Missing Kerala man messages family, says 'no plans to return from abode of Allah'

Ijas Muhammad, one of the 20 missing young people from Kerala suspected of joining terror group Islamic State, sent an online message to his family on Sunday, saying that he had reached his destination and they shouldn't bother looking for him.

About 20 young people from Kerala including two married couples have vanished from various countries in the Middle East in the last month, leading to suspicions that they have joined ISIS, says the Hindustan Times.

Muhammad's message to his family said: "We reached our destination. There is no point in complaining to police as this will create more problems for you. We have no plans to return from the abode of Allah."

According to intelligence officials, the message came from West Asia.

Muhammad has a medical degree from China and had been on leave from his Vadakara clinic in Kerala's in Kozhikode district for two months.

On Sunday, Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan told the state assembly 17 people from Kasargode and four from Palakkad were missing. "The missing from Kasargode included four women and three children. And two women were among the missing from Palakkad," he said.

Two of the women were in advanced stages of pregnancy, said a police officer. The officer added: "CCTV footage from the airport is being scanned. A man named Firoze, who is close to one of the missing people, was detained at Mumbai airport on Sunday night for questioning."