No confirmation of Indians beheaded by IS

Terror group had killed twenty deserters

Indian security agencies are verifying whether four Indians were among the 20 men beheaded by the Islamic State (IS) for trying to run away from them.

Officials said they do not have any credible information to suggest that Indians were killed, but they were verifying some reports. The agencies are in touch with their contacts in the region.

The IS beheaded over 20 of its fighters in public for trying to flee a war zone in Iraq’s Mosul city, in a bid to send a message to others in the terror group against desertion.

There have been reports about torture and execution of those trying to flee IS after joining the group. Foreign media had reported about European youths being tortured after a failed attempt to flee.

Indian intelligence agencies has claimed that 23 Indians, including some former Indian Mujahideen terrorists, had joined the IS. Six, including three from Karnataka, have been killed in IS-held areas in Iraq and Syria.

If the reports about four more deaths are verified, then the number of Indians fighting with the IS could come down to about a dozen.

Around 160 Indian youths, mostly in south India, have been put under electronic surveillance following suspicious online activities linked to the IS. Recently, 14 youths influenced by the IS were arrested for plotting attacks in the country as well as abroad. Another three youths were arrested after they were deported from the UAE.

India has stepped up vigil against the spread of the terror group. Indian agencies had received information from foreign agencies that terror recruits from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh are “tricked into” suicide attacks and “forced to” the battle frontline with “inferior” equipment by the IS. The IS considers these recruits as “not martially inclined” and “inferior to” Arab fighters, as they are “less motivated for Salafist Jihad”.