The four suspected terrorists—Mohammad Nusrat (33), Mohammad Farish (35), Mohammad Nafran (27), and Mohammad Rashdeen (43)—landed at Ahmedabad airport from Sri Lanka’s Colombo via Chennai.
As the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrested the four suspects from Ahmedabad airport, their belongings included a mobile phone, a pen drive, a message from Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, and a flag of ISIS.
A photo of a debris site near Nana Chiloda was also recovered. Three loaded pistols and 20 cartridges were found there.
The agencies have now initiated a probe into searching for the local helpers of these terrorists who stored pistols and cartridges at the site.
Another major revelation involved that two of the four suspects had visited India earlier under the guise of textile businessmen.
They were reportedly involved in gold smuggling and drug peddling. Moreover, a case has been registered against Rashdeen in Sri Lanka.
According to reports, these four suspects have been trained to execute mass attacks for the last four months and were sent to Gujarat with the same aim.
Airport’s WiFi access
A handler from Pakistan, Abu Ishar, used to give the terrorists information about the local helpers. As per reports, the four suspects who landed at Ahmedabad airport used the airport’s WiFi to contact their leader in Pakistan via ProtonMail and the Signal application.
Collaborative probe
Sri Lanka has reached out to India for assistance in investigating four Sri Lankan youths suspected of involvement in extremist activities within India. The Sri Lankan government has procured details from the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and Indian authorities to probe their connections and preempt potential threats. Moreover, Sri Lanka is closely monitoring the activities of Abu, an ISIS leader in Pakistan.
On the other hand, the Gujarat cyber team has been monitoring social media regarding the posts of ISIS and people who liked or followed the banned organisation’s account.