Pakistani-based Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist group arrested at Delhi airport

A terrorist handler for Pakistani-based Lashkar-e-Taiba group was arrested from Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport, the National Investigation Agency said today. Habibur Rahaman alias Habib, originally resident of Kendrapara in Odisha and currently based out of Riyadh in Saudi Arabia was arrested by anti-terror agency on Sunday.

According to the NIA, Habibur Rahman was one of the handlers of LeT terrorist Shaikh Abdul Naeem alias Nomi who was initially arrested in 2007 while trying to infiltrate two Pakistani and one Kashmiri terrorist into India through Bangladesh.

Shaikh Abdul Naeem later on escaped from custody while he was being taken for court attendance to Maharashtra from Kolkata in August, 2014. After his escape from custody, he joined terror operations on the directions of his handlers based in Pakistan and in Saudi Arabia.

"A well-established conspiracy was hatched between the



accused for targeting vulnerable locations in India with intent of causing maximum damage," the NIA said.

Naeem was tasked to identify locations where terrorist attacks could be carried out. For this purpose, Naeem assumed different fake identities and visited different states including Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh and did reconnaissance of possible targets for terrorist attacks.

Habibur Rahman arranged hideouts and funds for Shaikh Abdul Naeem on different occasions for carrying out terrorist activities in India on the directions of the LeT terrorist Amjad alias Rehan who is based in Pakistan, the NIA said.

Naeem was arrested again by NIA in Novevmber 2017 and he has been charge-sheeted along with 10 other co-accused including Habibur Rehman.

Rehman is being produced today in Delhi's Patiala House Courts by the NIA to seek custody for his interrogation.