Meet Aasim Umar, Al Qaeda’s face in India

A little more than a year ago when Aasim Umar was introduced by Al Qaeda chief Ayman al Jawahiri in a video message as the head of the Qaeda's South Asia arm — Qaedat-al-Jihad (QaJ) — the Indian security agencies had little clue about him.

The video showed Umar exhorting Indian Muslims to participate in the "global jihad to give a final push to the collapsing edifice of America" and establish Ummah (Muslim nationhood) and rule of Sharia'ah (Muslim law).

Working meticulously to understand this new avatar of terror better, the Indian agencies describe Aasim Umar as a reclusive person, originally a Maulvi, who steadily rose from the ranks to become the leader of Qaedat-al-Jihad also known as Al Qaeda Indian Subcontinent (AQIS).

Due to his typical style of speaking and the language Umar uses, the agencies checking out his antecedents are looking at his India connection. "The words used by Umar and the flow of his voice suggests he could be a native of Delhi, UP or he could be one from the Muhajir community in Pakistan," a source said.

Umar has closely worked with Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HuM) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) to recruit and train youth for terror operations in Jammu & Kashmir. Before being made the AQIS chief he indoctrinated and trained terrorists in PoK for nearly five years.

The central intelligence agencies' dossier on Umar says the teacher-turned-terrorist is considered to be a close aide of Fazl-ur Rehman Khalil, the self-styled chief commander of the HuM.

Umar, who is in his mid-40s, was introduced to Taliban leader Mulla Omar by Khalil. Umar had travelled to the Khost province in Afghanistan to meet Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al Zawahiri. A master of terror propaganda, Umar was later used by the Al Qaeda as a militant cleric to brainwash Muslim youths to wage Jihad in West Asia as well.

Khalil was responsible for hijacking Indian Airlines Flight, IC-814, in December 1999. Intelligence dossier claims Umar and Khalil had launched a front organisation 'Jamiat-ul-Ansar' (JuA) to disguise terror activities in Jammu & Kashmir when HuM got unmasked after the IC814 hijacking forcing Pakistan to act under international pressure. Later, Umar, who is fluent in Urdu, Arabic, English and Pashto, became close to Maulana Masood Azhar after he was released in the IC 814 hostage swap deal by India. By the time, Azhar had moved out of HuM and founded Jaish-e-Mohammed poaching not only preacher Umar but also several others.

Umar travelled often to Quetta to meet Taliban and Al Qaeda leaders. Umar, who once taught in a Karachi madrasa, was given the title of Sheikh and he was made chief of Al Qaeda Shariah Committee in Pakistan.

After the kidnapping and murder of American journalist Daniel Pearl, Umar is said to have completely distanced himself from HuM and its top leaders but continued indoctrination of new terror recruits in Karachi and in other terror camps operated by the JeM in PoK.

After the 2008 Mumbai terror attack, following American pressure, Umar went into hiding in the Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA), which by then had become the sanctuary of Taliban terrorists. He reorganised Al Qaeda modules in Pakistan in a bid to launch operations there.

According to intelligence sources, Umar is actively involved in generating terror funds through donations from sympathisers in West Asia, using online forums. Umar's first operation targeting a Pakistan navy frigate in Karachi in early September resulted in complete failure as three terrorists were killed and four were captured.