Kerala: NIA Raids Houses Of Suspected ISIS Sympathizers Connected To Sri Lankan Suicide Attack Mastermind
As part of an international investigation into the Sri Lankan terror attacks, India’s NIA on Sunday (29 April) raided the houses of at least four people in north Kerala, reports The Hindu.
The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) on 23 April had claimed responsibility for the Easter Sunday (21 April) bombings at churches and hotels in Sri Lanka that killed more than 250 people.
As per the Kerala state police, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) inspected private residences in Kasargod and Palakkad on the evidence that the targets of their probe actively followed Zahran Hashim, the mastermind of the Sri Lankan attacks on social media.
Many law enforcement agencies across the world including the FBI are investigating the digital trail left behind by Hashim on social media. He is reported to have used such platforms extensively to recruit persons to his global jihadist cause.
It should be noted that NIA had not filed charges against anyone, perhaps due to lack of adequate proof of complicity in the attacks.
"The NIA’s investigations into the alleged affiliates of the now notorious National Towheeth Jamaat (NTJ), a construct of Hashim to unleash terror in mainland India, were still at a nascent stage," said officials.
More Blasts?
It was recently reported that the security apparatus in West Bengal and neighbouring Bangladesh has been alerted after a pro-ISIS telegram channel has released a poster in Bengali language saying, 'Shighroi Aschhe' (coming soon).
Bangladesh already has a significant presence of ISIS sympathisers and operatives with a local terror outfit named Jamatul Mujadiheen (JMB) being affiliated to ISIS. These JMB operatives have been known to often travel to Kolkata and nearby territories so as to recruit more individuals while establishing newer hideouts.