India's top intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW), has found some footprints of Iran's "recruitment covert operation" in India specifically in Mumbai and Maharashtra. This intel input indicates that the operation is strategically aimed at mobilizing support from Shia Muslims in India and across the globe. Iran linked NGO allegedly has launched an extensive global operation to recruit sympathizers.
R&AW recently raised an alarm and shared critical intelligence regarding Iran's extremist recruitment operations in India. According to intelligence shared by the agency, an Iran-based NGO, the Ahl-Ul-Bayt World Assembly (ABWA) which has ties with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Islamist militant groups in the Middle East, including Hamas and Hezbollah is actively involved in "talent hunting" among Shia Muslims in Mumbai and Maharashtra.
According to top official sources speaking on the condition of anonymity, the threat posed by the Iran-based NGO movement is not linked to terror operations in India but rather to "political, religious, and economic warfare". The Ahl-Ul-Bayt World Assembly (ABWA) is attempting to appoint representatives in various parts of India for talent spotting and spreading the ideology of its supreme leader Ayatollah Khomeini.
According to the inputs, the objective of an Iran-based NGO is to identify talented Shia Muslims and indoctrinate them with Ayatollah Khomeini's extremist ideology, aiming to unify all Shias under one umbrella in India. This strategy includes rallying every Shia to support Iran, especially during conflicts with Israel or potential future wars. Operating discreetly, the Ahl-Ul-Bayt World Assembly (ABWA), an Iranian NGO, works towards these ambitions. Identified individuals are expected to actively advocate for Iran's interests in India, applying pressure on the Indian government to align with Iran's global agenda. Sources said that Iranian NGOs are providing financial support for rapid infrastructure development to establish this platform. R&AW shared inputs about the possibility of subverting Shias in India in favour of Iran and even radicalizing children.
The External Agency has issued directives to other sister agencies dealing in internal security matters to maintain close surveillance on Iranian individuals arriving in Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, and other parts of Maharashtra. The directive follows specific intelligence received from R&AW's sources in Iran.
The ABWA is an Iranian NGO that promotes Iran's revolutionary ideology abroad and connects Iranian Shi'a clerics with foreign Shi'a clerics. It also connects Shi'a communities around the world. The ABWA is part of a network of Iranian-backed institutions that spread Ayatollah Khomeini's revolutionary Islamist ideology. The ABWA has also been involved in activities that delegitimize Israel.
Iran is known for its proxy tactics in the middle East region, such as supporting the Houthi rebels in Yemen. Saudi Arabia has previously accused Iran of supporting attacks on Saudi oil facilities, although Iran has denied these claims. The United States has imposed several restrictions on Iran, but Iran has stated that these measures are a matter of their survival, so they cannot back down. After the Gulf War, Iran also had proxies in Iraq. Following the death of Saddam Hussein, there were various reports indicating that Iran was expanding its influence in Iraq. As a result, a few years ago, Iraq was governed by a Shia leader.
The expansionist policy of Iran is mainly to serve its own interest by way of gaining support from countries like India, as it has grown in image in the present geo political scenario at the International diaspora. Hence, it is allegedly spotting talents among its own Shia followers in the country like India, who can build pressure within India to support Iran's interest in the event of crisis in middle east by way of its own youth.
