Mohammed Shafi Armar (1989/1991–2015), also known by his online pseudonym Yusuf al-Hindi, was an Indian Islamic militant, a former member of the Indian Mujahideen (IM), he became the chief of operations for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in India.[1] He and his brother Sultan Armar founded the ISIS affiliates Ansar-ut Tawhid fi Bilad al-Hind (transl. Supporters of Monotheism in the Land of India) and Janood-ul-Khalifa-e-Hind (transl. Caliph's Army of India) encouraging the recruitment of Indian Muslims for jihad in Syria and Afghanistan. The Armar brothers had split from Indian Mujahideen and formed these affiliates after a rift developed between them and IM co-founders Iqbal and Riyaz Bhatkal.[2][3]

History

He was originally from Bhatkal, North Canara district in Karnataka, South India and is reported to have been born between 1989 and 1991. He became a member of the Indian Mujahideen and in 2008/9, he and his brother Sultan Armar fled to Pakistan in the aftermath of the Batla House encounter.[4]

He and his brother, Sultan, formally split from the IM after a rift developed between them and the IM co-founders Iqbal and Riyaz Bhatkal. They ultimately joined the Islamic State sometime in 2013. After that he was involved via social media in recruiting individuals to carry out attacks in India. In 2016 he was involved in a failed plot in Hyderabad.[5] In May 2016, he was indicted in absentia at Patiala House District court along with five others under Section 120 (conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sections 18 and 20 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.[6]

In June 2017, he was listed as a Specially Designated National and had any assets frozen by the United States.[7][8] He, along with his brother, was killed in 2015 in Syria while fighting for the ISIS, but this was only confirmed in 2019 and several reports of his death emerged in subsequent years (2015, 2017 and 2019). This confusion was due to the fact that his online alias Yusuf al-Hindi was used after his death by different militants.[9][10]

References

  1. ↑ "Shafi Armar: 26-year-old sought to set up ISIS module in every Indian state - Oneindia News". www.oneindia.com. 4 February 2016.
  2. ↑ "Janood-ul-Khalifa-e-Hind / Army of Caliph of India (Islamic State India/ ISI / ISISI)". Trac. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  3. ↑ "Ansar-ut Tawhid fi Bilad al-Hind (AuT)". Trac. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  4. ↑ Jain, Ritika (19 July 2016). "Bhatkal man confirmed as ISIS operative Yusuf al Hindi". DNA India.
  5. ↑ "Bloody Ramadan: How the Islamic State Coordinated a Global Terrorist Campaign". War on the Rocks. 20 July 2016.
  6. ↑ "Yusuf al-Hindi: The mysterious Islamic State recruiter in India who's got intel agencies worried". Firstpost. 19 July 2016.
  7. ↑ "OFAC Recent Actions". U.S. Department of the Treasury.
  8. ↑ "Executive Order 13224". United States Department of State. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  9. ↑ "When did IS terrorist Shafi Armar die: 2019 or 2016?". Hindustan Times. 25 March 2019. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  10. ↑ Nanjappa, Vicky (26 March 2019). "Bhatkal's Armar brothers who ran the Indian Islamic State confirmed dead". oneindia.com. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
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