Terror at a Funeral:

LeT-Linked Figures Spotted at Shahid Akhtar's Last Rites in Islamabad, Sparking Outrage and Urgent Questions

Report By Y-Trendz

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — June 26, 2026

What was intended to be a private and solemn farewell to a beloved family member has instead ignited a fierce controversy that cuts to the heart of Pakistan's persistent and troubling relationship with

designated terrorist organisations. The funeral of Shahid Akhtar — elder brother of Pakistan's legendary fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar — held in Islamabad on June 24, 2026, was attended not only by cricketers, celebrities, and political figures offering their condolences, but also, according to viral videos and photographs, by senior figures linked to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), one of the world's most dangerous and internationally proscribed terrorist organisations. The images have triggered a storm of questions across India, Pakistan, and international security circles: how, in 2026, are individuals linked to an organisation responsible for the 2008 Mumbai attacks able to walk freely through a prominent public gathering in Pakistan's federal capital?

The Funeral That Shocked a Nation

Former Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar is mourning the loss of his elder brother, Shahid Akhtar, who passed away after battling health issues. According to reports in Pakistani media, Shahid Akhtar had been dealing with health issues and reportedly died due to lung failure, though the family has not officially disclosed the cause of death.

The funeral prayers for Shahid Akhtar were scheduled for June 24, 2026, held after Asr prayer in Islamabad, with Shahid Akhtar laid to rest at the H-8 graveyard in the federal capital. Former cricketers and political figures attended the funeral prayers. The gathering reflected Shoaib Akhtar's status as one of Pakistan's most iconic sporting figures — a man who rose from humble beginnings in Rawalpindi to become the fastest bowler in cricket history, clocking a record 161.3 km/h delivery at the 2003 World Cup.

Shahid Akhtar played a big role in Shoaib's career, and the two shared a close bond. Shahid was Shoaib's pillar of strength and supported him till he made it to the national team and became one of the best fast bowlers of his time. His passing was an intensely personal loss for Shoaib, whose social media post announcing the death was flooded with condolences from fans and former cricketers across the world.

The Controversy: LeT-Linked Figures Caught on Camera

But the grief of a cricketing legend was quickly overshadowed by something far more disturbing. Controversy erupted when videos and photographs that surfaced on social media showed figures associated with the notorious terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba and its affiliated political outfit, Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML), present at the funeral.

The footage was not sourced from opponents or critics of the organisations — it was, remarkably, self-distributed. According to defence experts quoted in Indian media, Lashkar-e-Taiba and its political party PMML's own official media wing shared these photographs and videos on social media. In the video, PMML's Islamabad President Inam ur Rehman Kamboh was seen with his associates. He was also seen embracing Shoaib Akhtar's family members and offering condolences.

The brazenness of the act — an organisation linked to terrorism openly documenting and publicising its presence at a high-profile public event in the Pakistani capital — set off immediate alarm bells among security analysts.

Observers on social media and in the security community raised a pointed question: "Shahid Akhtar's funeral was attended by PMML Islamabad President Inam ur Rehman Kamboh and other LeT leaders. Why were senior LeT-linked figures present at Shoaib Akhtar's brother's funeral?"

Who Is PMML and Why Does It Matter?

The Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML) is not an obscure fringe group — it is widely understood by security analysts and international intelligence agencies as the political face of the LeT network. Security experts say that PMML has long been under surveillance by international security agencies. Many experts consider it the political platform linked to the network of Hafiz Saeed, the mastermind of the Mumbai terrorist attacks. Their claim is that after bans were imposed on Jamaat-ud-Dawah and Lashkar-e-Taiba, the network began operating under a political identity. Inam ur Rehman Kamboh is also considered a prominent face of this organisation.

Hafiz Saeed — LeT's founder and the man India holds responsible for masterminding the November 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people — is designated a global terrorist by the United Nations, the United States, and India. His network's continued political activities in Pakistan have been a persistent source of friction between Islamabad and both New Delhi and Washington.

The questions that now arise are serious and multifaceted. After Operation Sindoor in May 2025 — India's retaliatory military strikes on nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir in response to the Pahalgam attack — and amid an already fragile India-Pakistan ceasefire, the visible and self-publicised presence of LeT-linked figures at a major public event in Islamabad sends a deeply troubling signal about the degree to which proscribed terrorist networks continue to operate freely within Pakistan's social and political fabric.

Shoaib Akhtar: A Cricketing Legend Caught in a Political Storm

There is no suggestion whatsoever that Shoaib Akhtar, who is widely regarded as a beloved sporting figure, had any prior knowledge of or role in the attendance of LeT-linked figures at his brother's funeral. The family was mourning a deeply personal loss, and the circumstances of who attends a funeral in Pakistan — where community leaders and local political figures routinely attend prominent families' bereavement events — can often be beyond the control of the grieving family.

Nevertheless, the images have gone viral and placed Shoaib Akhtar's name uncomfortably in the same frame as individuals linked to one of the world's most sanctioned terrorist organisations. After the videos surfaced, questions arose about how individuals linked to banned organisations so easily gained access to a private family event of an international cricketer.

The Bigger Picture: Pakistan's Terror Problem Does Not Go Away

This incident is not happening in a vacuum. It emerges in the context of an India-Pakistan relationship still raw from Operation Sindoor, nuclear-level tensions that only recently de-escalated, and ongoing international pressure on Pakistan to demonstrate credible action against terrorist infrastructure on its soil. The ease with which LeT-linked figures attended, documented, and publicly shared their presence at the funeral of a famous cricketer's brother — in the nation's capital — illustrates a painful truth that India and the international community have long argued: in Pakistan, the line between proscribed terrorist organisations and mainstream social and political life remains dangerously blurred.

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No official confirmation of the identities of those present has been issued by Pakistani authorities. Investigations, if any, are not yet publicly confirmed.