ISIS has 66 Indian-origin terrorists: US report

ISIS has 66 Indian-origin terrorists: US report. 

Washington: 66 identified Indian-origin terrorists associated with the terror organization Islamic State. The latest US State Department report on terror has stated that it felicitated India’s counterterrorism force, including the NIA, for actively detecting and stopping multinational and regional terror forces. 

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in the 2020 Country Reports on Terrorism issued on Thursday, noted that India works along with the United States on implementing UNSCR 2309 and is working to ensure the dual-screen X-ray obligation for screening of cargo at airports.

Resolution 2309 of the UN Security Council Resolution 2309 demands that governments fulfill their obligation to ensure that citizens are safe while traveling by air. 

According to the report, 66 Indian-born fighters were associated with ISIS in November. Moreover, there was no evidence that Foreign Terrorist Fighters (FTFs) were returned to India in the year 2020, it declared. 

The report praised the partnership between the US and India in the statement. It said there was a strong indication that the United States continues to build its strategic relationship with India’s Government of India, including through bilateral engagements, such as those of the 17th Counterterrorism Joint Working Group and the Third Designations Dialogue in September and the 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue for the third time in October.

The report also praised the Indian counterterrorism force, including the National Investigation Agency (NIA), for actively detecting and dismantling transnational and regional terror forces. “Indian counterterrorism forces, at the federal and state levels, actively saw and disrupted multinational and regional terror forces. 

For example, the National Investigation Agency examined 34 terrorism-related cases related to ISIS and arrested 160 persons, including ten alleged al-Qaeda operatives from Kerala and West Bengal, in September,” the report noted.

The report details the terrorists’ arrests by the NIA. For example, the report stated that the agency’s premier investigator had arrested 10 suspected al-Qaeda members of Kerala and West Bengal on September 19 and 26. 

“Through the end of September, the NIA had investigated 34 terrorism cases it indicated were related to ISIS and arrested 160 persons,” the report said.

The Kolkata Police counterterrorism Special Task Force on May 29 detained Abdul Karim, the second-in-command of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh, on suspicion of being involved in the 2013 bombing that took place at Bodh Gaya, the report said. 

“India responds to the US requests for information related to terrorism investigations promptly and makes efforts to mitigate threats in response to US information. Over the past two years, collaborative efforts have disrupted terrorist travel and alerted US authorities to possible threats in the United States and against US interests,” the report stated.

According to the report, the authorities within India continue to be concerned by the internet’s use for radicalization and recruitment of terrorists to violence and create tension between religions.

 “In 2020 there were multiple reports in the media and from the NIA of suspected cases of online terrorist radicalization, particularly in southern Indian states,” the report noted.

India is actively involved in leading roles in numerous international and regional forums in 2020, and has been a proponent of multilateral counterterrorism cooperation. 

India has agreed to share its intelligence on terrorists and Sri Lanka and the Maldives. India’s long-standing defense relationship with Russia includes counterterrorism issues as well, according to the US State Department report added.