Islamic State thinks poorly of South Asian fighters, say intelligence officials

Leaders of the radical Islamic State (IS) rate the fighting abilities of the South Asian Muslims as “poor”, Western and Indian intelligence officials say.

After interrogating three Indian Muslims who deserted the Islamic State recently, intelligence officials learnt they had been sneered at by their Arab commanders and taunted for their reluctance to kill freely.

"One IS deserter told us the Arabs even ridicule them as bad Muslims because they are reluctant to kill for the cause," a joint director handling an intelligence unit in Delhi 'debriefing' deserters told bdnews24.com.

The official quoted another deserter, who hails from a south Indian state, to say that the Arabs ridicule recruits from India, Bangladesh and even Pakistan often over even small matters like refusing to whip old people and children.

The joint director, who wished anonymity, said a third Indian deserter told them that their 'Indian values of treating elders with respect was often mocked at by the Arab fighters'.

"The Arabs, specially the Iraqis and the North Africans, are too brutal and we can’t be like them . We don’t mind fighting the enemy on the front but we can’t kill innocent people like they do," an IS deserter told the 'debriefing' unit.

He said many other Indian and Bangladesh recruits were trying to desert but were unable to gather courage to run away.

"Our people cannot just adjust with these brutal guys," he told the 'debriefing unit'.

A French intelligence official now in India to secure 'feedback' from IS deserters said they have seen 'similar disillusionment' among European IS recruits as well.

"When we compare what some European deserters have told us with what Indian deserters are now telling your intelligence, we find a striking similarity. Many just find the Arab commanders too racist, too full of themselves, too blood thirsty," the French official said.

But she wished not to be identified because her mission was not to be made public.

India's State Minister for Home Khiren Rijjuju says his government was aware of the IS threat, though only about 60 Indians have so far volunteered for IS.

"But already six of them have died in suicide missions, which means the IS commanders are using them as expendable material," Rijjuju toldbdnews24.com.

One deserter told the 'debriefing unit’ that South Asian Muslim recruits are often loaded into trucks with explosives concealed in them.

"They are told to drive them to a particular location which the IS commanders want to destroy and the explosions are then set off by remote control," Rijjuju said.

He added there are plans to record in detail the confessions of these deserters and put them out in public domain. "Since the IS recruit young people over the Net (internet), we have to hit their channel and save our gullible young people from getting carried away."

This is part of a de-radicalisation response of the Indian government.

"Just hunting jihadi cells and attacking them is not enough. We have to hit their recruitment channels," Rijjuju said.

"Our Muslims find the IS brutalities unacceptable, which is why there have been so few recruitments from India,” added the minister.

He said it would be no different with Muslims from other South Asian countries where local culture of tolerance prevails.

About Bangladesh, Indian intelligence officials say the IS does not have a presence in the country.

'We differ from the American assessment on that issue. I think they are missing the local nuances," a joint secretary of an external intelligence unit said.

"What we know is that some local jihadist groups are getting together to take forward their agenda of radical Islam and the IS are using them as an outsourced unit," he said about Bangladesh.

He said the 'local dynamics' are much more important in Bangladesh than those emanating from the Middle East.