The Islamic State, the Indian Sub-Continent & its Neighbourhood

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ramana
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by ramana »

SS, How credible is this ISIS in Afghanistan really?
700-1500 terrorists. Located in Nangarhar and Kunar Provinces.
Was this a TTP or Taliban stronghold?
US officials say intelligence suggests Islamic State is based overwhelmingly in Nangarhar and neighboring Kunar province.

Estimates of its strength in Afghanistan vary. US officials have said they believe the movement has only 700 fighters but Afghan officials estimate it has about 1,500.

The Afghan Taliban, which is trying to overthrow the US-backed government in Kabul, are fiercely opposed to Islamic State and the two group have clashed as they seek to expand territory and influence.
Or breakaway Taliban?
In which case it another instance of choosing sides and helping the Taliban.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by ramana »

X-Posting for completeness....
Rudradev wrote:Wait wait wait.

We have no idea who "ISIS" really means in Afghanistan.

All parties have realized that "ISIS" is a buzzword these days, a shorthand for "really, really BAD terrorist, in my opinion".

For example Pakistanis have started referring to all the splinter groups of TTP, who did not come back into Islamabad's fold following the Zarb-e-Azb operation, as "ISIS".

Are these groups any worse from an objective point of view than the Quetta Shura or Haqqani Network... the Taliban factions which remain loyal to Islamabad's agenda? Of course not.

But by calling these groups "ISIS", Pakistan can evoke sympathy and assistance from other countries who take Islamabad's word for who is a good terrorist vs. who is a bad terrorist.

Today there are militant groups who are essentially fighting for Pashtun freedom south of the Durand Line, with Kabul's support. Pakistan has been screaming to everyone in the international community that these groups are actually "ISIS-Khorasan", when in fact they are no such thing. China has been lending its weight to bolster the credibility of Pakistan's claim that these groups are, in fact, ISIS.

That is what the China-Russia-Pak talks are about. Thanks to Islampasand scumbags like Zamir Kabulov, Russia has been roped in to support the pro-Islamabad Taliban factions in Afghanistan, because the pro-Islamabad Taliban factions are fighting the NATO-supported Kabul regime as well as the so-called "ISIS" factions (who are actually anti-Islamabad Pashtun freedom fighters).

So who exactly got a MOAB dropped on them?


Given Trump's willingness to believe the US deep state on Assad having a hand in the chemical weapons attack last month, it is clear that the US deep state is now dictating the terms of who is a "good terrorist" vs. who is a "bad terrorist" in Washington.

Given the new-found bonhomie between Washington and China, it is virtually guaranteed that China's version of who is "ISIS" in Afghanistan is being fed directly to Trump. This is exactly equal to the Paki version.

So most likely, Pashtun freedom fighters who were supported by Kabul, and fighting against Pakistan's illegal occupation of FATA and Khyber Pakhtunkwa, got bombed by the Americans in Tora Bora. Altogether a net negative for Indian interests.
Not so fast.
The MC-130 took off from Afghanistan.

The attack is in Afghanistan Nangarhar area.
The governor of that province claimed many Pakistanis (upto 400) were killed.
Hamid Karzai is asking why Afghan areas are being used as target practice?

The TTP is not in Tora Bora as far as this thread knows.

It could be the Taliban who are attacking Kabul govt. forces like ANA and ALC.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by Tuan »

The long term strategic 1000 Kg "message" is aimed at Moscow and Tehran, who according to analysts, are covertly aiding and advising Afghan Taliban, whereas the US has a long term strategic interest in Central Asia, particularly in the Siberian Lands. Thus, it is just another post-Cold War proxy war between the US and Russia in multiple fronts, which is part and parcel of "The New Great Game".

Iran and Russia Team up with Taliban to Undermine U.S.-led Mission in Afghanistan
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by SSridhar »

In any case, I hope the 22 terrorists from Kerala who are supposed to have joined the IS in Nangarhar are wiped out now.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by SSridhar »

I think it is too early to say what really happened. We have to wait for the smog to clear.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by sum »

How credible is this news?
Scores of ISI officials dead in US bombing at Afghanistan
The operation that was jointly coordinated by the 201 Selab Corps of the Afghanistan army targeted the caves and tunnels that were used as hiding places by the IS. It is now clear that the Pakistan army was backing these IS operatives in Afghanistan, official sources also confirmed.

Indian agencies who are coordinating with their counterparts in Afghanistan have learnt that there are no civilians living in the area. There were a large number of stooges of the ISI who have been protecting the ISIS operatives in this area. The US action comes at a time when there was a huge build up of ISIS forces in Afghanistan.

Indian agencies say that the Pakistan army and ISI were nurturing these operatives. The entire area that was bombed was under the control of the ISI officials backing the ISIS, sources also said. The impact of the bomb was so huge that it blew up at least 500 Pakistanis and an equal number of ISIS operatives.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by Tuan »

Video footage: GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb
KABUL, Afghanistan (April 13, 2017) - A GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb strikes ISIS-K cave and tunnel systems in the Achin district of the Nangarhar Province in eastern Afghanistan at 7:32 p.m. local time Thursday. The strike was designed to minimize risk to Afghan and U.S. Forces conducting clearing operations in the area while maximizing the destruction of ISIS-K fighters and facilities and eliminate any perceived safe haven for ISIS-K in Afghanistan.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by SSridhar »

Mother of all bombs kills 36 Islamic State militants in Afghanistan - Reuters
As many as 36 suspected Islamic State militants were killed in Afghanistan when the United States dropped the “mother of all bombs”, one of the largest non-nuclear devices ever unleashed in combat, the Afghan Defence Ministry said on Friday.

Thursday's strike came as U.S. President Donald Trump dispatches his first high-level delegation to Kabul, amid uncertainty about his plans for the nearly 9,000 American troops stationed in Afghanistan.

The deaths have not been independently verified, but Ministry spokesman Dawlat Waziri said no civilians were harmed in the massive blast that targeted a network of caves and tunnels.

“No civilian has been hurt and only the base, which Daesh used to launch attacks in other parts of the province, was destroyed,” Mr. Waziri said in a statement.


He was using an Arabic term that refers to Islamic State, which has established a small stronghold in eastern Afghanistan and launched deadly attacks on the capital, Kabul.

“Last night's bomb was really huge, when it dropped, everywhere, it was shaking,” said a resident, Palstar Khan, adding that he believed no civilians were in the area hit.

Other residents said they saw militants climbing up and down the mountain every day, making occasional visits to the village.

“They were Arabs, Pakistanis, Chinese and local insurgents coming to buy from shops in the bazaar,” said resident Raz Mohammad.

On Friday, the village was swarming with Afghan and international troops, as helicopters and other aircraft flew overhead.

The strike was part of a joint operation by Afghan and international troops, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's office said in a statement.

“Afghan and foreign troops closely coordinated this operation and were extra cautious to avoid any civilian casualties,” it said.

Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai condemned the use of the weapon on Afghan soil.

“This is not the war on terror, but the inhuman and most brutal misuse of our country as testing ground for new and dangerous weapons,” he tweeted.

The Taliban condemned the use of the bomb, saying in a statement, “Using this massive bomb cannot be justified and will leave a material and psychological impact on our people.”

American officials said the bomb had been positioned for possible use in Afghanistan for “some time” since the administration of former president Barack Obama.

The United States has steadily intensified its air campaign against Islamic State and Taliban militants in Afghanistan, with the Air Force deploying nearly 500 weapons in the first three months of 2017, up from 300 in the corresponding 2016 period.

Thursday's strike was not the first time Islamic State fighters have been targeted by heavy American bombardment in Nangarhar, where a U.S. special forces soldier was killed battling militants a week ago.

In March, U.S. forces conducted 79 “counter-terror strikes" against Islamic State targets in Nangarhar, killing as many as 200 militants, according to the U.S. military command in Kabul.

American military officials estimate there are around 600 to 800 Islamic State fighters in Afghanistan, mostly in Nangarhar, but also in the neighboring province of Kunar.


The United Nations has raised concerns that the American air campaign is swelling civilian casualties in Afghanistan.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by SSridhar »

ramana wrote:SS, How credible is this ISIS in Afghanistan really?
700-1500 terrorists. Located in Nangarhar and Kunar Provinces.
Was this a TTP or Taliban stronghold?
Or breakaway Taliban?
In which case it another instance of choosing sides and helping the Taliban.
ramana, I re-post what I posted in the Afghanistan thread about a month back.
As far as Afghanistan goes, the Afghan NSA is correct at the moment when he says that the ISIS & Taliban have a symbiotic relationship. The ISIS in Nangarhar are actually defectors from the then tenuously monolithic TTP which fragmented in c. 2014 once Fazlullah was hoisted as the Emir after the killing of Hakeemullah Mehsud. The hardcore fighters of ISIS in Levant have *NOT* relocated to Afghanistan (or Khorasan). Who are the players in Khorasan currently? They are the Taliban, AQ, ISI, fragmented TTP, LeT, JeM, IMU, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, Ismael Khan, Dostum and the Northern Alliance of the Sher-e-Panjshir. It is the same players who have aligned one way or another.

The Khorasan Unit of the IS & Taliban may not be fighting each other at present (but there were bloody clashes earlier) and may be concentrating on removing Ghani and democracy in order to establish a Shariah-based Emirate. Thet does not mean they are aligned. They are simply avoiding internecine war for the present. It may not even be by design. In the absence of any information to the contrary, one has to assume that the Afghan Taliban and the AQ are still joined at the hip. That is what the ISI would also want. However, on a global scale, the IS & AQ are certainly opposed to each other and have been so from the beginning. The January [2017] tirade by Zawahiri against the ISIS is a proof. They will fall apart at some point of time within Afghanistan also.
The Afghan situation is complex as far as ISIS is concerned. There is an IS unit announced with its Emir and the rest of the senior management. There are also a number of erstwhile Taliban commanders, warlords, mujahideen commanders who have announced support for ISIS. All of them have connections with the ISI going back several decades. The case is not as clear cut as in Syria, for example.

In any case, Nangarhar & Kunar are the strongholds of the ISIS-K unit.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by SSridhar »

ramana, this is from a post of Dec, 2015, again from the Afghanistan thread. But, it largely holds good even today, IMHO.
How is the IS placed within Khorasan? On the Afghan side, Helmand, among the most extensive opium-growing sites in Afghanistan, was turning out to be a recruiting ground for IS as reports in January 2015 spoke of a certain Mullah Abdul Rauf doing the recruitment for the IS. Moreover IS flags have been hoisted at several places in Ghazni, Balkh and Zabul provinces. Reportedly, the IS Caliph, al-Baghdadi had ridiculed Mullah Omar calling him “a fool and illiterate warlord undeserving of a religious title.” On April 18, 2015, the IS announced its presence close to the Pakistani border when it detonated four bombs in Jalalabad of Nangarhar Province. The deadliest was a suicide bomb outside a bank. Government authorities said the bombs killed 35 people and injured 125. In clashes between IS and the Taliban in late May 2015 in the Farah province of Western Afghanistan, 27 were killed including 15 IS & 12 Taliban jihadists. There are also reports of other fights between the IS and the Afghan Taliban.

On the Pakistani side, the TTP has a four-way split and considerable leaders pledged their support to the IS. In mid-January 2015, the IS formally announced the leadership team of its Khorasan unit. This borrowed heavily from the split TTP. But, beyond that nothing has happened. Of course, Tahir Yuldashev's IMU also pledged support to IS and moved to the Afghan-Tajikitan borderlands as a result of Zerb-e-Azb operations. However, IMU's support to IS is doubtful at this point.

Therefore, as of now, the IS is *NOT* a serious threat to the Taliban either in Afghanistan or much less so in Pakistan. There is a concerted effort by the 3½ Friends as well as China to recognize the Afghan Taliban as a legitimate stakeholder in Afghanistan whose wishes need to be accommodated. This is an endorsement of the Pakistani position because the Americans and its allies are tired and want to exit. The Taliban/ISI combine is on a strong wicket. The only undoing could be the internecine war among the Taliban.

Therefore, I do not believe that the ISI is facing any danger from ISIS and therefore is planning to strike any truce with them. They will not do so unless they are about to be overrun by them. The fact is that the IS is so embattled in the Levant that it has no time for Khorasan. And, that is good news for the ISI. The same goes for the Afghan Taliban vis-a-vis the IS.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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'Number of IS fighters killed by US bomb crosses 90' - Agencies
An Afghan official says the number of militants killed in an attack by the largest non-nuclear weapon ever used in combat by the U.S. military has risen to 94.

Ataullah Khogyani, spokesman for the provincial governor in Nangarhar, said Saturday the number of Islamic State group dead was up from the 36 reported a day earlier.

A Ministry of Defense official had said Friday that the number of dead could rise as officials assessed the bomb site in Achin district.

The U.S. attack on a tunnel complex in remote eastern Nangarhar province near the Pakistan border killed at least four IS group leaders, Khogyani said. He said a clearance operation was continuing.

There had been heavy fighting in the area in recent weeks between Afghan forces and IS militants.

The number of Islamic State fighters killed by a massive US bomb in eastern Afghanistan has nearly tripled to at least 90, Afghan officials said on Saturday.

The GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb -- dubbed the "Mother Of All Bombs" -- was unleashed in combat for the first time, hitting IS positions in eastern Nangarhar province on Thursday.

The bomb smashed their mountain hideouts, a tunnel-and-cave complex that had been mined against conventional ground attacks, engulfing the remote area in towering flames.

"At least 92 Daesh (IS) fighters were killed in the bombing," Achin district governor Esmail Shinwari told AFP on Saturday. Nangarhar provincial spokesman Attaullah Khogyani gave a toll of 90.

Afghan officials had earlier said the bombing had killed 36 IS fighters.

Mr. Shinwari insisted there were "no military and civilian casualties at all".

Security experts say IS had built their redoubts close to civilian homes, but the government said thousands of local families had already fled the area in recent months of fighting.

The massive bomb was dropped after fighting intensified over the past week and US-backed ground forces struggled to advance on the area. An American special forces soldier was killed last Saturday in Nangarhar while conducting anti-IS operations.

President Ashraf Ghani threw his support behind the bombardment.

But some officials close to him condemned the use of Afghanistan as what they called a testing ground for the weapon, and against a militant group that controls only a tiny sliver of territory and is not considered a huge threat.

IS, notorious for its reign of terror in Syria and Iraq, has made inroads into Afghanistan in recent years, attracting disaffected members of the Pakistani and Afghan Taliban as well as Uzbek Islamists.

But the group has been steadily losing ground in the face of heavy pressure both from US air strikes and a ground offensive led by Afghan forces.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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13 Indians reported killed in U.S. MOAB bombing - The Hindu
An Afghanistan-based news agency said on Tuesday that 13 Indians were killed in the Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB) attack by the U.S. military in Achin district of Nangarhar province last week.

The National Investigation Agency said it was not sure of the claims and was still verifying it.

Last year, as a well thought-out conspiracy, 21 men, women and children from Kerala had left for Afghanistan via Iran to live in the IS-controlled territory. Mainly comprising defectors from Tehrik-i-Taliban (TTP), the Wilayat Khorasan of Islamic State in Afghanistan came into existence in 2015.

National Investigation Agency investigating

The National Investigation Agency was investigating the case and over the past two months, at least two of them Mohammad Hafezuddin and Murshid Mohammad have been killed in drone attacks.

Quoting a credible source, the Afghanistan news agency said, “Thirteen Indian Daesh militants were also among those killed in the attack. Daesh commanders Mohammad and Allah Gupta :roll: were from India.” An National Investigation Agency official said they were in touch with the families of the missing Indians.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by Garooda »

Selectively remembering and reminding the constitution :lol:

What a sad state of affairs. :|
Cleric Syed Sha Atef Ali Al Quaderi today claimed that Bollywood singer Sonu Nigam had shown disrespect to the Constitution by his comment on use of loudspeakers in shrines and that the singer should consider leaving the country.

"Sonu (Nigam) has insulted the Constitution of the country.... I think such a person must consider leaving the country," Quaderi, the vice-president of West Bengal Minority United Council, said here.

"He has also hurt religious sentiments of many Indians by speaking against 'azaan' (Islamic call to worship). He must apologise as soon as possible admitting that he has done a mistake," the cleric told a press conference.

Else, Nigam should fulfil the rest of the conditions set down by me to get the reward of Rs 10 lakh, he said.

"Sonu has shaved off his head. But he still needs to do two more things I had mentioned about wearing a garland of old shoes and touring the country. Once he fulfils these two deeds, I will hold a press conference and hand over the cheque to him," he said.

On April 18, Quaderi had announced a Rs 10 lakh reward to anyone who would tonsure the singer's hair, put a garland of old torn shoes around his neck and parade him around the country.

The Bollywood singer had yesterday got his head tonsured at a press conference in Mumbai where he said that his tweets were against the use of loudspeakers in morning sermons and not aimed at any particular religion.
Last edited by SSridhar on 21 Apr 2017 06:28, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: This thread is specifically to discuss Daesh, ISIS. This post belongs elsewhere. Please move.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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UP ATS busts ISIS-inspired terror module, three arrested - ToI
The Delhi Police special cell and Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) today reportedly busted an ISIS-inspired terror module spanning five states.

Three persons were arrested on suspicion of terror-related activities in a massive operation carried out simultaneously in Mumbai, Jalandhar, Narkatiaganj in Bihar, Bijnor and Muzaffarnagar. Six suspects were also taken into custody for interrogation.


"UP ATS conducted joint anti-terror raids in Maharashtra, Punjab, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh in coordination with police of the five states," UP ATS Chief Asim Arun said.

In a joint operation by UP ATS and STF, two people were arrested after a raid was carried out at a mosque in Bijnor's Barhapur area. The ATS had received intelligence that some known terror suspects in West UP had become active and were recruiting new members in preparation to carry out a terror strike.

The operation was conducted with the help of the Special Cell of Delhi Police, Crime Investigation Cell of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra ATS , Punjab Police and Bihar Police.

Early on Thursday morning, the raid team led by ATS arrested Muhammad Fauzan and Muhammad Tanveer, who were on their way to the mosque for morning prayers. Barhapur police station SO Mukesh Kumar confirmed the arrests.

SSP (Dehat) Dharamvir Singh said the police had been informed about the ATS raid, but had played no role in it.

Eyewitnesses said the ATS had left their vehicles some distance off and had approached the suspects on foot.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by Sachin »

IS commander from Kerala reportedly killed in US bombing......
Sajeer Mangalasseri, the head of Islamic State volunteers from Kerala, is suspected to have been killed in the US air raids in Nangarhar province in Afghanisthan, the national media reported quoting intelligence agencies...
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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After the MOAB burst, I wrote:
SSridhar wrote:In any case, I hope the 22 terrorists from Kerala who are supposed to have joined the IS in Nangarhar are wiped out now.
Slowly, we have started hearing good news from there . . .
Sachin wrote:IS commander from Kerala reportedly killed in US bombing......
Sajeer Mangalasseri, the head of Islamic State volunteers from Kerala, is suspected to have been killed in the US air raids in Nangarhar province in Afghanisthan, the national media reported quoting intelligence agencies...
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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2 men sentenced to 7 years in jail for recruiting, raising funds for ISIS - PTI
Special court today awarded seven-year jail term to two men after they pleaded guilty of criminally conspiring to raise funds and recruiting people for the terror outfit ISIS.

District judge Amar Nath convicted accused Azhar-ul- Islam (24) from Jammu and Kashmir and Mohammed Farhan Shaikh (25) from Maharashtra, following their U-turn more than a month after the court framed charges against them.

The accused had moved an application through advocate M S Khan saying they "are remorseful of the acts alleged against them. There is no prior criminal record against them and they want to join the mainstream and want to be productive for the society and want to rehabilitate themselves".

"The applicants are pleading guilty without any pressure, threat, coercion or undue influence," the plea had said.


The court had last month framed charges against both the accused and 36-year-old Adnan Hassan for allegedly hatching a criminal conspiracy to raise funds for the ISIS and recruiting people for the terror outfit. The trial against Hassan is continuing separately before the same court.

The court had framed the charges for alleged offences of criminal conspiracy under the IPC) and under provisions of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) had registered a case against the three accused on January 28 last year. They were arrested the next day on arrival here from Abu Dhabi.

According to the probe agency, Hassan and Shaikh had been frequently visiting the UAE in connection with jobs since 2008 and 2012 respectively, while Islam had gone to join them in the UAE in July, 2015.


Hassan was earlier allegedly affiliated to the Indian Mujahideen and later got inclined towards ISIS, it alleged.

The charge sheet filed by NIA had claimed that the accused persons, in connivance with other known and unknown associates, had hatched a criminal conspiracy to propagate the ideology, recruit persons, raise funds and facilitate the travel of those recruited to Syria to join the ISIS and further its activities.

The final report said that in furtherance of the conspiracy, the accused had created multiple email IDs, used multiple mobile numbers obtained from their associates from different countries, formed various online forums and groups on Facebook, WhatsApp, Kik, VKontakte, Viber and Skype, using the internet and invited and associated like-minded persons, residents of different countries.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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Kerala ‘IS man’ denies Indian casualties - The Hindu
Ashfak Majeed, 27, one among the 21 youth from the State who was reported to have joined the Islamic State nearly a year ago, has in a recent communication termed “fake” media reports suggesting that at least 13 Indians were killed in the Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB) in Afghanistan.

In intermittent communications purported to have been made between April 13 and 17 by Mr. Majeed with activist-writer B.C.A. Rahman, a resident of Padanna, on “Telegram App” messages, he has justified the stance adopted by them — 17 from Padanna and Thrikkaripur localities and four from Palakkad — maintaining that they did not intend to return home and are content in their anonymous location where the terror group is engaged in a fierce fight with the U.S. headed allied forces.

He, however, confirmed that Murshid, 25, son of Muhamed, a resident of Vadakkepuram locality in Padanna, was killed in the U.S. drone strike in Afghanistan


Mr. Majeed said they had resolved to become “shaheed” martyrs in the IS fight against the U.S. forces and had contempt in leading a life in a democratic set-up which, he described, went against theocracy. He asked Mr. Rahman to show the message to his father and inform him that he would love to meet him in paradise rather than return home.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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Blast targets NATO convoy in Kabul - AFP
A powerful blast targeting an armoured NATO convoy in Kabul killed at least eight people and wounded 28 on Wednesday, including three coalition troops, officials said in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group.

The explosion, which came during morning rush hour on a busy road near the U.S. embassy and NATO headquarters, killed “mostly” civilians, an Interior Ministry spokesman said without giving a breakdown.

Three coalition service members received “non-life threatening wounds’ but are in stable condition, a spokesman for U.S. Forces-Afghanistan said, without confirming their nationalities.

The attack was claimed by the IS via its Amaq propaganda agency.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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Guess what NIA found: IS group from Afghanistan WhatsApping with friends in Kerala - Toby Antony, New Indian Express
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) team probing the case against suspected IS members from Kerala has stumbled upon a WhatsApp group operating from Afghanistan communicating with certain people in Kasargod.

NIA, which was in Kasargod last week, interrogated persons who were members of the group last day.


According to NIA officers, the WhatsApp group was started by Kasargod native Abdul Rashid who led 21 persons to Afghanistan. “We have examined a few witnesses at Kasargod and extracted messages as part of the investigation into the IS case being probed by our team.

Abdul Rashid started the group using the mobile number taken from Afghanistan and added his acquaintances in Kerala. His family members have identified the Afghan number used by him,” an NIA officer said.

However, NIA suspects the group may have been formed to radicalise and invite more people to IS. The group used to speak about the lives of those who migrated from Kerala to Afghanistan.

“It might be part of Dawah work assigned by the people handling them in Afghanistan. It is possible the group was formed to seek clarification about the conditions and virtues of life in IS after reports of US MOAB attack at IS held territory in Afghanistan,” the officer said.

However, NIA is not registering a case in this matter as it has decided to include it as part of the investigation in the case registered against the 14 persons from Kasargod who migrated to Afghanistan.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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‘IS leader in Afghanistan killed’ - AFP
The head of Islamic State in Afghanistan — described as the mastermind behind high-profile attacks including an assault on a military hospital that claimed at least 50 lives — has been killed, U.S. and Afghan officials said.

Abdul Hasib, whose group is affiliated with IS in Iraq and Syria, was killed last month in a targeted raid by special forces in the eastern province of Nangarhar, the presidential palace in Kabul said in a statement.

The second leader of the jihadist group to be killed by U.S. and Afghan forces in less than nine months, his death came days after Washington dropped its largest non-nuclear bomb on IS hideouts in the same area.

Till annihilation

Analysts described him as “obscure”, but authorities ascribed responsibility to him for assaults in Kabul, including the savage attack on a military hospital in March when assailants stabbed bedridden patients and threw grenades into crowded wards.

“He had ordered the attack” on the hospital, the presidential statement said, adding that Kabul will fight IS and other extremist groups “until they are annihilated”.

NATO commander in Afghanistan General John Nicholson confirmed Hasib’s killing and warned that “any ISIS member that comes to Afghanistan will meet the same fate”.

“This is the second ISIS-K emir we have killed in nine months, along with dozens of their leaders and hundreds of their fighters,” he added, using the acronym denoting the group's local affiliate, Islamic State Khorasan Province.

The first, Hafiz Saeed, was killed in a U.S. air strike also in Nangarhar province in July last year.

NATO spokesman Captain Bill Salvin later elaborated on the raid, telling AFP: “There were women and children in the compound” where Hasib was killed.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by SSridhar »

Southern Perils - Nijeesh N, South Asia Intelligence Review
Media reports and confirmations to SAIR from family members of Islamic State (IS or Daesh) and al Qaeda recruits from the southern Indian State of Kerala, indicate that two Daesh volunteers and an al Qaeda volunteer were killed in three separate US drone attacks in Afghanistan and Syria in the month of April. Bestin Vincent aka Yahya, who belonged to the Palakkad District was killed in US strikes in the Nangarhar Province in Afghanistan on April 29, 2017. Murshid Muhammed from Kasaragod District, who had also joined Daesh was killed in the second week of April 2017 (date not specified), again, in Nangarhar. Abu Thahir from Palakkad District had joined al Qaeda, and was killed in Syria on April 4, 2017.

Earlier, T. K. Hafeezudin, from Kasaragod District, who had joined Daesh, was killed in a US drone strike in the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan, on February 25, 2017.

While Abu Thahir had reportedly gone missing in 2013 and had joined al Qaeda, the remaining three deceased were part of a group 21 persons, including six women and three children, who went missing from Kasaragod District in June 2016 and had reportedly joined Daesh.
Of these 21, 17 were from two neighbouring villages, Padanna and Trikkaripur in Kasaragod District, while the remaining four were from Palakkad District, some 305 kilometres further south.

According to partial data compiled by the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP), at least 28 youth from Kerala, including the 21 already mentioned, had travelled to attend Daesh training camps in Afghanistan/Syria/Iraq. Another 21 youth from other southern Indian states (Karnataka, nine; Tamil Nadu and Telangana, five each; and Andhra Pradesh, two) had also travelled to these battlefields. The total number of Indians who had travelled to these areas is estimated to stands at 67. Incidentally, according to reports, Haja Fakkruddin from Parangipettai village in the Cuddalore District of Tamil Nadu was one of the first Indians to have joined Daesh in Syria in January 2014.

A number of Indians have also been arrested or detained before they could leave the country. On November 22, 2016, Union Minister of State for Home Hansraj Ahir informed the Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament) that as many as 68 sympathisers or supporters of Daesh had been arrested across the country, till that date. The Minister added that 50 of these persons had been arrested by security agencies in 2016, of which 26 belonged to southern Indian states [Telangana (11), Karnataka (7), Kerala (6), and Tamil Nadu (2)].

Daesh in South India has reportedly found an ally in Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) which has established a presence in several parts of India, including the South, in recent times. JMB, a terror outfit which operates in Bangladesh, after suffering decisive losses in Bangladesh after Sheikh Hasina came to power in 2009, shifted some of its camps to India in an effort to regroup. The formation has once more become active in Bangladesh and has sworn allegiance to Daesh. Reports, meanwhile, indicate that JMB modules in Tamil Nadu and Telangana have been establishing operational capabilities in coordination with Daesh. Investigations found that several of the persons arrested in connection with Daesh had a JMB link as well.

While Daesh has found some sympathisers down South, raising security concerns, the activities of the ‘Base Movement’, an al Qaeda-affiliated group, has also drawn the attention of security agencies. 'Base Movement' is suspected to have orchestrated five different bomb blasts in Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka since April 2016. The incidents include:

November 1, 2016: A low intensity improvised explosive device (IED) blast took place in a car parked near the judicial first class magistrate court in Malappuram, Kerala. No one was injured in the incident. Police recovered a box with ‘Base Movement’ written on it, along with a notice which claimed the blast for the ‘Base Movement’ containing a photo of slain al Qaeda founder Osama Bin Laden.

September 12, 2016: A low-intensity blast occurred in the district Court premises in the Nellore town of Andhra Pradesh. There were no casualties.

August 1, 2016: Two persons were injured in an IED explosion at a public toilet in a court complex in Mysuru in Karnataka.

June 15, 2016: A bomb hidden in a tiffin box and planted inside a parked jeep in the Kollam Civil Station premises in the Kollam District of Kerala, exploded at around 10.45 am, injuring one person. The civil station houses the District Collector's office, apart from several Courts and Government offices.

April 7, 2016: The first such explosion took place at a parking lot in the Chittoor Court complex in Andhra Pradesh, injuring three persons. Another bomb was defused.

The modus operandi in each of these low intensity attacks was similar. According to security sources, arrested members of the ‘The Base Movement’ confessed that module only wanted to register its presence at a time when there was a huge traction towards Daesh. They told the investigators that their aim was not to kill but only spread fear and that is the reason they planted low intensity devices in such locations, so as to cause no casualties. Reports indicate that the elusive fugitive Al Umma leader, Abu Bakr Siddique aka Kakka, was the brain behind the emergence of this new terror formation – ‘The Base Movement’. The group was active across all the five South Indian States, and had sent several letters to authorities since early 2015 to announce its existence and warn of attacks. The first such letter was reportedly sent to the then Additional Chief Secretary to Karnataka Chief Minister K. Siddaramaiah, in January 2015, where the group stated that it was commencing activities in that year (2015). No incident was, however, reported in 2015.

On November 28, 2016, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) along with Tamil Nadu and Telangana Police, in a joint operation, arrested three suspected members of The Base Movement, identified as Abbas Ali (27), Suleiman Mohammad Abdullah (23) and Samsun Karim Raja from Madurai District in Tamil Nadu. Again, on November 29, 2016, the Joint Team arrested another two members, identified as Mohammed Ayub Ali (25) and Shamsudeen (25) from Madurai District. Further investigation revealed that these persons were part of the terrorist outfit, Al Umma and had regrouped under the banner of The Base Movement and had sworn allegiance to al Qaeda. It is suspected that their allegiance is to al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), formed in August 2014 with the official name of “Jamaat Qaidat al-jihad fi’shibhi al-qarrat al-Hindiya’’ or “Organisation of the Base of Jihad in the Indian Subcontinent’’. On April 9, 2017, Kerala Police arrested another two ‘Base Movement’ members, N. Abubaker and his aide A. Abdurahman, from Madurai District (seems a very active district) in Tamil Nadu.

While the emergence of these two groups is a worrying development, concerns persist regarding the presence of various Pakistan-backed terror formations such as Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), and Indian Mujahideen (IM). According to the SATP database, after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, about 31 persons, including 19 civilians, five Security Force (SF) personnel and seven terrorists have been killed in seven terrorist attacks in different parts of South India. Incidentally, the last of the major terrorist incidents targeting civilians outside strife-torn Jammu & Kashmir, the Northeast and Punjab, in which more than 10 persons were killed, was reported from Andhra Pradesh. On February 21, 2013, 17 persons were killed and another 117 injured in twin blasts at Dilsukhnagar in Hyderabad.

Since 26/11, 2008, as many as 595 Islamist terrorist suspects have been arrested from five south Indian States – Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana. The number of arrested persons stood at 88 in 2016, 98 in 2015, 110 in 2014, 101 in 2013, 77 in 2012, 34 in 2011, 22 in 2010, 20 in 2009 and 35 in 2008. At least 10 persons have already been arrested in 2017, till April 30. Those arrested included terrorist cadres, persons involved in Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) cases, which are integrally linked to Pakistan-backed terrorism, and Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agents.

Meanwhile, radicalisation is on rise, as one April 9, 2017, report observed, Multiple new Salafi outfits such as Niche of Truth (Kerala), Peace Educational Foundation (Kerala), Jamiat ul Muflihaat (Hyderabad), Discover Islam Education Trust (Bengaluru)… have emerged during the last few years, which have provided direct access to indoctrination materials {I was recently in Kerala and saw several mosques with name-boards proclaiming themselves as 'salafi mosques'.} Cadres of radically inclined Popular Front of India, Tamil Nadu Tauheed Jamat and Kerala Nadwathul Mujahideen factions are increasing in numbers significantly… Others are also getting motivated by reading material available online… Another example is the immense growth in the membership of Kerala Nadwatahul Mujahideen factions whose combined strength has grown from about 25,200 in 1993 to 65,200 till date. In the last decade, the membership of Tamil Nadu Tauheed Jamat has increased from 20,000 to one lakh. Another radically inclined outfit PFI has grown from a cadre strength of about 45,000 during 2009 to over 1,20,000...

While these various formations are not directly connected to terrorism, they create a base of non-violent radicalization that creates tremendous potential for recruitment to extremist violence. It will be impossible to contain radical Islamist violence unless this underpinning of diversified and widespread non-violent radicalization is addressed. Focus on preventive measures and counter-radicalization is therefore imperative to contain future prospects of Islamist terrorist/radical formations making further inroads in India's south and, indeed, across the rest of the country.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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Assessing the Islamic State threat to India: It is a serious but manageable challenge - Dhruva Jaishankar and Sara Perlangeli, ToI
The so-called Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) or Daesh, is back in the news in India. Recent reports suggest that Indian IS fighters were killed by US forces in Afghanistan, and the Telangana police has been accused of trying to lure and entrap potential IS sympathisers. This raises the question of how big a challenge IS poses to Indian interests and national security.

To investigate, we assessed all Indian citizens confirmed to have affiliated themselves with IS. This includes those who attempted or succeeded in travelling to Syria, Iraq, or Afghanistan as recruits, as well as propagandists, recruiters, funders, conspirators and other sympathisers. While acknowledging that this comprises only a sample of actual IS affiliates in India, a few tentative conclusions can nonetheless be drawn.

First, only 142 Indian citizens (132 named) can be confirmed to have affiliated with IS in some way. This suggests that IS has made only scant inroads in India, relative to Europe, North America, Southeast Asia, the former Soviet Union, and Australia – let alone West Asia and North Africa. In fact, some of these Indians were radicalised abroad, including in the US, UK, Singapore and Australia.

That said, the numbers of Indians linked to IS has steadily grown. From only one confirmed individual in 2013, the numbers grew to six in 2014, 35 in 2015 and 75 in 2016. The trend may now be plateauing, with 25 in the first four months of 2017. The IS challenge is a serious one, but does not yet appear to be on par with other countries or with other terrorist challenges facing India.

Second, certain states in the south and west appear particularly prone to IS-inspired radicalism. We identified 37 recruits or sympathisers from Kerala, 21 from Telangana, 19 from Maharashtra, 16 from Karnataka, 15 from UP, six from MP, five from Tamil Nadu, four from Gujarat, three each from Uttarakhand and Bengal, two from Jammu & Kashmir, and one each from Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Delhi and Rajasthan.

The fact that over three-quarters come from just five states suggests that localised responses may be more beneficial than any national policy. Additionally, with the exception of UP, these states represent among the most prosperous and best-networked parts of the country. This is in line with similar trends elsewhere, with more liberal or developed countries (such as Tunisia and Morocco among Arab states, or Australia, the Nordic nations, France and Belgium globally) among the most vulnerable to IS-inspired radicalisation.

Third, India appears to have a relatively good track record of countering the IS threat. 85 of 142 known IS sympathisers from India (60%) have been arrested or interrogated, while two returned home, although successful cases are probably overrepresented. A significant number of those Indians who have been arrested were intercepted at Indian airports, and several were caught in transit before being deported back to India. Of those that were not arrested or apprehended, 11 have been confirmed killed: six in Syria, three in Afghanistan, one in a police encounter in India, and one in either Iraq or Syria. This means at least 43 are active or at large, although many of these have been reported (but not confirmed) killed.

Finally, despite many cases of self-radicalisation, IS often tends to graft onto pre-existing organisations. About one-third of the reported Indian IS sympathisers have affiliations with other groups, including the Indian Mujahideen (IM), Students’ Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), or IS-inspired groups such as Junood ul Khalifa fil Hind (JKH). IS radicalisation also tends to spread through family, school or neighbourhood ties, often coalescing into cells, such as Ansarul Khilafa Kerala.

As IS is defeated as a state – a self-proclaimed Caliphate with defined territory and a military – it could very well morph into a global network, akin to al-Qaida. This presents a new kind of challenge for India and the world. Without unnecessarily exaggerating the threat, details available in public about IS recruitment and propaganda can be a valuable way of anticipating its future challenge to India’s national security.

Dhruva Jaishankar is a Fellow and Sara Perlangeli was an intern at Brookings India
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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Kerala recruits under IS training in Afghanistan still alive: Intel agencies - New Indian Express
Most of the 21 Kerala youth who had joined the Islamic State in Afghanistan and were feared killed in US bombings on April 14 are reportedly alive, Intelligence sources said here [New Delhi] on Tuesday.

Earlier, reports had claimed that the international terror group’s Kerala recruits may have been killed after the US had dropped a GBU-43 bomb, the largest non-nuclear bomb it has ever used in combat, in eastern Afghanistan’s Nangarhar, close to the Pakistan border, against a series of caves used by the Islamic State terrorists.

“The news that 21 youth from Kerala who were being trained by IS in Afghanistan may have died in the bombing is not correct. Many of them are reportedly in touch with their family members through WhatsApp and other social media platforms,” a senior Intelligence Bureau official said.
Some of them, the official claimed, are allegedly trying to indoctrinate more youth back home through social media propaganda.

“We have learnt it through surveillance and scanning Internet chatrooms and social media,” the official added.


In July last year, seven persons had gone missing from Kasargode and four from Palakkad and their disappearance had come to light when relatives of the missing persons took up the matter with the local MP and MLA.

A preliminary investigation revealed that they were radicalised on social media and went to Afghanistan to join terror training camps before travelling further to Syria.

Nearly 140 youth from across the country, who are at present being de-radicalised with the help of the community elders, are under the close watch of the National Investigation Agency. The federal agency has desisted from any punitive action against them as part of the Centre’s policy to de-radicalise such vulnerable youth instead of initiating criminal action against them.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

Post by Sachin »

IS campaigner in Kerala a native of Trikaripur: NIA......
Kasaragod native Haris had filed a complaint to the police the other day saying he was included in the WhatsApp group 'Message to Kerala' without his permission and that he has been receiving terror messages....
---
This place - Trikarippur - is also a "secular & liberal" (communist) area.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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Call it Islamic struggle or die: Hizbul Mujahideen to Hurriyat - M.Saleem Pandit, ToI
SRINAGAR: Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist Zakir Bhat+ , who succeeded Burhan Wani after his killing in an encounter last year, threatened the Hurriyat separatists on Friday saying they would be hanged if they continued to describe Kashmir as a "political struggle" instead of an "Islamic uprising".

In a strongly worded audio message to separatists shared on social media, Zakir Bhat, aka Moosa, said: " Hum kufr ko chhod kar pehley aap ko latkayeingey. Lal Chowk mein inkey galey kateingey ! (Before we kill the disbelievers, we'll hang you... your heads will be chopped at Lal Chowk)."

Zakir insisted that the 27-year-old armed movement in Kashmir was an Islamic struggle, not a political fight, and also warned separatists not to meddle in the setting up a caliphate in J&K along the lines of the rule established by terror group Islamic State.

He warned them against using mosques and other Islamic symbols and slogans if they believed that Kashmir was a political struggle.

Zakir, a native of terrorist-infested Tral in Pulwama district, was studying to be an engineer in a Chandigarh college before picking up arms in July 2016.

"I am not an ulema (sic), but scholars here are corrupt... fearful of crossing limits that they may be imprisoned. That is why we have to come forward," Zakir said, quoting a verse from the Quran. "They are actually political leaders and they can't be our leaders," Zakir said. "Our fight is purely for the sake of Islam, and we shall implement the shariat in Kashmir, insha-Allah," hesaid.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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IS sympathiser turns to church to evade arrest - Vijaita Singh, The Hindu
A radical Islamist, who turned an atheist, and later a Christian, to escape the attention of law enforcement agencies. This is the story of Abid Khan alias Paul, who is now in the custody of the National Investigation Agency for “furthering the illegal activities of the Islamic State in India and Sri Lanka”.

The interrogation report of the 24-year-old Bengaluru resident reveals a bizarre tale of how a small-time tailor engaged with a closed group of Islamists before ending up in a seminary attached to a church. Before he took an interest in the activities of the IS, Khan was an active member of Hizb-ut-Tahrir (HuT), a closed Islamic fundamentalist group run by South Asians living in the U.K, with a large following in Pakistan and Bangladesh, but unheard of in India.

A school dropout, he told officials he wanted to go to Syria to “know whether they were telling the truth about the Caliphate.” Khan was also in touch with a few members of the Junood-ul-Khilafa-Fil-Hind (a group owing allegiance to the IS, seeking to establish Caliphate in India), but he wanted to go to Syria and “not create any problem in India.”

The Hindu visited Khan’s house in Bengaluru but found it locked. Neighbours said Khan was a recluse and did not mingle with anybody.

In a countrywide raid in January 2016, NIA arrested 18 men belonging to Junood-ul-Khilafa-Fil-Hind on to recruit Muslim youths to work for the terrorist outfit and commit acts of terrorism in India.

After this module was busted, Khan sensed trouble and to escape arrest, he took refuge at a church in Bengaluru. He told a church employee he was “disturbed and wanted to leave behind his old connections and wanted to follow Jesus Christ.”

He trimmed his beard and changed the way he dressed. He told people at the church that “he was being tracked by a radical Muslim organisation, which had hacked his e-mail account and there was a danger to his life.” He thought that if he was baptised, the church would send him abroad. He cooked up a story that he had a dream of “building a church and the place was the world’s largest Muslim country — Indonesia.” Khan allegedly had befriended an Indonesian woman on social media and wanted to travel to that country to be with her. The church sent him to Sri Lanka instead and asked him to learn more about Christianity. {So, Khan's hunch that the Church would send him abroad was correct, then! Why should somebody be sent abroad to learn 'Christianity'? There is something very fishy with the church as well. The church must also be investigated into. Is it because the crackdown on the NGOs has dried up funds and visas for 'evangelical field work' are becoming tougher to get?}

In March, he left for Colombo and stayed at a base camp in Madampet with Japanese, Bhutanese nationals and a U.S. Pastor. After his return from Sri Lanka, Khan was sent to a church in Kullu, Himachal Pradesh to study further on Christianity.

Students at this church were told not to have any love relationship, talk to women only in groups, and were not allowed a mobile phone or an electronic device. Once he completed his course, Khan was asked to go back to Bengaluru but he insisted that he wanted to stay in the mountains. He also got a mobile phone connection and contacted his elder brother through Signal, an encrypted messaging service, in October. The brother told him that a few people had come to enquire about him. This made Khan determined not to return. But he was arrested in December by the Himachal Pradesh police.

After his arrest he told interrogators that for six years he had closely followed the speeches of prominent cleric and member of All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB)- Sajjad Nomani, but gave up on him as he didn’t find his preaching Islamic enough. He then enrolled himself in a madrassa (Islamic seminary) and then in 2014, he came in contact with HuT.

An official said they were more concerned about his close association with HuT, which creates “radical fodder for terrorist groups” and the outfit had no active presence in India. As per Khan’s interrogation, in 2014, he came in contact with “dedicated members of HuT,” which included a software engineer and a person who ran a school in Bengaluru.

“He attended meetings where they discussed various issues in the Middle East and Gaza. They also discussed the re-establishment of an Islamic Caliphate and enforcement of Sharia in India. Over time, Khan became one of the most trustworthy members of HuT and also became a recruiter for them. In 2015, the HuT members realised that he was in touch with IS operatives, so they distanced themselves from Khan,” the interrogation report says. Khan said that he got inclined towards the IS by watching news channels.

He said he watched Islamic preacher Zakir Naik’s videos as well as those of Mufti Abdus Sami Qasmi , Anjer Shah those of among others.

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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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There is a huge expose of Indian operators of ISIS on the air in Republic TV right now. Has been going on for a while.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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Need to see if govt will bring back POTA.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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Republic‏Verified account @republic
Maulana Mohd. Sajid Rashidi: If Hindus can wish for a Hindu country, why can't I wish for India to be a Muslim country
Good he said their true intentions.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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ISIS has failed to establish hold in India: Rajnath Singh - ANI, New Indian Express
Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday asserted that ISIS has been unable to establish a hold in India, adding that there is an improvement in the security situation across the country.

“We have been successful in countering the challenges posed by the ISIS,” Rajnath said in a press conference on the completion of three years of the Narendra Modi-led government.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent

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Joint sea fight against IS, says Malaysia - AFP, The Hindu
Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia will launch joint patrols in waters off the Mindanao region this month to counter threats from Islamic State group militants, Malaysia’s Defence Minister said on Saturday.

Hishammuddin Hussein made the comments at a security conference in Singapore as Philippine troops continued to battle self-styled Islamic State group gunmen who attacked the city of Marawi on Mindanao island nearly two weeks ago. He said joint sea patrols in the waters bordering the three nations would kick off on June 19, with air patrols starting at a later date.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has declared martial law in Mindanao
in response to the crisis.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent & its Neighbourhood

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Top IS leadership targeted in Mastung operation - DAWN
A number of key commanders of the militant Islamic State (IS) group have reportedly been killed in a major intelligence-led counterterrorism operation near Mastung in Balochistan, security officials told Dawn.

The operation in the hills near Mastung started on Friday and was continuing when this report was filed late Saturday night.

The action was prompted by intelligence reports that two Chinese-language instructors kidnapped from Quetta on May 24 were being held in the area. The security forces are said to have recovered the vehicle allegedly used in the kidnapping of the Chinese duo from the area.


Earlier in the month, about 28 people were killed in a suicide attack on the convoy of Senate Deputy Chairman Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri in Mastung.

The Saturday night operation was kept highly classified, according to a military source, to prevent any leakage of information.

The Inter-Services Public Relations, the media wing of the military, did not immediately comment on the reports about the operation.

According to reports, top 10 commanders of the IS from different parts of the country had assembled in the Mastung area for a meeting when the raid began. It is claimed that at least eight or nine of the commanders were killed and the remaining have been captured. The names of the slain commanders were not immediately available.

At least seven troops were injured in the operation, including three officers. Two of the injured soldiers are said to be in a critical condition.

The level of the IS leadership claimed to have been taken out, when confirmed, indicates that it could be the biggest operation against the militant outfit since Lashkar-e-Jhangvi leader Malik Ishaq was killed along with his associates in Punjab in 2015, who were then said to be close to joining the IS.

Security sources say elimination of top leadership would serve a major blow to the IS in Pakistan. Officially the government denies presence of the militant organisation in the country.

A security source said the terrain of the area was very difficult and the troops had to physically go there because there was no option.

“The battle is going on ... kidnapped Chinese persons are inside a deep cave being used as command base by the IS. Special Services Group commandos are going in,” a security source said in a late-night update.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent & its Neighbourhood

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London attacks herald guerrilla terror tactics - Rajeev Deshpande, ToI
The London attacks are the latest in a trend of "jihadi guerrilla warfare" carried out by self-radicalised Islamists as well as individuals and groups acting on the directions of Islamic State handlers located in remote regions controlled by the organisation.

The use of a heavy vehicle to mow into crowds and the stabbing spree in central London bear the palmprints of the extremist group's methods.
IS propagandists have repeatedly urged adherents to attack host societies if unable to travel to Syria and Iraq to wage battle, arguing that such actions will please the group's leaders and are a weighty blow in the cause of the alleged caliphate the movement espouses.

IS spokespersons have urged its terror footsoldiers to abandon any compunction over killing civilians, arguing that such distinctions do not apply to "impure" societies and for good measure invoke drone attacks to spur a sense of vengeance. British PM Theresa May denounced the "single evil ideology of Islamist extremism", indicating the UK government sees the outrage as act of jihadi terrorism. The religious invocations of the attackers reported by witnesses seem to buttress this conclusion.

The urban warfare police forces are faced with is difficult to anticipate even with highly advanced technical surveillance. The dangers stem from home grown terrorists as was the case with the Westminster attacker whose family had come from Pakistan. But the threat has also originated from among refugees fleeing the middle-east whose ranks include radicals, sometimes infiltrated by the IS.

The conservative beliefs of the new populations make integration more difficult as many arriving in Europe are suffused with the conviction that host societies should change rather than them. The genuine sufferings of thousands escaping the chaos in the middle-east sharpens the dilemma for democratic nations.

The role of IS handlers has been uncovered by Indian agencies probing IS plots and has been supplemented by statements of individuals who have returned or were deported.

The IS has consistently encouraged recruits to take to arms and on occasion has even provided a support network.


The identity of the individuals acting on behalf of the IS is shrouded in mystery and they are often known by names,almost certainly assumed, and remain in contact with terror cells through encrypted chats and emails that use servers that are located beyond the reach of conventional service providers.

Their actions have, however, unleashed the spectre of sudden guerrilla-style attacks promoted by the IS in a bid to inflict pain on its targets and increase paranoia among the general public.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent & its Neighbourhood

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Three killed in attacks on Iranian parliament, Khomenei's mausoleum claimed by IS - DAWN
At least three people were reported killed and several others injured in two separate incidents after armed men burst into Tehran's parliament building where a session was underway and the mausoleum of revolutionary founder Ruhollah Khomeini, with state media reporting at least one suicide bombing.

An Islamic State-controlled news agency said the militant group had claimed responsibility for the attack.

A female suicide bomber entered Khomeini's mausoleum and opened fire before blowing herself up with a suicide vest, reported state media. Later, a second suicide bomber detonated explosives outside the shrine, state broadcaster IRIB reported. A gardener was also killed when armed assailants entered the grounds of the mausoleum in Tehran, the ISNA news agency reported.

The ILNA news agency added that security forces were dismantling a bomb inside the mausoleum. The identity and the motivation of the assailant remain unclear, Tasnim news agency reported.

In another apparently coordinated attack at the Iranian parliament complex some 20 kilometres away in Tehran, a security guard and one other person were killed when gunmen burst into the parliament complex, ISNA reported.

One of the attackers blew himself up on the fourth floor of the parliament office building as the siege continued.

"Four men entered the parliament in the morning and opened fire, injuring three guards. One of the assailants was arrested," IRNA quoted a member of the Iranian parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission as saying.

There were conflicting reports from inside the parliament complex, with some reports saying the situation had been brought under control while others said the shooting was continuing, with the buildings under lockdown.

ISNA quoted a member of the parliament as saying that all the parliament doors were shut and one of the assailants was surrounded by security forces.

The city was on lockdown, with streets blocked and the metro closed, and journalists kept away from the shrine by police.

Iranian state media said police helicopters were circling over the parliament building and that all mobile phone lines from inside were disconnected.

Interior Minister Abdolrahman Fazli told ISNA he had convened a special meeting of the country's security council.

IS claims responsibility for Tehran attacks

The militant Islamic State (IS) group have claimed the twin attacks in the Iranian capital, IS-controlled propaganda agency Amaq said.

“Fighters from the IS attacked the Khomeini mausoleum and the parliament building in Tehran,” the agency said, citing a “security source"
.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent & its Neighbourhood

Post by Tuan »

At the dawn of a new world order where the leaders of the western liberal democracies including the USA, the UK, Canada, Germany and France announce their vision and mission of the future leadership for the "free world"; Russia, China and India on the other hand compete with each other for sphere of regional and global influence; amid tensions in Korean peninsula, the so-called Islamic State claims that it has found a new target in the Middle East, as its suicide bombers blew themselves up in Tehran, after influencing the UK election by waging two attacks in two weeks. Meanwhile, Iran's Revolutionary Guards accused Saudi Arabia and the US of being behind the attacks. Is this the beginning of a new world order or chaos? Interesting times ahead...

Tehran attackers 'were IS recruits from Iran'
Iran says the attackers who killed 12 people in the capital Tehran were Iranians who had joined so-called Islamic State (IS).

Suicide bombers attacked parliament and the mausoleum of the Islamic Republic's founder Ayatollah Khomeini.

All the attackers were killed. Five people believed to be planning a third attack were arrested, officials said.

Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guards accused Saudi Arabia and the US of being behind the attacks.

The violence comes amid heightened tension in the Middle East, with Saudi Arabia and other Arab states cutting ties with Qatar over alleged support for Islamist militants and closer ties with Iran.

Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia and Shia-majority Iran are staunch regional rivals.
In an interview on state TV, Reza Seifollahi, deputy chief of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said the attackers "had joined Daesh [IS] from a number of regions inside Iran."

IS earlier claimed the attacks - a first for Iran - and threatened further assaults on Iranian Shia Muslims.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards vowed revenge for the bloodshed, but pointed the finger at the US and Saudi Arabia in the wake of President Donald Trump's recent visit to the kingdom.

"This terrorist action, coming one week after the meeting of the president of the United States with the leader of the one of the region's reactionary governments (Saudi Arabia)... shows they are involved in this savage action," it said in a statement.
The US and Saudi Arabia both condemned the attacks.

US President Donald Trump said he was praying for the victims but added that "states that sponsor terrorism risk falling victim to the evil they promote".

Claiming the attack, IS posted a video which showed what it claimed was footage from inside the parliament building.

A voice is heard saying, in Arabic: "We're not going anywhere. We're staying forever."
BBC Persian's Jenny Norton says that despite Iran's active involvement in fighting IS in both Iraq and Syria, the Sunni group has not until now carried out any attacks inside Iran, and appears to have little support in this predominantly Shia country.

However, our analyst says, in recent months the group has stepped up its Farsi-language propaganda efforts - targeting Iran's restive Sunni minority.
Iranian intelligence agencies claim to have foiled a number of IS-inspired plots.
But by mounting a successful attack, IS could claim a major coup against a traditional foe that other Sunni jihadist groups, including its rival al-Qaeda, have failed to target in the past.

What is the likely effect of the attacks?

Middle East analyst Dina Esfandiary says one possible consequence will be increased calls by hardliners for tougher action against IS in Iraq and Syria.

Public support for action in Iraq is likely to grow, as it did when IS took swathes of territory in the country in 2014.

But Iran's involvement in Syria is not popular, our analyst says - it is seen as having few benefits and costing too many Iranian lives.

The attacks will also boost the popularity of the Revolutionary Guards, seen as protectors of the nation.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent & its Neighbourhood

Post by SSridhar »

Islamic State claims it killed two Chinese in Pakistan - Reuters, ToI
Islamic State has killed two Chinese teachers it kidnapped in Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province last month, the militant group's Amaq news agency said on Thursday, in a blow to Islamabad's efforts to safeguard Chinese workers.

China's foreign ministry said it was "gravely concerned" about the report and working to verify the information.

Armed men pretending to be policemen kidnapped the two language teachers in the provincial capital, Quetta, on May 24. The kidnapping was a rare security incident involving Chinese nationals in Pakistan, where Beijing has pledged $57 billion for its "Belt and Road" plan.

"Islamic State fighters killed two Chinese people they had been holding in Balochistan province, southwest Pakistan," Amaq said.

A Balochistan government spokesman said officials were in the process of confirming "whether the report is true".

China's foreign ministry said it noted the report and expressed "grave concern".

"We have been trying to rescue the two kidnapped hostages over the past days," the ministry said in a short statement.

"The Chinese side is working to learn about and verify relevant information through various channels, including working with Pakistani authorities," it said.

"The Chinese side is firmly opposed to the acts of kidnapping civilians in any form, as well as terrorism and extreme violence in any form." {China considers Masood Azhar's terrorism as 'good terrorism' but the Uyghurs' or the ISIS-K's terrorism as 'bad terrorism'. As luck would have it, Modi is in Astana for the SCO meet where he would meet with Xi. Both in the plenary as well as in the private meeting with Xi, our PM has a great opportunity to expose the duplicity of China}

There was no immediate comment from Pakistan's interior ministry or its foreign office.

Islamic State, which controls some territory in neighbouring Afghanistan, has struggled to establish a presence in Pakistan. But it has claimed several major attacks, including one on the deputy chairman of the Senate last month in Balochistan, in which 25 people were killed.

Earlier on Thursday, Pakistan's military published details of a three-day raid on a militant hideout in a cave not far from Quetta, saying it had killed 12 "hardcore terrorists" from a banned local Islamist group and prevented Islamic State from gaining a "foothold" in Balochistan.

China's ambassador to Pakistan and other officials have often urged Islamabad to improve security, especially in Balochistan, where China is building a new port and funding roads to link its western regions with the Arabian Sea.

The numbers of Pakistanis studying Mandarin has skyrocketed since 2014, when President Xi Jinping signed off on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, pledging to invest $57 billion in Pakistani road, rail and power infrastructure.

Security in Balochistan has improved in recent years.

However, separatists, who view the project as a ruse to steal natural resources, killed 10 Pakistani workers building a road near the new port of Gwadar this month, a key part of the economic corridor.

China has also expressed concern about militants in Pakistan linking up with what China views as separatists in the far western Chinese region of Xinjiang, where hundreds have been killed in violence in recent years.
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent & its Neighbourhood

Post by Falijee »

" ISIS Disease" Spreading To Singapore :roll:

Singapore detains first woman citizen suspected of Islamist radicalism
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Re: The Islamic State and the Indian Sub-Continent & its Neighbourhood

Post by Vadivel »

The Indian friend is your truly :D :D :D

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