Image Source: Agencies

July 18, 2025: In response to the 26-person Islamist militant attack that took place on April 22 in Indian Kashmir and resulted in death, the US government has designated The Resistance Front, also known as the Kashmir Resistance, as a "foreign terrorist organization." After initially claiming responsibility for the attack in Pahalgam, the group later denied it. Some information about the group is provided below. What is the TRF? The South Asia Terrorism Portal, a Delhi-based think tank, claims that the TRF, which was established in 2019, is thought to be an offshoot of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba. According to Indian security officials, the TRF claims responsibility for the attack on Tuesday in the Pahalgam region of Indian Kashmir and uses the name Kashmir Resistance on social media and online forums. The Islamist group known as Lashkar-e-Taiba is alleged to have planned attacks in India and the West, including the three-day assault on Mumbai in November 2008, which was listed as a foreign terrorist organization by the United States. "This is essentially a LeT front. The head of the South Asia Terrorism Portal, Ajai Sahni, stated, "These are groups that have been created over the last years, particularly when Pakistan was under pressure from the Financial Action Task Force and they were trying to create a pattern of denial that they were involved in terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir." How far along has the probe been? India's National Investigation Agency, which fights terrorism, announced on June 22 that it had detained two men who held three militants who were involved in the Pahalgam attack. In a statement, the agency said that the men arrested had revealed the attackers' identities and confirmed that they were Pakistani nationals affiliated with the Lashkar-e-Taiba. What has the group accomplished? Sahni claims that the group has not been linked to any significant incidents in the past. "LeT operations are the basis of all TRF operations. "The sanction would have come from the LeT," Sahni stated. "There will be some operational freedom as to where they hit on the ground." What is India's position on TRF? In 2023, the Indian interior ministry told Parliament that the group had planned to kill security force members and civilians in Jammu and Kashmir. According to the ministry, the group also coordinated the recruitment of militants and the smuggling of weapons and drugs across the border. Reuters was informed by officials in the intelligence community that TRF had also been harassing pro-India organizations online for the previous two years. What is Pakistan's position? Pakistan has claimed that it only provides moral and diplomatic support and has denied providing support for or funding for militants in Kashmir.