before India's military operation, but Operation Sindoor dramatically accelerated the disintegration. The destruction of the Jaish headquarters at Bahawalpur eliminated scores of cadres and killed several of Masood Azhar's closest family members, effectively forcing him to the sidelines.

Officials note that the outfit is now left without an ideological mentor at a time when it is simultaneously managing internal power struggles, unexplained killings, and ISI-imposed command structures that its own members do not fully accept. The ground cadres may be positioned at launchpads, but the command architecture above them remains, according to these accounts, deeply fractured.

How the ISI resolves — or fails to resolve — these internal contradictions is likely to determine whether Jaish can mount any coherent threat in the near term.