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The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Centre and the Delhi government to consider setting up a special court to conduct a day-to-day trial in a 2021 case probed by the National Investigation Agency related to the ISIS links of a person. A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi was hearing the bail plea of Md Heydaitullah who allegedly used Telegram groups to propagate the ideology of the terrorist group in India and recruit other persons. The CJI said that inordinate delay in trial gives to legitimate submissions on behalf of the accused that he cannot be kept in custody for a longer period of time, that too without the trial. The bench asked Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the government and the NIA, to apprise it within a week about the setting up of the special court here to conduct a day-to-day trial in the case in which 125 witnesses are to be examined. Earlier, the top court had, in a separate case, pulled up the Cen
The FBI said Friday it disrupted a New Year's Eve attack plot targeting a grocery store and fast-food restaurant in North Carolina, arresting an 18-year-old man who authorities say pledged loyalty to the Islamic State group. Christian Sturdivant was charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organisation. Investigators said he told an undercover FBI employee posing as a supportive confidant about his plans to attack people with knives and a hammer. Worried Sturdivant might attempt violence before New Year's Eve, the FBI placed him under constant surveillance for days, including on Christmas, US Attorney for western North Carolina Russ Ferguson said. Agents were prepared to arrest him earlier if he left his home with weapons, Ferguson said at a news conference. At no point was the public in harm's way. Sturdivant was arrested Wednesday and remained in custody after a federal court appearance Friday. An attorney representing him did not immediately ...
Militants of the Islamic State group opened fire on police and wounded seven officers during a raid on the group in northwest Turkiye on Monday, the country's state-run media reported. The clash broke out in Yalova province, south of Istanbul, as police stormed a house where the militants were hiding, Anadolu Agency said. Special forces from neighboring Bursa province were dispatched to reinforce the operation. Anadolu said none of the wounded officers were in serious condition. Last week, police launched scores of simultaneous raids, detaining 115 militants of the extremist group who were allegedly planning attacks targeting Christmas and New Year's celebrations. Officials said the group had called for action, particularly against non-Muslims, during the celebrations. IS has carried out a series of deadly attacks in Turkiye in recent years, including a shooting at an Istanbul nightclub during New Year celebrations on January 1, 2017, which killed 39 people.
Istanbul police launched scores of simultaneous raids on Thursday, detaining over a hundred suspected members of the militant Islamic State group who were allegedly planning attacks against Christmas and New Year's celebrations, authorities said. A statement from the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office said police were tipped off that the extremist group had called for action -- particularly against non-Muslims -- during the celebrations. The office had issued warrants for 137 suspects, of whom 115 were detained. Officers also seized many firearms, cartridges and documents during the raids. It said 124 locations were raided. The arrests come days after the Trump administration launched widespread military strikes in neighbouring Syria to "eliminate" Islamic State fighters and weapons' sites in retaliation for an ambush blamed on the group that killed two US troops and an American civilian interpreter. Syrian security forces have also launched operations against IS in recent .
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday night that he had launched a "powerful and deadly strike" against Islamic State forces in Nigeria, after he spent weeks decrying the group for targeting Christians. The president's post did not include information about how the strike was carried out and what effects it had and the White House did not immediately provide further details. "Tonight, at my direction as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum in Northwest Nigeria, who have been targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians, at levels not seen for many years, and even Centuries!" the president posted on his social media site. Last month, Trump said he had ordered the Pentagon to begin planning for potential military action in Nigeria following the claims of Christian persecution. The State Department then announced in recent weeks that it would restrict visas for Nigerians and their family members
A National Investigation Agency (NIA) team raided a man's house in Jharkhand's Hazaribag district in connection with his alleged link with the ISIS terror network, officials said here on Friday. The NIA team raided the house of Shahnawaj Alam in the Ansar Nagar area on Thursday and seized a laptop, a printer, and other gadgets that might have been used for the terror link, they said. The NIA officials remained tight-lipped about the content of the laptop and other documents seized from the residence of the suspect. Sources in the district police confirmed that the raids were carried out by a team of the NIA. The action was taken based on information provided by a doctor who was previously arrested by the NIA, they said. This operation is being conducted as part of an investigation into the network linked to suspected terrorist Shahnawaz Alam, who was arrested by the Delhi Police Special Cell in October 2023. Shahnawaz Alam, originally hailing from Hazaribagh, was arrested by the
A National Investigation Agency (NIA) court here on Saturday found two Coimbatore residents guilty of recruiting and propagating the ideology of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), police said. The Special Court for Trial of NIA Cases, Kochi convicted Muhammad Azharudeen (27) of Anbu Nagar, Ukkadam, Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu, and Shiek Hidayathulla alias Firoz Khan (35) of South Ukkadam. Judge N Seshadrinathan noted that both were guilty of offences punishable under Indian Penal Code (IPC) section 120B (conspiracy), Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) section 38 (membership of a terrorist organisation) and 39 (supporting a terrorist organisation), and convicted them accordingly. During the hearing on the sentence, both accused requested the court to take a lenient view, citing their family backgrounds. "Hidayathulla is remanded to Viyyur High Security Prison for two days halt. For pronouncing sentence, both accused to be produced on September 29 physically," the cour
In a joint operation, Delhi Police's Special Cell, Jharkhand Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and Ranchi police have arrested two suspected ISIS operatives, an official said on Wednesday. The prime accused, identified as Bokaro native Ashar Danish, was arrested from Ranchi, he said. He was wanted in a case registered by the Delhi Police Special Cell related to an ISIS-linked module. Another suspect, Aftab, was apprehended from Delhi during coordinated action carried out simultaneously by the teams, according to police. Preliminary investigation suggests that both were in touch with other members of an ISIS-inspired network and were engaged in activities aimed at furthering the terror outfit's agenda in India, source in the operation said. Danish had been on the radar of security agencies for several months.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has searched 21 locations in five states and in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir as part of its probe in a terror conspiracy case linked with the ISIS and other terrorist organisations, officials said on Tuesday. The searches were conducted in the states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu as well as Jammu and Kashmir on Monday, they said. The NIA, which took over the case from Kayar police in Chengalpattu district of Tamil Nadu in June this year, seized several digital devices, including mobile phones, along with incriminatory documentary materials during the searches, according to an official statement. The case emanated with the arrest of one Akhlathur alias Mohammed Akhlque Mujahid, who allegedly conspired with others to commit terrorist acts in India, it said. "He was further found to have connections with multiple entities in Pakistan and Syria," the NIA said. The conspiracy was aimed at gathering men
Attacks by an Islamic State-backed rebels killed at least 52 people between Aug. 9 and 16, the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Congo said Monday. The UN mission, known as MONUSCO, said in a statement that the attacks by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) took place in several localities of Beni and Lubero territories, in the North Kivu province. The violence was accompanied by abductions, looting, the burning of homes, vehicles, and motorcycles, as well as the destruction of property belonging to populations already facing dire humanitarian conditions, the statement read, adding that the death toll is likely to rise. Eastern Congo has suffered deadly attacks in recent years by armed groups, including the ADF and Rwanda-backed rebels. The ADF, which has ties to the Islamic State, operates along the border with Uganda and often targets civilians. The group killed nearly 40 people in the Ituri province last month, when it stormed a Catholic church during a vigil and opened fire
NSA Ajit Doval on Tuesday called on the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) to hold perpetrators, organisers, financiers of cross border terror to account, widely seen as a demand to act against Pakistan-backed terrorism. In his address at a conclave of top security officials of the SCO, Doval said India is "deeply concerned" about continued threat from UN-proscribed terror groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Al Qaeda, ISIS and its affiliates. The NSA said New Delhi launched Operation Sindoor to dismantle terror infrastructure and deter terrorists from carrying out attacks in India following the Pahalgam terror strike. In response to the attack in Pahalgam in which TRF, a proxy of LeT, killed 26 Indian and Nepalese nationals and injured several others after segregating them on the basis of religion, India launched Operation Sindoor to dismantle terror infrastructure, he said. Doval said India's actions were "measured and non escalatory". The NSA ...
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday chargesheeted five more people in the ISIS-inspired Coimbatore car bomb explosion case of 2022, an official statement said. In its fourth supplementary chargesheet in the case, the NIA has charged Sheikh Hidayathullah, Umar Faaruq, Pavas Rahman, Sharan Mariappan and Aboo Hanifa for their involvement in terror financing and other activities linked with the terror attack that had targeted a Hindu temple, Arulmigu Kottai Sangameshwarar Thirukovil, in Coimbatore, it said. With this, a total of 17 accused have been chargesheeted in the case so far, it said. In its latest chargesheet, the NIA has filed a fresh set of terror financing charges against Sheikh Hidayathullah and Umar Faaruq. The duo was chargesheeted earlier for other offences in the case, said the statement issued by the probe agency. The two orchestrated a fake Covid vaccine certificate scam in 2021-2022 and used the funds to procure materials for explosives and other ...
The Delhi High Court has refused to grant bail to an alleged member of ISIS in a terror case by NIA over radicalisation of youths using cyber space. A bench of Justices Prathiba M Singh and Amit Sharma dismissed the bail plea by Md Heydaitullah, who allegedly used Telegram groups to propagate the ideology of the terrorist group in India and recruit other persons. The accused challenged a trial court order declining any relief on the ground that mere association or support to a terrorist organisation would not constitute an offence under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). The court rejected the contention, and said Heydaitullah, a qualified MBA graduate working at an IT company in Gurugram, was not a "passive" supporter as material showed that he advocated "Jihad in order to establish Khilafat" even through violent means. "The Appellant admittedly in 2018 had taken an oath (Bayath) in the name of Abu Bakr al Baghdadi and Abu al-Hasan al-Hashimi al-Qurashi. Abu Bakr al ..
New Orleans attacker Shamsud-Din Jabbar acted alone even though there are indications that he had strong support for ISIS, US President Joe Biden has said. At least 14 people were killed and 35 others were injured after Jabbar drove his pickup truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street early Wednesday. The FBI is investigating the incident as an act of terrorism. Jabbar, 42, a former veteran, also died in a shootout with the local police. A resident of Houston, he drove to New Orleans. Today, the FBI briefed me that, as of now, we have no information that anyone else is involved in the attack. They've established that the attacker was the same person who planted the explosives in those ice coolers in two nearby locations in the French Quarter just a few hours before he rammed into the crowd with his vehicle, Biden told reporters at the White House on Thursday. In response to a question, Biden said he is trying to travel to New Orleans. They assess he had a remote detonator in his vehicle