Al Barq (The Lightening) is a jihadi militant outfit. It was formed in March 1990 in Srinagar. It is the militant wing of the People’s Conference led by Abdul Gani Lone who was killed by some militants in May 2002. The decision to form the Al Barq was supported by the Inter Services intelligence (ISI) of Pakistan as it wanted to win the support of Gujjar community settled in Kupwara and Baramulla districts to facilitate the infiltration/exfiltration of militants.
Initially, the outfit aimed for the liberation of Kashmir through armed struggle. In the mid-1990s, it adopted a moderate stance as it participated in the talks between Kashmiri militants and the Government of India on the Kashmiri issue. Moreover, after its alignment with the United Jihad Council (UJC) in 2000, it kept itself away from the People’s Conference and intensified attacks against the Indian security forces and politicians.
Organisation
The outfit is headed by a supreme council which has a patron, commander-in chief, amir, intelligence chief, military advisor and publicity head. For operational purposes, the Valley is divided into three divisions headed by divisional commanders. Prominent leaders of the outfit are Muhammad Yusuf Shah, Amire- Ala (chief amir), Advocate Zahid (amir) and Bilal Rahi (commander-in-chief ).
The exact strength of the outfit is not known. Majority of its cadres were drawn from the Gujjars residing in Kupwara and Baramulla districts and the party workers of the People’s Conference. Number of Kashmiri refugees settled in Pakistan-occupied Jammu Kashmir (PoJK) have also joined the outfit.
The training was given at the training camps in Chelabandi near Muzaffarabad and Mansehra in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. To keep these jihadi organisations under its full control, the ISI also inducted foreign militants, including Afghan veterans, in the Al Barq. Besides, the Markaz-e-Dawa-wal-Irshad (MDI), the parent body of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), also agreed to provide foreign militants. The expenditure on the foreign militants was born by the ISI.
The outfit used to be active in Srinagar, Kupwara and Baramulla districts. It was involved in a number of attacks against the Indian security forces and politicians. It earned prominence with the setting ablaze of a bridge at Beeru in Budgam district; attacking the security forces convoy at Ganderbal in Srinagar, in November 1990; attack on security forces in Srinagar in May 1996; attack on police posts at Beeru, Budgam, in October 1997; destruction of police vehicles at Keran sector in August 1998; and claiming responsibility for the assassination of J&K state law minister in 2002.
The outfit has been regularly getting assistance from the ISI and other foreign sources through hawala.
The Al Barq is now working under the Kashmir Freedom Force formed by the UJC. Al Barq as an independent outfit operating in Kashmir Valley has been almost inactive in its militant activities. However, many of its militants are believed to have joined other militant groups like Harkat-ul-Mujahideen and Tehrik-e-Jihad. According to the available sources, it has been established that there have been traces of role of Al Barq in planning and executing the series of bombings in London in 2005.