UP ATS arrests suspected IS militant in Mumbai
Abu Zaid, a native of Azamgarh town in Uttar Pradesh, ran a social media group from Riyadh to radicalize young people in India and lure them to IS, say police
New Delhi: The Uttar Pradesh police on Sunday said its anti-terrorism squad (ATS) has arrested a suspected Islamic State (IS) terrorist from the Mumbai airport.
Abu Zaid, a native of Azamgarh town in Uttar Pradesh, ran a terror network from Riyadh, the police added. “Abu Zaid, a suspected ISIS terrorist, was arrested by the ATS team from Mumbai airport after he came from Saudi Arabia,” Anand Kumar, additional director general (law and order) of UP police, told reporters in Lucknow.
Zaid, who was living in Riyadh, ran a social media group to radicalize young people in India and lure them to IS, Kumar said. Zaid has been brought from Mumbai to Lucknow on transit remand, he added.
A look-out notice was issued against Zaid when his name came up during the interrogation of four other suspected IS operatives arrested by ATS in April.
The arrest comes at a time when the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has cracked down on IS modules across the country.
“The group’s modus operandi revolves around tracking youths mostly between the ages of 20-30 years and monitoring their behaviour on social media platforms. Once the IS modules establish a secure and successful line of communication with the ‘potential candidates’, they go about physically meeting them and giving them tasks meant to be carried out,” said a senior NIA official, requesting anonymity.
PTI contributed to this story.
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First Published:6 Nov 2017, 02:33 AM IST
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