Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), meaning "Army of Mohammed," is a Pakistan-based Sunni Islamist extremist militant group active in Kashmir and India. It is classified as a terrorist organization by India, the United States, and the United Nations.
The group was founded in March 2000 by Maulana Masood Azhar in Bahawalpur, Pakistan, following his release from an Indian jail on December 31, 1999. Azhar, a former leader of Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HuM), was freed in exchange for 155 hostages from the hijacked Indian Airlines flight IC 814. JeM's primary objective is to separate Jammu and Kashmir from India and integrate it into Pakistan under a radical interpretation of Sharia law.
JeM operates by conducting terrorist attacks, primarily targeting Indian security personnel, bases, convoys, and government buildings, often using tactics like suicide bombings and car bombs. The group has been responsible for major attacks, including the October 2001 attack on the Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly, the December 2001 attack on the Indian Parliament, the 2016 Pathankot airbase attack, and the February 14, 2019, Pulwama attack. JeM maintains close operational ties with other militant groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and is a member of the United Jihad Council (UJC), an umbrella organization of Kashmir-focused militant groups. It has also had links with the Taliban and Al-Qaeda.
In terms of recent changes, JeM's headquarters, the Markaz Subhanallah complex in Bahawalpur, Pakistan, was reportedly damaged during India's Operation Sindoor in May 2025. However, intelligence reports from August 2026 indicate that the complex has been fully rebuilt and is operational again, with alleged financial support from the Pakistani government and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). Furthermore, in September 2026, Pakistan listed JeM chief Masood Azhar as a fugitive and raised the bounty on him to PKR 70 lakh ahead of a Financial Action Task Force (FATF) review.