ISIS handler used coded vocabulary

From ‘popo’ for police, ‘scrti’ for security to ‘susi’ for spying, trans-national terror group ISIS’s Syria-based handler for India operations, Shafi Armar, is learnt to have been attempting to formulate a coded vocabulary for usage by recruits during operations to avoid detection by security agencies.

Armar, who allegedly uses over half a dozen social media sites and applications to contact potential recruits and operatives across India, was found issuing cyber instructions to a former associate regarding the use of “code words during a terror mission and for becoming a good ISIS foot soldier”, said a National Investigation Agency (NIA) source.

In the email chats intercepted by the NIA a few months ago, Armar asked the then associate to use a set of words to avoid alerting counter-terror agencies. “Armar asked his then associate to use words like ‘scrti’ for referring to security persons, ‘popo’ for police, ‘jarasim’ for intelligence sleuths and ‘susi’ for spying,” said the source.

The NIA source said: “During the April 2015 chat, Armar harped on the need to conduct extensive spying on an enemy or a potential target before launching an attack.”

Armar’s then associate subsequently became an approver in the case.

The NIA probe has also revealed that certain ISIS Indian operatives extensively scouted sites in Telangana recently “for identifying places for training and the establishment of hideouts” at the behest of Armar, said the source. “A few ISIS members, at the behest of Armar, surveyed isolated and forested spots at Vikarabad and Narsapur in Telangana to create a base for the training of recruits and hiding purposes,” said the source.

Karnataka-born Armar alias Yusuf Al-Hindi was named in two chargesheets by the NIA last month for his online recruitment of operatives across India, including Maharashtra. Suspected to be operating out of his base in Syria, Armar is allegedly ISIS’s “media chief” for its recruitment efforts in India, said the source. There is a pending Red Corner Notice issued by the Interpol against Armar on the NIA’s request, which warrants his detention or arrest by authorities across the globe.

The terror outfit allegedly also considered tying up with the naxal groups for combat tactics and the procurement of firearms. The NIA detected money-laundering channels through which Armar allegedly sent money to his associates in India for his outfit’s activities.