ISIS increases Pak presence by recruiting youths online

Washington D.C: With growing internet accessibility, recent reports have mapped the increasing presence of the ISIS in Pakistan, merely through online recruitment.

Young Pakistanis, both men and women, educated or otherwise have fallen prey to being lured by extremism and commitment to jihad.

One such example can be cited through the life of 20-year old Noreen Leghari, a medical student who joined the ‘daesh’ at the brim of her education.

For over a year, Noreen was in touch with extremists online. While her parents thought she was abducted, she reached out to them via Facebook, informing them of her whereabouts and admitting to be in ‘Syria for jihad’. “Stop searching for me,” said the young girl.    

In April, security forces stormed her hideout there, killing one of her two accomplices and recovering two suicide vests and hand grenades. Noreen had planned to detonate herself at a crowded church two days later, on Easter Sunday, as reported by the Washington Post.

While exact statistics of the ISIS presence in Pakistan have not been ascertained, it has been warned that the potential threat they can cause is real, and it is expanding its presence through digital platforms.

 Apart from this, the extremist group has also reportedly garnered support from local terrorist organisations.