Hizbul Mujahideen Musa joined the
Hizbul Mujahideen in 2013 after leaving his studies of Bachelor of Technology. In August 2016, Musa issued his first video in Kashmir. He has been described as "part of a new generation of tech-savvy, well-educated terrorist" who became involved in the conflict after the
2010 Kashmir unrest. In 2017, Musa threatened to behead the
Hurriyat leaders for calling the Kashmir conflict a political, rather than a religious, objective to establish Islamic rule; he warned them not to become a "thorn" in the imposition of
Sharia in Kashmir. Hizbul Mujahideen immediately disassociated itself from Musa's statement, and Musa, in response, quit the organization. In 2017, he left the group after it refused to back his public statements supporting his argument that the struggle in Kashmir was for Islam, and not for political purposes.
Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind In July 2017, the
Global Islamic Media Front claimed that Zakir Musa had been named the head of Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind, a newly created
cell of
Al-Qaeda. After the killing of commanders
Abu Dujana and Arif Lelhari, a statement purported to be from Musa was released. The statement claimed that Dujana and Lelhari had joined
Al-Qaeda and helped establish it. Officials stated that the voice of the message matched those of the earlier audio clips by Musa, though the state's
DGP S.P. Vaid stated there was no way of authenticating the clips even though there were reports that Dujana and Musa were close at the time. Meanwhile, an audio-clip circulated on media that claimed to be the last message from Dujana and Arif during their encounter. Two voices claim allegiance to
Al-Qaeda; however, no gunfire is heard and the authenticity of the clip was not proven. It was reported on 12 August 2017 that Musa and his aide evaded an Indian Army and JK Police operation when locals pelted security forces with stones in Noorpora village of
Tral. Allegedly according to Indian media In an audio message released on 31 August 2017, Musa attacked
Pakistan for "betraying Kashmir jihad." He also stated that the objective of Al-Qaeda's Kashmir cell was to clear it from the Pakistan government, army and their sponsored agents. He also threatened to "liberate India" from the Hindus. According to Indian media, Hizbul put up posters in
Sopore in September 2017, which held him responsible for helping Indian security forces kill Kashmiris, asking people to chase him to death and also called him an "Indian agent."
Call for return of Kashmiri Pandits Musa, like his predecessor
Burhan Wani, asked the
Kashmiri Pandits to return to their homeland. He stated during a video released after the killing of Burhan Wani in 2016, "We request Kashmiri Pandits to return to their homes. We take the responsibility of their protection." ==Death and aftermath==