The Indian government on Wednesday announced that a military operation has killed a Pakistani terrorist, Abdul Rauf Azhar, who was involved in the 2002 murder of a Jewish-American journalist, Daniel Pearl of the Wall Street Journal.

“Operation Sindhoor” was launched following an attack last month in which Pakistani terrorists killed 26 Hindu tourists in Kashmir. According to India’s governing party, the Bharatiya Janata Party, the mission targeted key terrorist infrastructure and specifically targeted Azhar, who had a long history of involvement in terrorist activities, the Times of India reported.

Azhar, along with other Islamist terrorists, was responsible for the abduction and murder of Pearl in 2002. Pearl, who was serving as the South Asia bureau chief for the Journal at the time, had relocated to Karachi, Pakistan, to investigate terror networks in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. 

On January 23, 2002, Pearl was taken captive in Karachi by a group calling itself the National Movement for the Restoration of Pakistani Sovereignty, which accused him of being an Israeli spy. While in captivity, Pearl was forced to issue statements in a video before his execution.

One haunting moment captured on camera showed Pearl declaring, “My father’s Jewish, my mother’s Jewish, I’m Jewish. My family follows Judaism. Back in the town of Bnei Brak, there is a street named after my great-grandfather, Chaim Pearl, who was one of the founders of the town.” 

His execution, captured in a graphic video, shocked the world and highlighted the increasing dangers journalists face in conflict zones.

The BJP highlighted Azhar’s role in several major terrorist acts beyond the Pearl case, including the 1999 hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight, the 2016 attack on the Pathankot Air Force base, and the 2001 assault on India’s parliament. A party statement emphasized its commitment to neutralizing threats posed by terrorist organizations operating in the region.

Reports have indicated that the military operation focused on dismantling terrorist groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, with which Azhar was closely associated, the Times reported.

However, the operation has sparked heightened tensions between India and Pakistan. The Pakistani Foreign Affairs Ministry dismissed India’s claims, accusing the Indian military of targeting civilians during the raid. “India’s reckless action has brought the two nuclear-armed states closer to a major conflict,” the ministry said in a press release.