Arjumand Gulzar, known as Hamza Burhan and listed as a designated terrorist, was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Muzaffarabad, Pakistan‑occupied Kashmir, officials said. Hamza, accused of masterminding the February 14, 2019 suicide attack on a CRPF convoy in Pulwama that killed 40 personnel, was ambushed despite operating under heavy ISI‑vetted security.
Sources said he was critically wounded in the attack and airlifted to the Combined Military Hospital in Rawalpindi, where he later died. The attackers fled the scene before local security forces could intervene.
Originally from Khar in Pulwama district, Hamza had been associated with Al Badr before moving to Al Baraq. After an acrimonious split from the outfit, he reportedly forged close ties with Pakistan’s Inter‑Services Intelligence. He was declared a terrorist under India’s UAPA for his alleged role in organising the 2019 Jaish‑e‑Mohammad suicide strike that provoked Indian retaliatory air strikes on JeM camps in Balakot on February 26, 2019.
Local sources said Hamza, also known by the alias “Doctor,” lived in Cheela Bandi on Muzaffarabad’s outskirts and travelled with a security detail of eight commandos, a bullet‑resistant vehicle and an escort. That cover was reportedly granted after he allegedly staged a fake attack on himself between January and February 2025.
Officials further linked him with Farooq Qureshi, a former Al Baraq commander alleged to be involved in narcotics, counterfeit currency, arms smuggling and cross‑border militant activity; the two are said to have operated from an industrial compound known locally as the “Machis Factory.” Sources also named a Pakistan intelligence officer, identified as Col Rizwan, as a point of contact. Hamza had recently married the daughter of Qadir Lala, a former Hizbul Mujahideen operative from Kupwara now working in Pakistan, and maintained ties with another ex‑militant, Murtaza, based in Islamabad.
