DG ISPR Accuses India of Another False Flag Operation

RAWALPINDI: (Special Reporter) – Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry has accused India of staging what he described as another “false flag” operation, claiming that Indian forces wrongly identified a retired Pakistan Army Special Services Group (SSG) soldier as a militant killed in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

Addressing a press conference in Rawalpindi, the DG ISPR said the Indian Army’s Chinar Corps announced on social media on the night of September 29 that it had conducted an operation in the Korag area and killed a suspected militant.

He said Indian authorities initially identified the deceased as Muhammad Asif, also known as Hashim Musa, and linked him to Lashkar-e-Taiba. Indian reports later claimed that the man was a former Pakistan Army SSG soldier and Havildar.

The DG ISPR rejected the claim and presented retired Havildar Muhammad Asif before the media, saying the former soldier was alive.

Muhammad Asif told reporters that he belonged to Pindi Gheb in Attock district and had received several calls from friends after reports circulated on social media claiming that he had been killed by Indian forces.

He said he was at home when the reports emerged and was surprised to learn that he had allegedly been killed.

Asif said he retired from the SSG in 2023 after serving in the Pakistan Army and currently works for a private security company in Rawalpindi. He added that he remained willing to serve Pakistan whenever required.

He rejected the allegations linking him to militant activities and described the reports about his alleged death and identity as fabricated.

The DG ISPR’s briefing came after Indian authorities and media outlets gave different details about the identity and background of the man killed during the operation. Pakistan has presented the sequence of claims as evidence supporting its allegation of a “false flag” operation, while Indian authorities have maintained that the slain man was Muhammad Asif alias Hashim Musa and an alleged Lashkar-e-Taiba militant.