NEW DELHI: Kuwait resident Abdulla Hadi Abdul Rehman Al Enezi has been arrested by the country’s authorities for allegedly funding four Mumbai IS recruits. The NIA will soon seek custody of the individual.
According to sources in the National Investigation Agency, Al Enezi’s name first cropped up during the NIA investigation against four Mumbai youth including Areeb Majeed, who later deserted the terror outfit and returned to India via Turkey. Al Enezi had paid $1,000 to Majeed, when he was in Baghdad to facilitate his travel to IS-held territory.
The NIA had shared the details of terror financier Al Enezi with Kuwaiti authorities and a case was registered against him under the terror laws of the country. Al Enezi, sources said, admitted supporting terrorist organisations and his involvement in financing terrorism, after his return from Pakistan in 2013.
Sources said Majeed’s friend Saheem, reportedly killed in IS-held territory, had developed contacts with Afghanistan national Abdul Rehman Dawlaty just weeks before the group of four from Kalyan, Mumbai, left for Baghdad. Besides, Majeed and Saheem, two others from Kalyan, Fahad Sheikh and Aman Tandel, were part of the group.
Dawlaty and his friend Adil allegedly arranged a large portion of funds required for their travel to Baghdad. After landing in Baghdad, they were introduced to Al Enezi, who arranged another $1,000 for the group.
“Kuwaiti authorities had informed the NIA through the Ministry of External Affairs about Al Enezi arrest a few days back, confirming his identity and other details. NIA will seek his custody,” sources said.
During the course of investigation, the NIA had sought help from Australia, Canada, Kuwait and Singapore in obtaining documentary evidence pertaining to the emails and social networking media used by Majeed and three others.
The information received by the agency had established money transfers to Indian IS recruits including $1,000 payment made by Al Enezi through Western Union Money Transfer.
Majeed had used various social networking platforms for communicating with IS sympathisers and propagators to wage Jihad by violent means against non-believers of Islam. He covertly attracted the attention of vulnerable youngsters and pushed them towards Jihad.
Some of these accounts were created when Majeed was in IS held territory.
After return to India in November, 2014, Majeed had told interrogators that he was deployed at Mosul dam as a mason by the ISS after he and three of his friends joined the terror outfit .
Majeed was injured in an airstrike on August 17 when Peshmerga and the Iraqi Army launched a ground operation with the support of the US air force. Majeed had said that he was humiliated by IS terrorists in Chechnya and other places for not being fit to fight for the IS.