The fugitive chief recruiter for the ISIS in the Indian subcontinent, Mohammed Shafi Armar, has been designated as a ‘Specially Designated Global Terrorist‘ by the US State Treasury Department. By being included in the list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists clears the way for international sanctions against the terrorist recruiter.
Armar also has an Interpol Red Notice pending against him. The Red Notice is an international warrant for the arrest of a wanted individual that also seeks extradition if necessary.
Armar was first identified as a terror threat when India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) was probing suspected ISIS cadres in Ratlam, Madhya Pradesh. During interrogations of alleged ISIS operatives, it was found that Armar had been involved in motivating and radicalizing Muslim youths in India, mostly through the use of social media platforms such as Facebook and other personal messenger services. The NIA had filed a charge-sheet against him along with five others for conspiring to carry out terror strikes in the country.
Armar is believed to have escaped to Pakistan after a crackdown on Indian Mujahideen cadres. The US State Department stated that Armar is responsible for “cultivating ISIS sympathizers who are involved in terrorist activities across India.”