Lashkar Show Of Strength In Lahore: Hafiz Saeed’s Son Talha Leads Eid Prayers
Hundreds of Lashkar-e-Taiba leaders, recruiters and operatives reportedly gathered at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium on Eid-ul-Adha, where Hafiz Talha Saeed, son of 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed and a designated terrorist under India’s UAPA, led the prayers. The development has once again raised questions over Pakistan’s continued sheltering of globally sanctioned terror networks.
A massive gathering of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) leaders and recruiters reportedly took place at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium on Eid-ul-Adha, with Hafiz Talha Saeed, son of Lashkar chief and 26/11 Mumbai attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed, leading the prayers.
According to reports, hundreds of Lashkar operatives, recruiters and senior functionaries assembled at the stadium in Pakistan’s Lahore on Wednesday morning for Eid prayers, highlighting the terror outfit’s continued public mobilisation despite international scrutiny and sanctions.
Talha Saeed, who has been designated as an individual terrorist by India’s Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), was seen leading the congregation. Indian authorities have accused him of playing a central role in terror recruitment, fund collection and planning attacks for Lashkar-e-Taiba.
The gathering assumes significance amid repeated allegations by India that Pakistan continues to provide space and protection to UN-designated terrorists and banned terror organisations operating from its soil.
In 2022, the Union Home Ministry designated Hafiz Talha Saeed as an “individual terrorist” under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). The MHA had stated that Talha Saeed was “actively involved in recruitment, fund collection, planning and executing attacks by LeT in India and Indian interests in Afghanistan.”
The notification further identified him as a senior leader of Lashkar-e-Taiba and head of the terror outfit’s clerical wing. It also noted that Talha had been visiting various LeT centres across Pakistan and delivering inflammatory sermons advocating jihad against India, Israel and the United States.
Talha became the 32nd individual to be designated as a terrorist by the Indian government. His father, Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, remains one of India’s most wanted terrorists and is accused of masterminding the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks that killed more than 170 people.
Hafiz Saeed, founder of Jamaat-ud-Dawa, considered a front organisation for Lashkar-e-Taiba, has also been designated a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by the United States. Washington has announced a $10 million bounty on him.
The latest visuals and reports from Lahore are expected to further intensify concerns over the open functioning of terror-linked networks in Pakistan despite repeated international commitments to curb extremism and terror financing.
Published By : Deepti Verma
Published On: 27 May 2026 at 18:37 IST