Kashmiri woman arrested for luring youths into militancy through Facebook: Officials

Srinagar, Nov 18: In a first-of-its-kind case , a woman has been arrested by security agencies in Kashmir for allegedly luring youths through Facebook into militancy, especially the Jaish-e-Mohammed, officials said Sunday.

Identified as Shazia from Naidkhai in the Sumbal area of Bandipore in North Kashmir, she was picked up after intelligence agencies zeroed on her Facebook profile, through which she was “luring youths for jihad and picking up weapons”, the officials said.

During interrogation, it was found that she had handed over some ammunition and magazines to two youths from Anantnag, one of whom has been picked up.

Shazia, who is in her early 30’s and a mother of two, had been on the radar of security agencies for quite some time. She would seek favours from senior officers promising them help in getting some militants arrested.

A video featuring Shazia had surfaced on Facebook a few months ago, and it was alleged that she was a police informer. On the basis of a complaint filed by her, two youths were picked up and later let off with a warning.

“It seems that she was being used by terror groups to extract information from police and other security agencies and pass it on to the militants,” an officer, privy to the case, said on condition of anonymity.

She has not been forthcoming in her interrogation so far other than dropping names of militant commanders, the officials said.

Shazia’s arrest comes a week after police nabbed 28-year-old Aysia Jan for carrying 20 grenades at Lawaypora on the city outskirts following inputs about militants trying to smuggle arms and ammunition into the city.

Besides grenades, police also recovered ammunition from her possession. Her two brother were detained in connection with the case. (PTI)