To tackle the returnees of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria i.e. ISIS to Kerala, the Intelligence Bureau is keeping close tabs on their daily activities. The cyber cell of the agencies is keeping a close vigil on the social media platforms, more importantly on the chat groups that have been created on Telegram and Wickr.
An officer with the Intelligence Bureau informed OneIndia that these days there are more activities traced on Wickr rather than on Telegram. The terrorist outfit has started using Wickr more than the Telegram since the application doesn’t require entering a phone number or an email address.
Officials from the Intelligence Bureau said that several recruits from the ISIS are attempting to return to Kerala and more people are being roped in via social media. The officials also said that they have traced the pattern behind the recruitment process.
A team of recruiters from ISIS are keeping a close watch on those commenting on ‘jihad’ related content. Also, the ones who are sharing or re-posting the messages are being tapped into by the recruiters, officials said. There are two ways that these recruiters find new people. Firstly, the recruiters want the ones returning from countries such as UAE, Afghanistan, Turkey, and Syria to carry out lone wolf attacks. The second process involves pooling in as many people as possible to spread the propaganda online. Kerala has been notorious for being a hotbed for Naxalism as well as Islamist terror and the fact that several local groups are backing the terror outfits in the state is an open secret.
As of now, the primary focus of the recruiters is on the safe landing of the returnees, without being tracked by the authorities, IB official said. Furthermore, the intention of the returnees was not to go ahead and fight in Afghanistan or Syria but to undergo training and then return back to India.
On their return to India, they are commissioned to carry out attacks, brainwash locals and also set up modules for them. The Indian agencies apart from Syrian agencies are also focusing on the people returning to Kerala and other West Asian countries. The task ahead is huge, the problem is that these returnees do not come in batches but as individuals and then carry out their work.
IB officials even said that it is hard to keep track of people coming from other states to Kerala but for now the prime focus is on the ones who’ve joined ISIS from Kerala. The possibility of people who are coming from other states is also high and monitoring these people is hard for the agencies. Recently, it was found out that a large chunk of Keralities joining ISIS came from the separatist outfit Popular Front of India i.e. the PFI. PFI is the same outfit that is notorious throughout the country for its pro-terror, anti-Indian rhetoric, which has helped them secure a huge base not only in Kerala but also in states like Karnataka, Tamil Nadu etc.
To quote the press release of the Kerala Police, “PFI members K Sajjad and Anwar Poothappara went missing along with their families on November 19 after they told their relatives that they were going to Mysuru. TP Nisam, another youth from Kuruva in Kannur, has also been reported to be missing and is believed to have joined the group.” According to the police, it is this very trio, that has convinced seven other members from PFI to join the dreaded ISIS. Incidentally, Anwar is the brother of Muhammad Shameer T K, ex PFI division level leader from Pappinassery, who was believed to have been killed in Syria along with his children, way back in 2015.
Read more at https://tfipost.com/2018/12/pfi-isis-connection-01/
The Intelligence Bureau is doing its best to curb the menace of ISIS and PFI. The task is humongous but people of the country have their faith entrusted in the agencies that they will safeguard the country from these anti-India elements.
