New Delhi: Pakistan-based terrorist organization Jaish-e-Mohammed has started taking the help of Artificial Intelligence i.e. AI to prepare fake audio and video of its leader Masood Azhar. According to Indian intelligence agencies, the organization is doing this to revive the declining recruitment after the huge losses suffered during Operation Sindoor. Masood Azhar is being shown active in the AI generated video. Through these videos, youth are being instigated to join the organization and wage jihad against India.
Terrorist organizations are now using AI for propaganda
According to intelligence agencies, Islamic State and Al-Qaeda were among the first terrorist organizations to start using AI technology in their propaganda and activities. Islamic State was the first to take advantage of this, while Al-Qaeda is also rapidly adopting this technology. On the other hand, Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed were till now relying on old methods for propaganda and recruitment. But now Jaish has also started using AI generated audio and video on a large scale.
Jaish’s recruitment suffered a setback after Operation Sindoor
Intelligence officials say that after Operation Sindoor, the recruitment process of Jaish-e-Mohammed suffered a major loss. This operation was launched by the Indian Armed Forces after the killing of innocent tourists in the Pahalgam attack. During this period, Jaish’s headquarters in Bahawalpur was destroyed. Also, many terrorists of the organization including many close relatives of Masood Azhar were killed. After this action, the top leadership of the organization was not coming forward in public. This weakened the confidence of its workers and potential new members.
Questions were raised due to Masood Azhar’s disappearance
According to an Intelligence Bureau official, Masood Azhar has not been seen in public for a long time. Due to this, questions began to arise in the minds of people interested in joining the organization regarding his whereabouts and activism. Many youth became hesitant in joining an organization whose leader they did not see as active. The official said that the audio-video clips which were released earlier to increase recruitment and maintain the morale of the workers, were declared to be old and previously used videos. After this, Jaish decided to increase the use of AI to improve its image.
Appeal to youth for recruitment in AI video
Now with the help of AI, Jaish is preparing such audios and videos in which Masood Azhar can be shown active and leading the organization. In these videos, he is being shown calling for new people to join the organization and jihad against India. Another intelligence officer said that old videos were easy to identify because many people had seen them before. But AI technology is developing rapidly. In such a situation, it has become difficult for common workers and potential new members to differentiate between real and fake videos.
Less educated youth are being targeted
According to intelligence officials, this propaganda campaign of Jaish is being run especially keeping in mind the less educated workers and potentially recruited youth. The organization feels that it will not be easy for such people to check the authenticity of the video and confirm the facts. An official said that many of those who were approached to join the organization in recent months have flatly refused or expressed their reluctance. Some people also asked for proof that Masood Azhar is still active, but the recruiters were not able to give satisfactory answers to their questions.
Old workers consider Masood Azhar a hero
According to officials, Masood Azhar is like a hero to the old workers of the organization and potential new members. The news of his not being active lowered the morale of the workers and the recruitment drive was also affected. Intelligence officials claim that Jaish has managed this problem to a great extent through AI-generated videos. However, the question of leadership after Masood Azhar also remains before the organization. His health is not what it used to be and he is no longer in a position to lead the organization from the front.
Preparation for AI promotion even in rural areas of India
According to intelligence officials, Jaish is planning to run AI-based propaganda campaign in rural areas of Pakistan as well as India. For this, videos of Masood Azhar will be prepared according to different regions and local languages. The organization has planned to especially target rural and economically weaker sections. Officials say that awareness about technologies like generative AI is relatively low in these areas. Jaish feels that such people can be easily influenced through fake videos.
Jaish wants to gain time till the search for a new leader
According to intelligence officials, Jaish-e-Mohammed wants to achieve 3 objectives through AI propaganda. Firstly, to keep the organization active, secondly, to boost the morale of the old workers and thirdly, to recruit new people. Along with this, the organization is also facing the problem of leadership after Masood Azhar. According to an official, through AI-generated videos, Jaish not only wants to increase recruitment but also wants to buy time till the search for new leadership is completed. Let us tell you that recently, to show the world, Pakistan had increased the reward amount on terrorist Maulana Masood Azhar to Rs 70 lakh.