Red Fort Bomber Video: Dr. Umar Nabi Justified Attack as 'Martyrdom Operation' Before Deadly Blast

 

📰 The Core Narrative: A Pre-Attack Justification

New Delhi, India — November 18, 2025

A deeply unsettling video recording, recovered by counter-terrorism investigators, offers a chilling glimpse into the mind of the man believed to be the mastermind and perpetrator of the devastating car bombing near Delhi’s iconic Red Fort.

Dr. Umar-un-Nabi, the prime suspect in the blast that claimed 13 lives and left scores injured, is purportedly seen in the footage meticulously dissecting the vocabulary of terror. He repeatedly insists that the act commonly labelled as a "suicide bombing" is fundamentally misunderstood and should, in Islamic context, be correctly termed a "Martyrdom Operation."

The video, which sources indicate was recorded approximately two months before the catastrophic explosion, is more than just evidence—it is a chilling ideological manifesto. It provides unprecedented insight into the intellectual gymnastics used by highly radicalized individuals to justify mass murder and self-immolation.

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💥 Breaking Down the Bomber’s Twisted Logic

The Red Fort suicide bomber Umar is on video glorifying fidayeen attacks, claiming they’re “sanctioned” and guarantee martyrdom.

This is the naked face of jih@di using religion to romanticise murder.

Stop whitewashing, stop denial. Believe what these radicals are openly telling… pic.twitter.com/FB0Nr3JzA8

— Pamela Goswami (@pamelagoswami9) November 18, 2025

The footage, parts of which have been accessed by investigative agencies, captures Dr. Nabi, appearing composed and articulate, speaking at length to a camera. His discourse is not a confession, but a detailed, almost academic, attempt to re-frame an act of terrorism.

“One of the very misunderstood concepts is the concept of what has been labelled as suicide bombing,” Dr. Nabi is purportedly heard saying. “It is a Martyrdom Operation, and it is known as that in Islam. There are multiple contraindications, there are multiple arguments that have been brought against it.”

This specific linguistic reframing is a known tactic used by extremist organizations to sanitize and glorify suicide missions (or fidayeen attacks) within their ranks, effectively transforming an act of self-destruction, which is generally forbidden in Islam, into a heroic sacrifice.

He continues his argument by attempting to contrast his intended action—death at a fixed, deliberate time and place—with the natural uncertainty of human mortality. However, the video also captures a revealing moment of contradiction, where he discusses the public's perception of such acts.

“The biggest mistake people make is failing to understand what the Liberia bombing, or the idea of suicide bombing, truly is. It is not democratic, nor can it be accepted in any civilised society,” he stated, before launching into a convoluted justification that the act stems from the fatalistic belief that "death is their only destination" once the mission is accepted.

Investigators believe the recovered videos are not for public dissemination, but were likely "practice videos" aimed at constructing and solidifying the operational rhetoric—perhaps to convince other reluctant cell members, or simply to fortify his own resolve.

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🔎 The Investigation’s Critical Clues

 

The emergence of this video significantly tightens the noose around the network responsible for the attack. Prior surveillance and CCTV analysis had already placed Dr. Nabi’s movements in the vicinity of the Red Fort minutes before the car exploded, aligning his trajectory with the profile of the bomber.

The ideological footage now overlays the physical evidence, providing a powerful motive and psychological profile.

 

A 'White Collar' Cell's Disruption

 

Dr. Nabi's background makes his Radicalization particularly alarming. He is identified by officials as the most extreme member of a sophisticated "white collar" module operating out of Faridabad, with alleged ties to the notorious Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM).

This cell, comprised of reportedly five to six individuals—many of whom were doctors associated with the prestigious Al-Falah University—represents a deeply worrying trend: the infiltration of extremism into highly-educated, professional strata of society. These individuals leveraged their professional access, according to police, to procure key chemicals and materials necessary for manufacturing the high-grade explosives used in the attack.

The trail has been under intense heat since massive raids yielded a staggering 2,900 kg of ammonium nitrate and led to the arrests of several accomplices. It was following these arrests that Dr. Nabi, who hails from Koil village in Pulwama, reportedly went underground, frequently travelling between Faridabad and Delhi after officially withdrawing from university duties in late October.

Crucially, sources indicate internal dissent within the terror cell. While Dr. Nabi was allegedly pushing for a fidayeen-style attack, at least one co-conspirator, identified as Danish, reportedly withdrew from the mission, suggesting a fracture in the module's commitment to the extreme violence eventually unleashed.

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🌐 The Bigger Picture: JeM's Expanding Network

 

The Red Fort Bombing, which turned a historical landmark's periphery into a scene of carnage, carries the unmistakable fingerprints of JeM’s sophisticated operational planning. Dr. Nabi’s suspected travel to Turkey with another accused doctor adds an international dimension to the investigation, suggesting potential overseas coordination, financing, or training.

Security analysts caution that the use of highly-educated professionals like doctors—who possess high social mobility, specialized knowledge, and limited initial scrutiny—allows terror groups like JeM to execute operations that are both ideologically driven and technically sound.

The video serves as a stark reminder that the war against terror is also a battle against a pervasive and corrosive ideology—one that can recruit and twist the intellect of individuals from any walk of life. The challenge for security agencies is not merely tracking explosives and movements, but actively countering the linguistic and philosophical justifications that fuel these "martyrdom operations."

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Conclusion: Beyond the Bombing

 

The fragments of video evidence against Dr. Umar Nabi transcend a simple identification of the bomber; they expose the sophisticated, yet flawed, rationalizations used by terror organizations to recruit and deploy their operatives. As the investigation continues to piece together the full trajectory of the Faridabad Module—from the lecture halls of the university to the blast site near the Red Fort—the national conversation must shift. It is no longer just about preventing attacks, but about recognizing and dismantling the dangerous ideological narrative that allows highly-educated individuals to transform themselves into perpetrators of mass violence, insisting on calling their self-annihilation by a glorified, sanctified name. The truth, as revealed by the evidence and the death toll, is that it was an act of terror, plain and simple