Islamabad, September 6, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Pakistan’s alleged use of militant proxies is evolving rapidly, with the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) increasingly being portrayed as a flexible label that can be attached to different forms of violence across the region, according to a report by Italian journalist Francesca Marino published in Parrhesia News.
The report examines allegations that Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) could potentially use the ISKP label to conceal operations by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) in Jammu and Kashmir. Marino noted that the allegation is currently circulating among Indian security and open-source intelligence circles, but stressed that such claims remain difficult to independently verify.
According to the report, LeT has long been regarded as an important component of Pakistan’s militant network but its established identity has become increasingly difficult to use publicly after the organisation was designated as a terrorist group by the United Nations, the United States, Britain, the European Union and other governments.
Marino described The Resistance Front (TRF) as one of the most prominent newer identities associated with LeT, arguing that militant networks can retain personnel, handlers and objectives while changing their public branding.
She said modern militant organisations can operate without a permanent headquarters or clearly identifiable command structure, using platforms such as Telegram and X to establish new identities and disseminate claims before abandoning names that attract scrutiny.
The report also cited claims of possible cooperation between LeT and ISKP-linked networks in Balochistan. Marino referred to a photograph circulated in 2025 that purportedly showed Shafiq Mengal, described as an ISKP coordinator in the province, presenting a pistol to senior LeT commander Rana Mohammad Ashfaq. The image has been cited as evidence of an alleged ISI-facilitated arrangement, although the report acknowledged that the precise organisational relationship could not be independently established.
Marino argued that LeT remains relevant not because it is returning, but because it has continued to exist within the broader militant ecosystem.
She characterised the changing identities as serving different purposes, with LeT providing personnel and infrastructure, TRF offering a Kashmiri identity and ISKP providing an internationally recognisable jihadist brand.
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