A Kashmiri terrorist originally known as Aijaz Ahmad Ahangar has been arrested earlier this month by Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security in Kandahar. Ahangar is a native of Nawa Kadal in Srinagar, has been wanted for two decades in the valley.
As per a report in Hindustan Times, he was arrested once in mid-nineties on the allegation of terror links but released later. Aijaz Ahangar aka Abu Usman Al Kashmiri traveled to Bangladesh after his release from Central Jail and from there he took a flight to Pakistan.
After a span of nearly 25 years, he was finally arrested by Afghan forces. The NDS was focussed to catch Aslam Farooqui, the Chief of Islamic State ‘Khorasan Province’ who claimed the responsibility for 25 March Gurudwara attack in Kabul which claimed the lives of 27 Sikh worshippers. Aijaz Ahangar’s arrest had gone unnoticed till now.
An Afghan watcher said, “It was a surprise.” As per the HT report, Ahangar had identified himself as Ali Mohammad from Islamabad in the early questioning.
Terrorist links in India
Ahangar’s Father-in-law Abdullah Ghazali is also known as Abdul Ghani Dar was a Lashkar-e-Taiba commander and played a role in the formation of the Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen in 1990, that recruited militants from Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir. Ahangar had married Ghazali’s daughter Rukhsana.
Ghazali was found murdered inside Jamia Masjid Ahle Hadith at Maisuma near Lal Chowk, Srinagar’s business hub in this year’s February. He was 80. Abdullah Gazali was allegedly involved in a 2011 murder of Maulana Showkat Ahmad Shah, the then president of the Jamiat Ahle Hadith. However, he was granted bail in 2015. Ghazali’s murder was attributed to faction rivalry in Ahle-Hadith.
Ahnagar’s son Abdullah Umais was killed a few years ago after fighting against Afghanistan’s Nangarhar. His Son-in-law Huzaifa-Al-Bakistani was a top online recruiter of ISKP who was killed in a US drone attack in Afghanistan in 2019.
Went To Pakistan via Bangladesh
Aijaz Ahangar allegedly went to Pakistan Via Bangladesh rather than taking the route through Line of Control despite terror links from across the border.
As per reports, Ahangar settled in Islamabad with the help of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence and married for the second time to Aisha, a resident of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir.
After a brief association with Al Qaeda, he joined the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria and later he joined Islamic State-Khorasan Province.
Armed terrorists and suicide bombers had attacked a Gurudwara in the Shor Bazar area in Kabul, Afghanistan on 25 March, leaving 27 Sikhs dead and at least 15 injured. The Islamic State (ISIS) had claimed the responsibility for the attack. While one suicide bomber detonated himself at the entrance, three ISIS terrorists stormed the shrine in the Shorbazar area Wednesday morning (25 March). Around 150 people were worshipping in the Gurudwara at the time of the attack.