SECOND TERRORIST CAMP UNEARTHED IN KARNATAKA

Second terror camp unearthed in Karnataka
4 Feb 2008, 0141 hrs IST,MANU AIYAPPA,TNN

SMS NEWS to 58888 for latest updates

Riyazuddin Nasir alias Mohammed Ghouse was arrested recently (TOI Photo) HUBLI: Ominous signals are emanating from the jungles of Karnataka. Investigation into the unearthing of a terrorist training camp in Dharwad has led to more disturbing evidence: the location of another abandoned terrorist training centre, this time, deep inside the forest of neighbouring Uttara Kannada district. Sources in the anti-terrorist cell said the camp was located in the midst of dilapidated temples belonging to the period of Chalukyas. Going by the evidence they collected, an investigating officer said that the abandoned camp could be the first location of Riyazuddin Nasir alias Mohammed Ghouse and his accomplice, arrested recently. He said this could be the place where Ghouse worked on the elaborate recruitment process of jihadis. According to the officer, the camp inside the jungle, which is roughly 5 miles from the Dharwad-Karwar highway, is hidden in a cluster of gigantic teak trees. After a closer look at the walls of the dilapidated shrines, the policemen found slogans written in Arabic. The officer said some locals told him that a year ago, a group of students frequently made weekend trips to the woods and held "classes". But they stopped it when some residents objected suspecting them to be indulging in illegal activities. He said Ghouse and his aides admitted that they visited the place but denied they had indulged in terrorist activities. The officers, however, suspect that Ghouse and his accomplice identified the "most able", particularly from professional colleges, invited them to weekend trips that involve trekking and water rafting. This, they did to identify those that are especially aggressive or have leadership qualities to conduct their terror campaign. Eventually, this process led to terrorist training camps in Pakistan, as it was in the case of Ghouse.