Operation Sindoor has forced Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to fundamentally overhaul the operational structure of terror outfits including Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and Hizbul Mujahideen, according to intelligence assessments. The Indian armed forces' precision strikes on centralised terror infrastructure exposed the vulnerability of single-hub command models, compelling the ISI to disperse training and operations across multiple facilities nationwide.

Iconic Headquarters Rebuilt but Hollowed Out

JeM's headquarters in Bahawalpur and LeT's key training facility in Muridke — both struck during Operation Sindoor — have since been rebuilt, but according to intelligence intercepts, activity at both sites is now described as 'extremely limited or minimal.' An official said the rebuilding was primarily a morale exercise. 'Not rebuilding the structure would have had a telling effect on the already demoralised cadres,' the official said.

The Muridke facility carries particular historical weight. Operatives who carried out the Mumbai 26/11 attacks, the 2005 Delhi bombings, and the 2000 Red Fort attack were all trained there. Cadres of the JeM also used Muridke to train for the 2001 Indian Parliament attack. The rebuilding, officials say, was intended to send a signal to operatives — not to resume full-scale operations.

ISI Directs Dispersal Across Multiple Sites

According to an Intelligence Bureau official, all intercepts gathered during the ISI's rebuilding exercise clearly indicate that the restored facilities will remain symbolic. 'All major attacks will not be executed from the multiple training facilities that have been set up. The ISI has directed them to maintain a very low profile while training at these facilities,' the official said.

The new command centre for these outfits is reportedly based in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), while training facilities are now spread across Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Muzaffarabad, and Rawalakot. The ISI has reportedly set up four to five facilities in each of these locations, with training imparted at various levels. The Hizbul Mujahideen's Markaz Raheel Shahid at Koti in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and the Mehmoona Jaya camp in Sialkot have also been restored with ISI assistance.

Operatives to Be Rotated, Tracking Made Harder

Under the new strategy, operatives will not be stationed at a single hub but will be rotated across facilities to provide broader exposure and complicate surveillance. 'This makes tracking harder for Indian agencies due to constant rotation and movement of the operatives,' an official said. The logic is explicit: even if one facility is targeted in a future Indian operation, terror operations can continue from another camp, limiting the damage of any single strike.

Unified Command, Symbolic Figureheads

Notably, the new dispensation marks a structural shift in how the three outfits operate. All three groups — JeM, LeT, and Hizbul Mujahideen — would reportedly work in coordination, with no organisational division between them. Attacks would be unified in planning and execution. Figures such as Hafiz Saeed, Masood Azhar, and Syed Salahuddin would retain only symbolic and ideological roles, while operational and day-to-day control would be exercised directly by the ISI, reportedly through Brigadier Iqbal and Colonel Owaiz.

This consolidation of ISI's direct control, combined with dispersed infrastructure, signals a more resilient — and harder to disrupt — terror architecture that Indian security agencies will need to contend with going forward.