Former Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari made a big revelation about Masood Azhar in an interview. He said that Pakistan does not know where Masood Azhar is. He claimed that Azhar is in Afghanistan and mentioned that India had informed Pakistan that Masood Azhar was in their country. Masood Azhar is the chief of Jaish-e-Mohammed, responsible for dozens of terrorist attacks in India. The United Nations has designated Masood Azhar as a banned terrorist, yet he continues to live under the protection of Pakistan's intelligence agency, the ISI.
Questions to Bilawal About Hafiz Saeed and Masood Azhar
In an interview given to Al Jazeera, Bilawal Bhutto was asked, “What action has Pakistan taken against people like Hafiz Saeed and Masood Azhar, who are leaders of these groups? Because in a recent May 2025 report by The New York Times, it was said that Hafiz Saeed, despite a brief detention, remains a free man.”
Bilawal Said – We Don’t Know About Masood Azhar
To this, Bilawal Bhutto replied, “That is not true. It is factually incorrect to say Hafiz Saeed is a free man. He is in Pakistan’s custody. As far as Masood Azhar is concerned, we have been unable to arrest or even identify him considering his past involvement in the Afghan jihad. We believe he may be in Afghanistan at any given time. If the Indian government shares information with us that he is on Pakistani soil, we would be very happy to arrest him. The fact is, the Indian government has not done so.”
Bilawal Repeated the Counterterrorism Argument
To this, the journalist asked, “I just want to come back to what you said about Masood Azhar, because this is an extraordinary statement — that a UN-designated terrorist, and you do not know his whereabouts. And you're expecting India to provide that information to you?”
Bilawal Bhutto responded, “Excuse me, whenever such matters arise, there is counterterrorism cooperation between countries. We provide information about groups of our concern, they provide information about groups of their concern. This is how we’ve been able to foil attacks in London, in New York, and in Pakistan.”
Bilawal Said – Masood Azhar Is in Afghanistan
Bilawal Bhutto further stated, “As far as Masood Azhar is concerned, if he is in Afghanistan, then the West has now handed over that country to the very group they once labeled as terrorists — and now consider them in charge of Afghanistan. It is not possible for Pakistan to do what even NATO could not achieve within Afghanistan. Alright? Pakistan has no reason to actively protect this person or any other individual of concern.”
