Tactical Shift: Militants give up use of
mobile phones
Srinagar,
April 30: After facing several setbacks over the past several years, the
militants in Kashmir have abandoned use of
mobile phones, making it harder for counter-insurgency agencies to track them. Following
the change in strategy by militants, the security and intelligence agencies
have also started relying on traditional sources for spying. “The recent
attacks carried out by militants shows their potential and the security grid to
counter the militancy is looking for re-activating former traditional sources
to spy on militants as there is no more use of cell phones,” said a senior
security official, wishing not to be named.
The
official said that in the past several years use of cell phone proved costly
for the militants as they were easily tracked. “These days Facebook and other
social networking sites are largely being used by the militants to plan
operational activities. But almost all are using fake profiles that is why we
have been unable to crack whip on major modules of outfits in recent past,” the
official added. The official, however, said traditional sources could be
re-employed as a strategy to make inroads into militant outfits. The official
said they came to know about the change in strategy of militants after
interrogating some Over Ground Workers (OGWs) and militants.
However,
another official who is also extensively involved in counter-insurgency
operations said the clue of using social networks like facebook has came to
fore from last call of Muzamil alias Urfi of Sopore last year in October
wherein he discussed about his facebook messages with family. “The call Muzamil
made to his family was tip of an iceberg for us. He spoke about chatting on
facebook with his uncle so we started tracking the facebook accounts since
then,” said the official. The phone call made by Muzamil few minutes before he
got killed in an encounter in October 2012 turned viral on Facebook and Youtube
with thousands of hits. In his call, Muzamil asked his mother to pay regards to
his uncle as he didn’t reply his messages he had sent him on internet.
Sources said
militants have made significant comeback and has earned them sympthasizers
across valley. “The militants managed to take benefits of last three uprisings
and are gaining the lost ground. Srinagar
city, which was apparently militancy free, has witnessed steep rise in violence.
It suggests that they have now successfully made inroads into the city also,”
said the sources, adding that tackling present status of militancy is a bigger
challenge as it is well organized.
Source:
http://www.risingkashmir.in/news/tactical-shift-militants-give-up-use-of-mobile-phones-46373.aspx
No comments:
Post a Comment