The Union Home Ministry on Tuesday declared a total of 10 individuals including commanders of Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) and other terrorist outfits involved in terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir "terrorists" under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), officials said.
"Shaukat Ahmed Sheikh, Imtiaz Ahmed Kandu and Basit Ahmed Reshi have been declared terrorists under the UAPA," the Ministry said in a statement.
Besides, under the UAPA, seven other individuals -- Habibullah Malik, Bashir Ahmad Peer, Irshad Ahmed, Rafiq Nai, Zafar Iqbal, Bilal Ahmad Baig and Sheikh Jameel-ur-Rehman have also been declared terrorists.
All of them have links with Lashkar-e-Taiba, Hizbul Mujahideen, Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen, Harkat-ul-Jihad-e-Islami, and Jammu and Kashmir Islamic Front.
Sheikh a.k.a. Shaukat Mochi hails from Jammu and Kashmir's Baramulla district, and is said to be currently residing in Pakistan.
He is the 'Chief Launching Commander' of HM, and is tasked with spreading terrorist activities in the region by coordinating in infiltration, and recruiting terrorists through his network of allies in Kashmir.
Basit Reshi, also from Baramulla, was last reported to be residing in Pakistan.
Charged with coordinating targeted killings, he had planned and executed a terrorist attack on the police post of Baba Ali Raina Mazar in Sopore on August 18, 2015 which led to two fatalities.
Reshi has been involved in arranging arms and ammunition from across the border, and motivating the youth to join terrorist activities, officials said.
Imtiaz Kandu a.k.a. Sajad a.k.a. Fayaz Sopore, originally from Jammu and Kashmir's Sopore, is currently residing in Pakistan.
According to officials, he has been involved in providing financial aid to terrorists, supplying arms and ammunition and smuggling narcotics.
Kandu has allegedly coordinated attacks on security forces and civilians, which have resulted in several fatalities.
Habibullah Malik a.k.a. Sajid Jatt belongs to Pakistan Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT)/The Resistance Front (TRF).
Officials said he was one of the key handlers of the terrorists that attacked Indian troops at Bhata Dhurian in Poonch district. He had also been the mastermind in many terrorist attacks in the Kashmir Valley.
Bashir Ahmed Peer a.k.a. Imtiaz Alam belongs to Jammu and Kashmir, and is currently residing in Pakistan's Rawalpindi.
He is the launching commander of Hizbul Mujahideen.
He was tasked with providing logistics to HM terrorists, especially for infiltrating into Kupwara, and coordinating with other terrorist groups for terrorist activities in Jammu and Kashmir.
Irshad Ahmed a.k.a. Idris, currently living in Islamabad, is also the launching commander of HM who has been involved in its launching activities, coordinating the terrorist organisation's training operations.
Rafiq Nai a.k.a. Sultan is also living in Pakistan and is the launching commander of Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen/Jammu and Kashmir Ghaznavi Force.
According to officials, he is involved in arms smuggling and infiltration of trained Pakistani terrorists into Indian territory to revive terrorist acts in Jammu and Kashmir.
Zafar Iqbal a.k.a. Salim hails from Poonch district and is currently living in Pakistan.
Iqbal is the Operational Commander of the Harkat-ul-Jihad-e-Islami/Jammu and Kashmir Ghaznavi Force.
Apart from smuggling of narcotic substances and weapons, he is also involved in funding and infiltration of terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir.
Bilal Ahmed Baig a.k.a. Babar belongs to Srinagar, and is currently living in Rawalpindi.
He is the head of the Jammu and Kashmir Islamic Front (JKIF). He is involved in the smuggling of arms in Jammu and Kashmir. Bilal Ahmed Baig.
Sheikh Jameel-ur-Rehman a.k.a. Sheikh Sahab belongs to the district Pulwama, Jammu and Kashmir.
He is currently living in Pakistan and is the head of Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen.
He was also involved in smuggling of explosives made in Pakistan and movement of terrorists from Pakistan to India.
He was also involved in the conspiracy to attack religious places in Poonch.