Was Hamas Behind the Pahalgam Terror Attack? Time to Connect the Dots

The recent Islamist attack in Pahalgam, where Hindu tourists were cold-bloodedly murdered after being asked their religion, has made the whole of India stunned. The brutality executed in front of women and children has raised deep suspicions and alarming questions. While Pakistan-backed Lashkar-e-Taiba’s proxy, The Resistance Front, has claimed responsibility, a deeper look into recent developments suggests that this attack may not have been executed by LeT alone. The presence of Hamas leaders in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) just weeks ago, alongside Lashkar and Jaish-e-Mohammed commanders, raises a chilling question was Hamas also involved?

Hamas, officially designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, Canada, Israel, and others, is no stranger to orchestrating large-scale attacks against civilians. What makes the group even more dangerous is its increasing collaboration with other global jihadi networks. On February 5, Hamas’s top leaders were not in Gaza or the West Bank—they were in Rawalakot, PoK, attending an event organised by Pakistan to mark “Kashmir Solidarity Day.” There, Hamas commanders stood shoulder to shoulder with Lashkar and Jaish terrorists, and most shockingly, were provided security by JeM operatives. Hamas’s representative in Iran, Dr. Khalid Al-Qadoumi, was given VIP treatment by Pakistani jihadi groups and politicians alike.

Why would Hamas supposedly focused on the Palestinian cause suddenly involve itself in Kashmir? The answer lies in ideology and opportunity. Ideologically, Hamas has never hidden its hatred for India, aligning itself with Pakistan’s anti-India rhetoric. Strategically, with Gaza under heavy fire from Israel, Hamas is desperately seeking new operational grounds. And Pakistan, with its history of sheltering and sponsoring terror groups, provides fertile soil. The gathering in PoK wasn’t a cultural exchange it was a coalition of terror.

Security analysts have already warned that Hamas’s presence in South Asia, particularly in coordination with LeT and JeM, could result in the export of terror tactics from Gaza to Kashmir. The Pahalgam massacre, in which tourists were singled out for being non-Muslim, fits the ideological pattern Hamas has displayed in Israel: targeting civilians, using religion as a dividing line, and spreading fear. Given Hamas’s known ties with Pakistan’s intelligence services and the military, it’s not far-fetched to suspect that they may have played a covert role in guiding or inspiring the Pahalgam terror attack. This is no longer just India’s concern—this is a global warning. The unholy alliance of Hamas and Pakistani jihadi groups signals a terrifying expansion of Islamic terrorism, one that blends brutal ideology with geographic opportunism.

India must now take a two-pronged approach: crush terror on the ground and expose the Hamas-Lashkar-Jaish nexus on global platforms. If the international community remains silent, today’s attack in Pahalgam could become tomorrow’s template for transnational jihad. Hamas is not just a threat to Israel it is becoming a global menace. And now, Kashmir might be its next battlefield.