Officials fear al-Qaida grooming Indian militants for big attacks

Decrypted communications between Indian Mujahideen (IM) and al-Qaida and testimony from suspects have triggered alarm among intelligence officials in New Delhi: the groups appear to be working together to launch major attacks in the region. The officials told Reuters that plots they had uncovered included the kidnapping of foreigners and turning India into a “Syria and Iraq where violence is continuously happening”. IM, a homegrown movement, has been hitherto known for low-level attacks on local targets using relatively crude weapons like pressure cooker bombs. Some members of IM are already fighting alongside al-Qaida in Afghanistan, according to an Indian government charge sheet against 11 suspected members of the group alleged to have plotted attacks in India. The worry is that more battle-hardened fighters could now turn their sights on their homeland.

The thing we are looking for is how al-Qaida/ISIS tie up with local groups, especially as the drawdown takes place in Afghanistan.

Sharad Kumar, head of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), India’s main counterterrorism arm

Others have enlisted with al-Qaida to try to carry out kidnappings of Jews in India and Nepal to secure the release of Pakistani Aafia Siddiqui, a neuroscientist jailed for 86 years in the United States for attempting to kill U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan. Siddiqui is a cause-celebre among global militant groups, including Islamic State, which proposed swapping her for American journalist James Foley before executing him when its demands were not met. The NIA has gathered hundreds of pieces of evidence of Internet conversations and meetings between militants in India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. The Internet chats reveal tensions between IM and Pakistan’s powerful Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency, which India says has nurtured the group with finance and equipment. Pakistani officials deny any links with the militants, however.

This is an outdated story. It does not serve any purpose for Pakistan to support such groups. These terrorists are openly attacking us, the army, innocent civilians, everyone here is a target. Why would they do so if we were helping them in any way?

Senior intelligence official in Islamabad

Asia-Pacific