An ISIS operative from Kerala features in yet another attack in Afghanistan

New Delhi, Aug 04: The name of another operative from Kerala has come up in connection with a terror attack in Afghanistan.

This time the name of Kallukettiya Purayil Ijas, who was living in Nangarhar has cropped up during the investigations into the Jalalabad jail attack. He had fled with his family from Kasargod in Kerala in 2016. He had reached Muscat from the Hyderabad airport before reaching Afghanistan.

It may be recalled that in March, a recruit of the ISIS Khorasan, Mohammad Mushin hailing originally from Kannur had been identified as one of the suspects in the Kabul Gurudwara attack.

This week a terrorist assault on a prison complex at Jalalabad left 29 persons dead. The attack was claimed by the Islamic State. After hours of gun battle, the Afghan forces finally re-took the prison. At least 10 ISIS fighters involved in the assault were also killed while trying to free their fellow men from the prison.

The name of an operative from Kerala is cropping up for the second time in an attack in Afghanistan. Two years back, several persons from Kerala had left the country to join the ISIS Khorasan in Afghanistan.

Purayil had fled to Afghanistan with his wife and child. Both are in the custody of the Afghan authorities. A red alert had been issued against Ijas in 2017. The NIA said that he was born on May 10 1984 at Padanna, Kasargod, Kerala. In furtherance of a conspiracy hatched by Ijas and 14 others from 2015 onwards n Kasargod district, their aim was was to strengthen the ISIS. Ijas and others left India between mid May 2016 to July 5th 2016 to join the ISIS, the NIA had also said.

In March, the agencies had recognised one Mushin of Kannur as the main suspects in the Kabul Gurdwara attack. IB sources tell OneIndia that Muhasin had left for Afghanistan in 2018. A year later 21 more persons from Kerala left for Afghanistan to be part of the Islamic State Khorasan, a wing of the outfit that operates out of Afghanistan.

Muhasin had gone to Dubai looking for a job. However he came in contact with some persons part of the Islamic State. The dossier prepared on him states that he was lured into the ISIS by these persons, following which he agreed to travel to Afghanistan. These were early days for the ISIS in Afghanistan and they were at that time setting up their modules in the country.

The ISIS sought to recruit a large number of persons from the sub-continent for their operations in Afghanistan. The officer cited above said that the ISIS did have some success in recruiting persons from India. The largest number of recruits into the ISIS for the Khorasan module were from Kerala, the officer also said.