INDIA. Mumbai: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) conducted raids on hideouts and premises associated with Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) and Tehrik-e-Taliban in four states. The operation aimed to uncover their network involved in recruiting youth for terror activities.
According to a statement released on Friday, the raids took place at three locations in Maharashtra, and one location each in Gujarat, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. During the searches, incriminating electronic gadgets and objectionable data were seized.
These raids were carried out in response to a case registered in April 2023, involving two individuals accused of transferring funds to purchase land in Afghanistan.
NIA investigations revealed that these individuals were involved in the radicalization of vulnerable youth, recruiting them for the AQIS and Tehrik-e-Taliban to further their terror activities in India.
The conspiracy was aimed at spreading terror and disrupting peace and communal harmony in India, as stated by the NIA.
Notably, earlier in February, the NIA had arrested two terror suspects: Mohammad Arif from Bengaluru, Karnataka, and Hamraz Worshid Shaikh from Thane, Maharashtra, in connection with AQIS activities.
Arif, who worked as a software engineer in a private tech firm, was allegedly planning to join ISIS by traveling to Syria via Iraq. He was arrested in Bengaluru and was accused of radicalizing young individuals. Investigations revealed suspicious transactions made through his account, as he confessed to receiving money from overseas handlers associated with ISIS and Al-Qaeda to radicalize youth. He communicated with these handlers through the Telegram app.
Mohammed Azarudeen was also booked as the 13th accused in the ISIS-inspired Coimbatore car bomb blast case of 2022. He is currently serving a jail term in another case and is lodged in Viyyur High Security Prison in Thrissur, Kerala.
Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) is a militant organization aiming to establish an Islamic state and caliphate in the Indian subcontinent. Tehrik-e-Taliban is an umbrella organization comprising various Islamist militant groups operating along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
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