Who is Syed Zabiuddin alias Abu Hamza?

Multiple Aliases Identified as Abu Jindal in the charge sheet filed in the 26/11 case, his actual name is reported to be Syed Zabiuddin. Another alias he may have allegedly used was Abu Hamza. Thirty-years-old and originally from Georai area of Beed district in Maharashtra, he had studied at an Indian Technical Institute in his hometown. He was allegedly indoctrinated and absorbed into the banned terrorist group Laskhar-e-Taiba following the 2002 Gujarat riots. He was reportedly deported from Saudi Arabia after authorities identified his voice on the tapes and tracked his movements to the country. According to some reports he may have been in jail in Saudi Arabia for travelling using a fake passport. Role in 2008 Mumbai terror strikes Zabiuddin is accused of motivating and training the gunmen involved in the 2008 terror strikes in Mumbai in locations like hotel Taj and Oberoi, Cafe Leopold, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus and Chabad House in which over 180 persons were killed. He was reportedly among the handlers who spoke to the gunmen while they were battling security forces and motivated them to continue the battle. Zabiuddin was allegedly present in the ‘control room’ in Karachi in Pakistan from where instructions were being constantly relayed to the gunmen in the attacks. In the intercepted calls, he was also heard using typical Hindi words like “prashasan” (government) and was directing the terrorists to conceal their Pakistani identity and identify themselves from Deccan Mujahideen hailing from Toli Chowk in Hyderabad. According to the officials associated with the probe, Ansari had told the gunmen carrying out attack in Chabad House to convey to the media that the “attack was a trailer and the entire movie was yet to come”. [caption id=“attachment_355958” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“The scene of the terror strike at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai on 26 November, 2008. Reuters”]  [/caption] Accused of being involved in the terror strike since its inception in Pakistan, Hamza allegedly trained the gunmen in Hindi so that they could communication with people in India once they landed here. He was identified as being one of the persons involved in their training prior to the terror strikes by Mohammed Ajmal Kasab, the sole gunman involved in the attacks to be arrested by the Mumbai police. His name featured in the chargesheet filed by authorities against Kasab and was among the names given by Indian authorities to their Pakistani counterparts investigating the involvement of Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed in the terror strikes. Saeed is presently facing trial in Pakistan and evidence from Hamza could be crucial. Role in 2006 Aurangabad arms haul Zabiuddin was reportedly in one of the vehicles that managed to escape when the police managed to nab a cache of arms that were reportedly meant for use by Lashkar-e-Taiba operatives. The police had seized 13 kg of RDX and six AK-47s and 50 grenades and has filed its charge sheet against 21 accused persons in the case. Zabiudin is accused of fleeing the country to Pakistan through Bangladesh. 21 persons are currently facing trial for their alleged involvement in the case. He is also suspected to have known about the 2006 serial train blasts in Mumbai’s suburban rail network and is also alleged to have helped transport youth from India to Pakistan for indoctrination and training in the use of weapons to carry out terror strikes. Role in 2005 Indian Institute of Science attack Police say that one Abu Hamza was involved in the attack on the campus of the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore on 28 December, 2005. A professor from Delhi was killed in the attack and four persons were injured when a gunman opened fire in the campus. Six persons have been convicted by a court for their alleged involvement in the case. With inputs from PTI