Jason Isaacson, Chief Policy and Political Affairs Officer at the American Jewish Committee, has strongly condemned the recent terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, comparing it to the brutal October 7, 2023 Hamas assault on Israel. Speaking to ANI on Friday, Isaacson described the incident as “horrific” and “brutal,” stating that it bore disturbing similarities to past acts of religiously motivated terror.
“The massacre of October 7 by Hamas was brutal and has left a deep scar. That attack echoes in my mind as I see what has happened in Jammu and Kashmir,” said Isaacson. “It was a horrific attack on people vacationing, singled out for being Hindus—a terrorist act that has shaken India to the core and horrified people across the world.”
He emphasized the parallel between the tactics used by Hamas and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), the group suspected of orchestrating the Pahalgam assault. According to Isaacson, both groups operate under the same ideology: targeting civilians based on religious identity and portraying them as enemies to be eradicated.
“That is the characteristic of the terrorist. Their motivation is to identify others as evil and seek to eliminate them in a genocidal campaign. It reflects the ideology of Hezbollah towards Jews and resembles movements that have targeted Hindus. Prime Minister Modi has vowed to root out these terrorists—and he has the full backing of my country and many global allies of India,” he added.
Isaacson also hinted at possible Pakistani involvement in the attack, noting that operations of this magnitude often cannot occur without support from certain factions within Pakistan.
“It’s not a big leap of imagination to believe that such groups may be receiving funding or strategic support from elements within Pakistani society, the military, or intelligence agencies,” he stated.
The Pahalgam terror attack took place on Tuesday, when heavily armed terrorists ambushed tourists in the scenic Baisaran meadow, killing 25 Indian nationals and one Nepali citizen, and injuring several others. The assault is being called one of the deadliest since the 2019 Pulwama attack, which claimed the lives of 40 CRPF personnel.
