New Delhi, April 10 : There has been a rising concern over the number of Pakistani-origin individuals settled abroad who have associated themselves with the Islamic State. Such persons, according to Indian agencies, pose a big risk to the United States, Canada and Europe.

An Intelligence Bureau official said that these persons are trying to harm Indian interests abroad. The Islamic State has been targeting individuals of Pakistani origin with the intention of recruiting them and asking them to hit Indian interests abroad.

The official said this is more or less like what the ISI expects the Khalistan elements to do. The ISI seeks to have Indian interests hit with the help of both Khalistani elements and Islamic State-inspired persons, the official also said.

Under the radar of these elements are the Hindu Temples, Indian diplomatic missions, and locations linked to the Jewish-Indian community. This signals a major plot by the ISI which goes beyond India. It is looking for similar recruits in several other countries as well, and the intention is to hurt India internationally as well.

The ISI is devising several strategies so that it can target India. In recent months, investigations by multiple agencies revealed that the ISI was looking to set up homegrown modules. It has stepped up its propaganda narrative so that the youth tend to self-recruit and run modules.

The Faridabad module was one such example of this plan. In addition to trying to target India by setting up homegrown terror modules, it has decided to club this with a plan that goes beyond India.

The recent confession of a Pakistani-origin man in Canada is proof that the ISI has activated its international plans. Muhammad Shahzzeb Khan, a man of Pakistani origin, confessed before a US federal court to plotting an attack on a Jewish centre in Brooklyn.

Based out of Canada, he was arrested in September 2024 near the US-Canada border while trying to illegally enter the United States with the help of a human smuggler. He now faces the possibility of life imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to charges related to terrorism.

He said that he was planning to strike at a Jewish centre on October 7, the anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel.

Another official said that with such plans in place, the Indian missions need to remain on a state of high alert. The ISI has been tapping into lone actors to carry out such attacks, the official added.

While such an attack would hurt Indiaâ??s interests, it also creates fear and panic among the Indian diaspora.

The Khalistanis have done this in the US, the UK and Canada, and now the ISI wants the Islamic State terrorists to do the same.

While the Khalistan threat is immense, the plan that the ISI wants to undertake through these lone actors is extremely dangerous.

Another official said that such attacks are aimed at massive destruction. It is also meant to send a signal to India that its citizens and interests are not safe anywhere.

For the ISI, such attacks are of utmost importance, following the embarrassment Pakistan faced after Operation Sindoor. This operation carried out by the Indian Armed Forces to avenge the Pahalgam attack led to the destruction of massive terror infrastructure both in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Pakistan. In a bid to avenge this and save face, the ISI has come up with multiple plans to hurt India both within and abroad.

/IANS