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JeM reopens pool at Bahawalpur terror base two months after Operation Sindoor strikes
An official said that though the reopening of the pool might be a minor development, it attracts poor children from the area who later become the recruits.
Jaish-e-Mohammed's (JeM) Jama-e-Masjid Subhan Allah seminary in Bahawalpur, Pakistan, which was targeted during Operation Sindoor, has reopened its on-campus swimming pool for classes.
The resumption of classes comes nearly two months after the Indian Air Force struck the JeM's headquarters in the Punjab province on May 7 in retaliation for the Pahalgam terror attack.
Around 600 students who study at the seminary have resumed their regular activities. The move also suggests that the JeM is not trying to shut down the operations even after the attacks during Operation Sindoor, The Print reported.
Read More: Why India zeroed in on hubs of terror
The complex has served as a hub for terror indoctrination and training, including regular weapons handling, physical drills, and religious instruction for recruits.
Four JeM terrorists - Muhammad Umar Farooq, Talha Rasheed Alvi, Muhammad Ismail Alvi, and Rasheed Billa - who were involved in the 2019 Pahalgam terror attack, were photographed at the pool before heading to Kashmir.
An Indian government official said that though the reopening of the pool might be a minor development, it attracts poor children from around the area who later become the recruits for the terrorist organisation, the report said.
"It is also a signal that the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate has no intention of shutting down terror-linked groups, despite the war," the official reportedly said.
Read More: Operation Sindoor: Satellite images show damage at terror site in Pakistan's Bahawalpur
The JeM leadership has become increasingly public ever since tensions between India and Pakistan in the wake of Operation Sindoor, with JeM's chief Masood Azhar vowing in his speeches to destroy the Ayodhya Ram Mandir.
All about Jama-e-Masjid Subhan Allah seminary
Markaz Subhan Allah, functioning since 2015, serves as the operational headquarters of the Jaish-e-Mohammed and is the main centre of the JeM for training and indoctrination.
It was also associated with the JeM’s planning that led to the 2019 Pulwama attack. The seminary comprises residences of JeM chief Maulana Masood Azhar, de-facto chief Mufti Abdul Rauf Asghar, Maulana Ammar and other family members of Masood Azhar.
During Operation Sindoor, the Jaish-e-Mohammed's stronghold was targeted in the Indian strikes, with visuals from the site later showing heaps of debris lying all around.
The Jamia Masjid Subhan Allah Seminary was among the nine terror camps targeted during the operation, with the security officials saying that over 80 terrorists were killed in the strikes. The Bahawalpur seminary was later closed after the Indian strikes on May 7.
