Several days after Al-Qaeda threatened of suicide attacks in India, Islamic State Khurasan Province (ISKP) issued similar threats. Twitter handle, The Khorasan Diary, on June 14, tweeted that The Islamic terror organisation launched its news bulletin through its mouthpiece Alazain foundation. Its first bulletin was entirely focused on India and alleged blasphemy by former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma.
https://twitter.com/khorasandiary/status/1536619627219865600?t=80CFKMS8wVQKpjpcuM_THg&s=08
In the next tweet, The Khorasan Diary said the video featured Nupur Sharma and the Uttar Pradesh Government bulldozing the houses of the Muslim mob. It also highlighted the previous statements of its suicide bombers, who were Indian and warned of attacking India whenever possible.
https://twitter.com/khorasandiary/status/1536619661315350529?s=20&t=q0GlPBcE6ArS8yrWe-Ex9w
In another tweet, the handle revealed that ISKP criticised Taliban’s Mulla Yaqoob, who gave an interview to CNN News 18 journalist Anand Narasimhan. The terror organisation also slammed the Taliban’s foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi for meeting India’s charge d’ affairs in Afghanistan to begin new cooperation with India.
https://twitter.com/khorasandiary/status/1536619685432954881?s=20&t=q0GlPBcE6ArS8yrWe-Ex9w
In its final tweet, the handle said the bulletin featured India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and attacks on the Sikh community in Afghanistan. It also featured several animations of suicide bombings and ended with a message of attacking India soon.
https://twitter.com/khorasandiary/status/1536619712326422529
This isn’t the first time India received a threat from Islamic terrorist organisations after Nupur Sharma’s controversy erupted. Earlier, Al-Qaeda issued a threat to conduct suicide bombings in several states of the country.
The threat statement said, “saffron terrorists should now await their end in Delhi and Bombay and in UP and Gujarat.”
“They shall find refuge neither in their homes nor in their fortified army cantonments. May our mothers be bereaved of us if we do not avenge our beloved Prophet,” Al-Qaeda said in the statement.
“We shall kill those who affront our Prophet and we shall bind explosives with our bodies and the bodies of our children to blow away the ranks of those who dare to dishonor our Prophet… [They] shall find no amnesty or clemency, no peace and security will save them and this matter will not close with any words of condemnation or sorrow,” it added.
India has become the target for several vested interests within the country and outside after alleged fact news checker, and Alt News co-founder Muhammad Zubair twisted the comments of Nupur Sharma on Muhammad’s life in an 85-second video, which he posted on social media.
Nupur Sharma became a target for Islamists after the video went viral, and several Islamists have been issuing several death and rape threats despite apologising on social media for her comments on Muhammad’s life.
On June 10, Islamists took to the streets in several states after Friday prayers and vandalised public property in the name of protests. AIMIM (Inquilab) leader Qavi Abbasi announced a bounty of 1 crore on the former spokesperson of the BJP. Reflecting the Taliban’s style of punishment, an effigy of Nupur Sharma was found hanging near a dargah in Karnataka’s Belagavi.
Several Islamic nations jumped into the issue and officially lodged their protest by summoning Indian ambassadors in their country. OIC stepped into the issue and issued a statement, which was slammed by India. India reacted strongly to the statement and suggested the OIC to stop pursuing its communal approach and show due respect to all faiths and religions.
“We have seen the statement on India from the General Secretariat of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). Government of India categorically rejects OIC Secretariat’s unwarranted and narrow-minded comments,” said MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.
Iran’s Tehran Times posted a fake protest video on its social media account and claimed it to be from India, where Muslims came out onto the streets condemning Nupur Sharma’s comments. Social media influencer Anshul Saxena busted Tehran Times fake news propaganda and revealed the video to be from Pakistan in 2020.
Prior to that, Iran’s Foreign Ministry peddled fake news that India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval assured Iran’s Foreign Minister of taking strict action against those who insulted Muhammad.
MEA later denied Iran’s statement and said the issue was not brought up during the meeting with MEA, Dr S. Jaishankar and NSA Ajit Doval.
“My understanding is that this issue was not raised during that conversation,” MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, adding, “The issue on remarks against the Prophet did not come up between External Minister S Jaishankar and the Iranian Foreign Minister. This has been conveyed to our interlocutors as also the fact that action has been taken by the concerned quarters against those who made the comments and tweets. I really do not have anything additional to say on this.”
