Indian Journalist, Who Allegedly Wanted To Join ISIS, Arrested In New Delhi

Update as of 3:09 a.m. EDT: Zubair Khan, a self-proclaimed journalist who was arrested in the Indian capital of New Delhi on Friday for being a sympathizer of the Islamic State group, said that he runs a weekly magazine called “Journalist for International Peace,” the Times of India reported.

Khan, who wanted to join ISIS in Iraq, reportedly wrote on his blog that he was using his own money to fight for the rights of the Muslims. “I will be the voice of Muslims and place the true picture of Muslims before society ... the IS does not betray those who help it on the basis of religion,” Khan wrote.

Original story:

Authorities in the Indian capital of New Delhi arrested a journalist, who allegedly wanted to join the Islamic State group in Iraq, local media reports said Friday. The man, from the western Indian city of Mumbai, was reportedly detained from the Iraqi Embassy where he had come for visa.

Police arrested the man, identified as Zubair Khan, after he was found speaking incoherently about ISIS, The Hindu, an Indian newspaper, reported, adding that authorities detained Khan suspecting that he was going to join the extremist group in Iraq. Following his detention, Khan was brought to a local police station for interrogation.

Mumbai Police had earlier launched a manhunt for Khan, who sympathized with Yakub Memon -- the 1993 Mumbai blasts convict -- on social media and called him a martyr. Memon was hanged last week at a jail in India’s western state of Maharashtra.

In a separate post, Khan also reportedly wrote that he wanted to give up his Indian citizenship and become a spokesperson for ISIS. The post was addressed to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

Khan, who claimed to be a journalist and a blogger, is also suspected to be mentally unstable, according to local media reports.