SS: The Gujarat Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) arrested the four people for allegedly having links to ISIS — more specifically the Afghanistan-Pakistan-based Islamic State Khorasan (ISKP) — and travelling to India with intent to conduct terror attacks. The Sri Lankans were reportedly moving on the orders of the pseudonymous Pakistani handler “Abu Pakistani”. Sri Lanka’s security agencies also arrested another alleged local handler, Pushparaja Osman. The accused also reportedly explained that they were previously associated with the Sri Lankan extremist outfit National Thowheeth Jamath (NJT).
ISIS is not a group commonly equated for its presence in Sri Lanka, where over 70 per cent of the population is Buddhist. Muslims constitute less than 10 per cent and are a minority. But in 2019, several explosions ripped across the island nation’s capital, targeting churches and upscale hotels. Over 260 people were killed, and ISIS took responsibility, without providing any evidence of directly supporting the act of terror.
Immediately after the Easter attack, links between the terrorists and certain entities in India’s southern states were highlighted. The leader of the Easter bombings ring, Zahran Hashim, was reportedly in touch with individuals in India via social media. Indian security agencies have since dismantled several self-styled pro-ISIS groupings across the country, but some much more specifically in the south.
Over the years, India has also taken back individuals from Gulf states who have been involved in extremist activities, including in favour of ISIS. A level of translucency remains on how these individual cases were approached legally. Much like other countries, many accused of supporting banned outfits like ISIS eventually were released from custody due to lack of evidence presented to the courts, or investigations hitting a dead end.
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SS: The Gujarat Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) arrested the four people for allegedly having links to ISIS — more specifically the Afghanistan-Pakistan-based Islamic State Khorasan (ISKP) — and travelling to India with intent to conduct terror attacks. The Sri Lankans were reportedly moving on the orders of the pseudonymous Pakistani handler “Abu Pakistani”. Sri Lanka’s security agencies also arrested another alleged local handler, Pushparaja Osman. The accused also reportedly explained that they were previously associated with the Sri Lankan extremist outfit National Thowheeth Jamath (NJT).
ISIS is not a group commonly equated for its presence in Sri Lanka, where over 70 per cent of the population is Buddhist. Muslims constitute less than 10 per cent and are a minority. But in 2019, several explosions ripped across the island nation’s capital, targeting churches and upscale hotels. Over 260 people were killed, and ISIS took responsibility, without providing any evidence of directly supporting the act of terror.
Immediately after the Easter attack, links between the terrorists and certain entities in India’s southern states were highlighted. The leader of the Easter bombings ring, Zahran Hashim, was reportedly in touch with individuals in India via social media. Indian security agencies have since dismantled several self-styled pro-ISIS groupings across the country, but some much more specifically in the south.
Over the years, India has also taken back individuals from Gulf states who have been involved in extremist activities, including in favour of ISIS. A level of translucency remains on how these individual cases were approached legally. Much like other countries, many accused of supporting banned outfits like ISIS eventually were released from custody due to lack of evidence presented to the courts, or investigations hitting a dead end.