Pakistani Major Moiz Abbas Shah, a known officer who was involved in the 2019 arrest of Indian Air Force pilot Abhinandan Varthaman, has been killed during a confrontation with Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) terrorists. Shah was among two Pakistani security officials killed during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in the South Waziristan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The media wing of the Pakistani army, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said in a statement on Tuesday that security personnel exchanged fire with a “Khwarij site” TTP militants—during the operation. The release asserted that 11 “Indian-funded Khwarij” were killed and seven wounded, while Major Shah, who was 37, and Lance Naik Jibranullah, 27, sacrificed their lives.
Pakistan Army’s Major Moiz Abbas killed by Pak Taliban (TTP) in South Waziristan today.
Moiz claim to fame was that he got the credit for “capturing” India’s Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman in February 2019. pic.twitter.com/2EKIf74cHr — Incognito (@Incognito_qfs) June 24, 2025
Major Shah, a native of Chakwal and member of the elite Special Service Group (SSG), was leading the anti-terror operation when he was killed. He had become famous in Pakistan for his actions during the aftermath of India’s retaliatory air strikes on a terrorist training camp in Balakot in February 2019, 12 days after the Pulwama attack.
During the subsequent air combat, then Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, flying for India’s 51 Squadron, saw his MiG-21 Bison fighter downed by Pakistani fighter aircraft. He ejected and crashed on the Pakistan side of the Line of Control (LoC), where he was taken into custody. Major Moiz Abbas Shah was said to be the officer with whom Varthaman captured.
The attack points towards the constant tussle between the security forces of Pakistan and the TTP, which in recent years has experienced a resurgence in militant operations, most prominently in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces. Pakistan often accuses the terror outfits of receiving Indian support, a charge that New Delhi repeatedly refutes.
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