Almost a year after 26/11 Mumbai attacks suspect Ilyas Kashmiri was reported killed in a drone strike, the United Nations has updated his status as “reported dead” in a sanctions list of individuals and entities associated with al Qaeda. The UN Security Council al Qaeda Sanctions Committee amended on May 10 the information related to Kashmiri in its comprehensive “al Qaeda Sanctions List”. The updated information reads Kashmiri “reportedly deceased in Pakistan on June 11, 2011”. The updated information said that Mohammad Ilyas Kashmiri “was” – instead of the earlier “is” – the commander of Harakat-ul Jihad Islami, which provided support to al Qaeda operations. Kashmiri was among nine militants believed killed in a drone strike carried out by the US on June 3, 2011. However, he is still listed among India’s most wanted terrorists. Media reports of Kashmiri’s death in the past have turned out to be inaccurate with the dreaded militant resurfacing later. Just days after his death was reported in June last year, a media report in Pakistan said the chief of the Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami was still alive and active in the border areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan.
