Major Moiz Abbas Shah, Pak Army officer who 'captured' Wing Commander Abhinandan in 2019, killed in TTP attack

Pakistan Army's Major Moiz Abbas Shah has been killed in Sargodha in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa's South Waziristan in an attack by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Major Shah's claim to fame is capturing India's Wing Commander Abhinandan Vardhaman during the Balakot strike in 2019. 

The officer, who hailed from Pakistan's Chakwal and served in the elite Special Service Group (SSG), was leading an anti-terror operation when he was fatally shot, along with Lance Naik Jibranullah. 

"On 24 June 2025, security forces carried out an operation in Saraogha area of ​​South Waziristan district. Major Moiz Abbas Shah and Lance Naik Jibran were killed in the operation," the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement. 

Lance Naik Jibran has also been killed in the TTP attack, as per the Pakistani Army. The Pakistan Army claimed they had killed 11 TTP members in the encounter, and 2 soldiers were killed during an intelligence-based operation on Tuesday. 

Wing Commander Vardhaman became a national hero in 2019 during the India-Pakistan standoff after the Pulwama terror attack. Abhinandan was flying a MiG-21 Bison jet and engaged in a dogfight with the Pakistan Air Force jets before being captured. 

His aircraft was shot down, and he ejected into Pakistan-occupied territory and was captured by the Pakistan military.