Who are TRF: Pakistani outfit responsible for Pahalgam terror attack, now US-designated terrorist group
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Who are TRF: Pakistani outfit responsible for Pahalgam terror attack, now US-designated terrorist group")
TRF claimed responsibility for Pahalgam terror attack Photograph: (PTI)
The Resistance Front (TRF) is an offshoot of the Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). The group reportedly came into being after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019
In a big win for India, the US Department of State on Thursday (July 17) designated The Resistance Front (TRF), an offshoot of the banned Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and group responsible for April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, as a terrorist organisation.
"Today, the Department of State is adding The Resistance Front (TRF) as a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT). TRF, a Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT) front and proxy, claimed responsibility for the April 22, 2025, Pahalgam attack which killed 26 civilians. This was the deadliest attack on civilians in India since the 2008 Mumbai attacks conducted by LeT. TRF has also claimed responsibility for several attacks against Indian security forces, including most recently in 2024," the statement read.
Who are The Resistance Front (TRF)?
The Resistance Front (TRF) is an offshoot of the Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). The group reportedly came into being after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) banned TRF, all its forms and front groups in January 2023. The MHA also declared the TRF a terrorist group under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).
The TRF is reportedly founded by founder Sheikh Sajjad Gul also known as Sheikh Sajjad and its leaders include LeT operatives Sajid Jatt and Salim Rehmani. Sajjad Gul was designated as a terrorist by the Indian government in 2022. Gul was also involved in hatching a criminal conspiracy to eliminate journalist Shujaat Bukhari along with two of his personal security officers, at the Press Enclave area of Srinagar on June 14, 2018.
The group came to the fore when J&K Police busted a unit of over ground workers (OGWs) in Sopore and Kupwara. In the past, the group has issued threats to media houses in the Valley for “traitorous acts.” Ahead of the Pahalgam terror attack, this group claimed responsibility for the Z-Morh Tunnel attack in Ganderbal on October 20, 2024. According to 2022 data, out of 172 terrorists that were killed in Jammu and Kashmir, 108 were linked to The Resistance Front.
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“TRF is recruiting youth through online medium for furtherance of terrorist activities and has been also involved in carrying out propaganda on terror activities, recruitment of terrorists, infiltration of terrorists and smuggling of weapons and narcotics from Pakistan into J&K. TRF is involved in psychological operations on social media platforms for inciting people of J&K to join terrorist outfits against the Indian state,” the MHA notification stated about TRF.
The MHA notification also added that “the activities of TRF are detrimental for the national security and sovereignty of India. A large number of cases have been registered against the members/associates of the TRF relating to planning of killing of security personnel and civilians of J&K, co-coordinating and transporting weapons to support proscribed terrorist organisations…”
