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Recent intelligence inputs indicate that the Pakistan-based terrorist organisation Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) has launched an online radicalisation and training initiative aimed at mobilising women to participate in its jihadist activities against India. The development marks a significant evolution in JeM’s recruitment and operational strategy, as it seeks to create a digital pipeline of indoctrinated women capable of supporting and sustaining its terror network.
The newly introduced programme, titled Tufat al-Muminat, is designed to serve as the cornerstone for building JeM’s female wing, Jamaat-ul-Muminat, announced earlier this month. The course—structured as daily 40-minute live sessions—will begin on 8 November, with participants reportedly required to make a “donation” of 500 Pakistani rupees, ostensibly to cover course materials but effectively functioning as a fundraising conduit for the organisation.
Two sisters of JeM chief Masood Azhar, namely Sadiya Azhar and Samaira Azhar, are believed to be leading the training module. Intelligence sources suggest that Sadiya Azhar has been appointed commander of the women’s brigade, succeeding her late husband Yusuf Azhar, who was eliminated during Operation Sindoor. Other members of the Azhar family, including Safia Azhar and Afreera Farooq (widow of Pulwama attack conspirator Ummer Farooq), are said to have joined the unit’s leadership council or Shura.
The formalisation of JeM’s women’s wing was publicly announced on 8 October, followed by a mobilisation event titled Dukhtaran-e-Islam in Rawalkot (Pakistan-administered Kashmir) on 19 October. Intelligence analysts assess that this structured engagement of women represents an adaptive response to sustained counter-terror pressure that has disrupted JeM’s traditional networks and male-dominated infrastructure.
Digital Radicalisation: The New Frontline
JeM’s shift to an online indoctrination model aligns with broader patterns observed among transnational extremist groups such as ISIS, Hamas, and the LTTE, which have long exploited digital ecosystems to recruit and train women.
In JeM’s case, the digital module serves dual objectives: first, to propagate an ideological narrative that merges religious instruction with calls to jihad; and second, to establish a parallel, women-led support structure to sustain logistics, outreach, and, potentially, low-intensity operations.
Security officials point out that the online mode lowers both visibility and vulnerability. Participants are radicalised remotely, allowing JeM to expand recruitment without physical gatherings that could attract scrutiny. Moreover, the nominal fee not only ensures a steady revenue stream but also creates a sense of commitment among recruits—a tested psychological mechanism in extremist ecosystems.
“This is not symbolic participation,” a senior Indian intelligence officer noted. “The indoctrination programme is designed to embed women within JeM’s operational fabric—whether as propagandists, recruiters, fundraisers, or facilitators. It adds depth to the organisation’s resilience.”
Operational and Strategic Implications
JeM’s online initiative underscores a strategic recalibration following sustained Indian counter-terror operations and international financial restrictions on Pakistan-based outfits. The group appears intent on leveraging gender and technology as asymmetric tools—expanding recruitment among women who can operate below the radar of conventional surveillance frameworks.
Intelligence agencies are monitoring the network’s digital reach, which reportedly extends into Jammu & Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, and parts of southern India, where JeM’s online propaganda is disseminated through encrypted social media groups, madrassa networks, and community-based outreach channels.
A Widening Threat Spectrum
JeM’s creation of a structured women’s wing supported by a digital indoctrination apparatus represents more than an organisational experiment; it signifies an attempt to institutionalise gendered radicalisation as a force multiplier in Pakistan’s proxy terror architecture.
For India, the development broadens the threat spectrum—extending it from traditional infiltration and sleeper-cell models to digitally enabled female radical networks operating across virtual and social domains.
Strategic Takeaway
The emergence of Tufat al-Muminat as an online indoctrination and training module reflects JeM’s evolving doctrine of hybrid warfare—where digital radicalisation, gender participation, and micro-financing intersect to sustain terrorism under the radar of conventional counter-measures.
For Indian security planners, this necessitates a calibrated counter-narrative strategy combining cyber monitoring, psychological operations, and social outreach to disrupt the virtual radicalisation chain. It also underscores the urgency for regional and multilateral mechanisms—including FATF and UN frameworks—to address digital-era terror financing and gendered extremism as emerging dimensions of global terrorism.
As JeM’s digital campaign unfolds, India’s counter-terror apparatus must remain alert to the reality that the battlefield is no longer confined to borders—it is now expanding into browsers.
Team BharatShakti
