In a major pre-dawn crackdown on Saturday, the Jammu and Kashmir Police's counter-intelligence wing raided multiple locations in connection with an alleged network involved in online terror glorification, radicalisation and recruitment in terror ranks.
The sweeping operations were conducted in Baramulla, Shopian, Anantnag, Kupwara and Bandipora amid fresh intelligence inputs that terror outfits are trying to revive their networks in the valley.
In Shopian, the residence of Usman Gulzar, who is in a jail in Jammu, was raided. In Kupwara, the police raided residence of a person named Babar Dar over alleged misuse of SIM cards for spreading propaganda on social media.
In Bandipora, the house of a woman, Laali, was raided over online radicalisation.
The raids are linked to a case that pertains to the systematic misuse of social media platforms to glorify terrorism and lure youth into joining terrorist organisations.
Sources in the security establishment said that following recent targeted killings, agencies questioned more than 5,000 individuals across the Valley.
During the questioning, crucial leads emerged about attempts to reactivate sleeper modules and expand digital recruitment drives.
"Use of fake SIMs, encrypted apps and social media to push terror narratives and recruit vulnerable youth is being dealt with zero tolerance," a senior officer said.
