Who was Shahid Latif and why was he shot dead?

The mastermind of the Pathankot attack, Shahid Latif, was shot dead in Pakistan on Wednesday. Latif, a terrorist from Gujranwala, Pakistan, was one of India’s most wanted individuals. In 2016, four terrorists broke into the Pathankot Air Force station with the help of Latif.

Latif was renowned for being the leader of the terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), which has its headquarters in Pakistan.
According to reports, Latif coordinated with four JeM militants while seated in Pakistan and dispatched them to Pathankot in order to carry out the airbase attack. In 1994, Shahid Latif was arrested in India on charges of terrorism. Later in 2010, he was deported to Pakistan.

PATHANKOT ATTACK

Terrorists with heavy weapons attacked the Pathankot Air Force Airbase on January 2, 2016.
Seven security officers and one civilian were killed in the gunfight, which lasted almost four days. In the gunfight, four attackers also lost their lives. On January 3, a day later, an IED blast at the airbase claimed the life of another security guard.

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The attackers were identified by the attack’s investigations as members of the Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist organisation.
Later, in March, the National Investigation Agency assumed control of the investigation into the Pathankot terror incident.

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Shahid Latif was among those whose freedom the terrorists requested when they hijacked Indian Airlines flight IC814 in 1999 and took it to Kandahar, Afghanistan. The hijackers were five armed men. However, Masood Azhar and two other inmates were released in exchange for the 189 passengers and crew members who were taken hostage on the aircraft.