NIA arrests 9 Al-Qaeda terrorists from Kerala, West Bengal

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested nine Al-Qaeda terrorists on Saturday (September 19) during multiple early morning raids in Kerala’s Ernakulam and West Bengal’s Murshidabad districts.

Six of the militants were apprehended from Bengal, while three were arrested from Kerala.

They were identified as Murshid Hasan, Iyakub Biswas, Mosaraf Hossen, Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal and Atitur Rehman. All of them will be produced before courts in Kerala and Bengal.

According to NIA, the raids were conducted after receiving tip off on inter-state modules of the militant outfit in the said states and their plan to perpetrate terrorist attacks at vital installations.

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“NIA had learnt about an inter-state module of Al-Qaeda operatives at various locations in India, including West-Bengal and Kerala. The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror,” said an official statement by the NIA.

According to the agency, a large cache of incriminating materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body of armour, articles and literature to make home-made bombs were seized during the raids.

The arrested individuals, according to the agency, were radicalised by Pakistan-based Al-Qaeda terrorists on social media and brainwashed to perpetrate terror attacks in India including Delhi NCR.

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NIA said the module was engaged in raising funds and a few members were also planning to travel to Delhi to procure arms and ammunition.