Arrested IS suspects were active for three years

The Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad(ATS) revealed that the two IS suspects nabbed from Surat on Wednesday were in touch with the Islamic State for the past three years and were active members.

On Wednesday, ATS officials nabbed two men, Kasim Stimberwala and Ubed Baig Mirza from Surat, for planning a terror attack on a synagogue in Ahmedabad. The accused were brought to Ahmedabad ATS headquarters for further investigation.

They revealed that they were loyal to the Islamic State for the past three years and were active members of the group.

Further investigation revealed that in February 2017, when the ATS picked up Vasim Ramodiya and Naeem Ramodiya for planning a lone-wolf attack on a temple in Surendranagar, Kasim and Ubed had continued their operations with the IS.

It was revealed that the accused were members of three WhatsApp groups which were operated by a person in a Gulf country. 

They discussed the terror activities, shared videos and images related to terror and operations of the IS. The two were active members of the groups and used to post content regularly.

Officials also came to know that for a detailed conversation regarding the operation, the duo used Skype to contact other members in Gulf countries.

The ATS officials have made three teams to crack down the social media followers of groups and will track down the members in connection with the duo. Apart from that, the officials have sent a team to nab other members of the group identified as Shazia, Sarfaraz, Shabbir, and Shahid.

The data recovery process from the accused's pen drive and mobile phones has started.