Mumbai: The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has revealed a disturbing case of child indoctrination in its chargesheet against arrested accused Huzaif Sheikh. The investigation found that Sheikh and ISIS operative Rabiya, alias Umm Osama, systematically radicalised their children, raising them to follow extremist ideologies and glorify terrorism.

In a chat conversation between Sheikh and Rabiya alias Umm Osama, agencies found that the deceased chief of the ISIS Khorasan module, global terrorist Shafi Armar, alias Yusuf-Al-Hindi, had a son named "Osama." and widow of Shafi Armar wanted her to be mujahid like his father.

According to chat records dated September 11, 2023, Rabiya admitted to "mind-feeding" her son Osama, to follow in his father’s footsteps to become a militant like his father.

During one conversation, Sheikh referred to Osama as “Bhatkal bap ka beta h” (a reference to Armar's Bhatkal origins), to which Rabiya confirmed this by responding with "Genes," implying that her son aspires to be like his father, Shafi Armar, a key figure in the Indian Mujahideen and is wanted by the National Investigation Agency. He was also on an Interpol Red Corner Notice (RCN) and was killed in Syria while fighting for ISIS.

The ATS chargesheet further reveals that Huzaif Sheikh, during his conversations with Rabiya, encouraged her to raise her son as a "Mujahid," blessing him to become like his father. The investigation reveals Sheikh’s active role in radicalising individuals, including his own children.

Further chat records indicate that Sheikh himself indoctrinated his son and daughter, narrating stories about Shafi Armar, the former Indian Mujahideen operative who later joined ISIS, and his marriage to Pakistan based terror operative Rabia alias Umm Osama. Their conversations also referenced "jihad" (holy war), reinforcing extremist ideologies.

Evidence suggests that he actively reinforced jihadist beliefs, ensuring that the next generation would carry forward the extremist legacy. The chargesheet highlighted the role of digital platforms in propagating terrorist narratives, with Sheikh actively engaging in ISIS recruitment activities.

During the search operation, the ATS recovered an HP EliteBook 840 laptop seized from the house of the arrested accused, Huzaif Abdul Aziz Shaikh. The recovered documents contained an Urdu book titled 'Teachers’ Guide for Physical Preparation for Children', having images of the ISIS flag in its brief introduction.

The image data also contained maps, photos of ISIS flags, books, a photograph of the Baghuz war, and a screenshot featuring a fuse and detonator. During the investigation, it was also revealed that Shaikh’s first wife, who passed away a few years ago, was in contact with Rabiya alias Umm Osama.

In a statement, a witness disclosed during the investigation that the late Afreen and the arrested accused, Huzaif Shaikh, used to discuss the war in Syria, ISIS ideology, and ISIS widows. The witness also stated that they were supporting and sending funds. At that time, late Afreen informed this witness that both she and her husband Shaikh were in touch with a woman in Syria, the wanted accused Umm Osama alias Rabiya, and were providing her with funds.

The ATS social media panchanama also recovered a video titled "Mai Gaji Ban Jaunga," which prominently featured a permanent tribute image of Shafi Armar, glorifying him as a martyr. Other images found in the digital evidence included those of Arshad Madani (Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind), Azam Ghauri, Zakir Musa, Burhan Wani, Zakir Naik, and visuals related to the Babri Masjid demolition and the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, portraying them in a manner aimed at radicalizing viewers.

Further investigations revealed that Huzaif Sheikh was in direct contact with Umm Osama, who played a significant role in disseminating radical content and recruiting individuals for extremist activities.

The Maharashtra ATS has revealed a deep-rooted ISIS-linked propaganda network for recruitment as well as a radicalisation programme in its chargesheet against arrested accused Huzaif Sheikh.

The investigation found that Sheikh was radicalised with the ideology of ISIS and Hamas and was actively using multiple encrypted messaging apps, including Telegram, Signal, WhatsApp, and Facebook, to communicate with ISIS operative Rabiya alias Umm Osama, the widow of global terrorist Shafi Armar, also known as Yusuf-Al-Hindi.

One of the key findings in the probe was the discovery of a Facebook account named 'Milestone', operated by Rabiya alias Umm Osama. It contained extremist literature, chats between ISIS militants and their families, and images of terror attacks, including those in Kabul and conditions at Syria’s Al-Hawl camp where she resided and operated the terror operations.

The Youtube search history of arrested accused Huzaif Abdul Aziz Shaikh disclosed web links namely Taliban invites Indian, revisiting 26/11 Ajmal Kasab Confession, 26/11 Mumbai attack planning and Opening up Bin Laden Secret among others.

The investigation of downloaded data from social media apps revealed the Facebook friends list of the arrested accused, Huzaif Shaikh, which included mobile numbers +9379***** and +96399*********, discreetly saved under the name 'Crackers', a reference to wanted accused Umm Osama alias Rabiya.

The Google Takeout "My Activity" records exposed Shaikh’s search history, which included 'UAE-Oman border crossing for expats 2022', 'Letter to America', 'The structure of the Caliphate', 'The structure of the Islamic State (ISIS)', 'The structure of the Khilafah State - Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain', 'Turkey visa' and 'Turkey flights', '10 steps to mass killings', 'Lookout circular', 'Immigration officers check at the airport', 'Houthi attack Yemen', 'Idlib Fajr time' and 'Bhatkal bookings'. This also included mage search of slideplayer.com displaying Osama Bin Laden’s 1998 Fatwa and map searches for Padgha (Bhiwandi), Syria, Saudi Arabia, Central Asia, East Africa, Eurasia, Middle East, Egypt, Levant, Iraq, Iran, and Yemen.

The above findings indicate that the arrested accused, Shaikh, was radicalised along the lines of jihadist figures such as Osama Bin Laden and Ajmal Kasab and was influenced by ISIS and Hamas ideology. Furthermore, he maintained discreet contact with wanted accused Umm Osama alias Rabiya through her Facebook account, "Milestone."