Mumbai Attacks

[Neo]

‘UK supports prosecution of Mumbai attacks suspects in Pakistan’:​

World should help Pakistan fight terrorism: Miliband​

* British foreign secretary says Pakistani law was violated, ‘they should prosecute suspects’
* Attacks not directed by Islamabad​

LAHORE/NEW DELHI: British Foreign Secretary David Miliband urged the world community on Wednesday to help Pakistan fight the war on terror, according to a private TV channel.

Miliband told reporters in New Delhi that Britain wanted the perpetrators of the Mumbai terror attacks brought to justice – “the first step that will show Pakistan’s determination to cooperate with India”. He said President Asif Ali Zardari also wanted to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Virtually rejecting India’s demand that suspects arrested in Pakistan’s Mumbai attacks probe be extradited, Miliband separately said in an appearance on an Indian TV programme that Britain supports the suspects’ prosecution in Pakistan – as “they have broken the law of that country”.

The British official said there was no extradition treaty between the South Asian rivals that allowed suspects to be handed over for prosecution in India. He said that it must be ensured that the “Pakistani judicial system takes its course” and those found guilty were punished there.

Origin: However, he also reiterated that “we have absolutely no doubt about the origin of the attacks ... the origins are in Pakistan”.

He said the Pakistani authorities had detained suspects, and “if there is evidence, they should be prosecuted”.

Noting that former prime minister Benazir Bhutto and several others had fallen victim to terrorism, he said, “They (Pakistanis) need to ... [fight terrorism] for their own good.”

About Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s allegation that Pakistan’s official agencies could have been involved in the Mumbai attacks, Miliband reiterated his statement of Tuesday, “We don’t have evidence to show that attacks were directed by the Pakistani government.”

Rejection: About Singh’s statement that Pakistan is using terrorism as ‘an instrument of state policy’, Miliband said, “I have no evidence of the Pakistani state directing terrorist activities, and I will never make that claim without that evidence. What I know is Pakistan has a very serious terrorism problem.”

He rejected any contention for imposing sanctions on Pakistan by the UK.

He said the UK would use all appropriate mechanisms to make a ‘difference’, but made it clear that ‘military stick’ would be of no help. “There is serious need for reform from within Pakistan,” said Miliband.
daily times monitor/app

 

[linkinpark]

For the conspirators here

I was taken to US for questioning: 26/11 witness

PTI | January 15, 2009 | 18:43 IST

Anita Uddaiya, the woman who saw the six terrorists involved in the November 26 terror attacks arrive in the city, claims she was taken to the United States and questioned by investigating agencies there.

"I was informed that the (US) officers who questioned me about the Mumbai attacks here earlier would take me to America. They came on Sunday morning and�took me to America," Uddaiya told PTI.

"I had lied to the police when I returned home stating that I went to Satara district as the officers told me not to disclose anything about my visit to America," Uddaiya said.

Uddaiya went missing on Sunday morning and returned to Mumbai on Wednesday at around 1.30 am.

She had seen the terrorists land in a rubber dinghy on the beach at the colony. But when she asked them where they had come from, she was told to mind her own business.

Giving details, she said on Saturday at around 10.00 pm, the investigating officers were supposed to come to her home.
"Since we were informed about Uddaiya's America visit, we sat with her throughout the night waiting for the American investigators. Nobody turned up till morning 5 am. At that time, Uddaiya went to toilet from where she was whisked away by the investigators," said Madhusudhan Nair, president of Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Nagar slum area where Uddaiya resides.

Uddaiya said four officers were inside the posh vehicle and one of them knew Hindi.

"First, I was taken to St George Hospital to see my husband Rajendra. I told him that I would return home in a couple of days. From the hospital I was taken to airport," Uddaiya said.

"I was sitting in the airport while they (officers) were showing documents to the officials at the airport. I had no luggage with me. After sometime, I boarded the flight but I was feeling uncomfortable," Uddaiya recalled.

Uddaiya, who spent 17-18 hours in her flight to the US, said she was told they were heading to America.

"I could not eat in the flight properly as they were serving chocolates, sandwiches and some other stuff. I don't know how I managed to eat that food."

"I was taken to a posh hotel in a car soon after I landed in America. After a couple of hours, we all went to a building where I was asked several questions about the terrorists and Mumbai attacks," she said.

She said she was asked about the terrorists whom she had seen landing at Mumbai.

"The questions were translated in Hindi by one of them and whatever answers I had given were also explained to them in English. Everything was over in two to three hours. I even called Hamid Qureshi (a scrap dealer where she works in Mumbai) telling him I am safe," she said, adding that she was taken to the hotel subsequently and then to the airport to board a flight back to Mumbai.

On returning home in a taxi from Mumbai airport, Uddaiya said she was confused and surprised at what was happening around her. �She said she was taken to the Cuffe Parade police station for recording her statement.

After the Mumbai attacks, Uddaiya had also been shown pictures of ten terrorists but she was not taken to J J Hospital to identify the bodies of the terrorists, she said.

"Since I was unwilling to do so, the Mumbai police did not take me to J J hospital," she said.

Uddaiya, who deals in scrap, had been living with her husband, daughter and son in the colony of Cuffe Parade in south Mumbai.

 

[IceCold]

Updated at: 1740 PST, Thursday, January 15, 2009
NEW DELHI: India has given up its insistence that Pakistan hand over all accused involved in the Mumbai carnage.

Indian Foreign Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee in an interview said the government would also accept their “fair trial” in Pakistan. “There should at least be a fair trial of these accused in Pakistan,” Mukherjee said.

“It should not be a mock trial. It should be transparent and demonstrated.” Mukherjee’s statement, coming a day after British foreign secretary David Miliband in a press conference lauded the Pakistani lawyers’ movement and termed the country’s judicial system ‘trustworthy’.

The accused of Mumbai carnage should be tried in Pakistan, Miliband said.

India okay if Pak tries Mumbai accused fairly - GEO.tv

 

[IceCold]

Another victory for Pakistan on the diplomatic front. If the attitude would have been the same from day1 what harm would it have brought, but no India wanted to flex its military muscle, but guess what that did not happen and with running out of options, Indian sarkar finally decided to go along the lines.

 

[AgNoStiC MuSliM]

A sensible statement - lets hope cooperation is also increased, the tensions die down and we can focus on the real threat from terrorism in Pakistan.

 

[IceCold]

A sensible statement - lets hope cooperation is also increased, the tensions die down and we can focus on the real threat from terrorism in Pakistan.

Let us hope that sanity prevails withing the GOI.

 

[AgNoStiC MuSliM]

Another victory for Pakistan on the diplomatic front. If the attitude would have been the same from day1 what harm would it have brought, but no India wanted to flex its military muscle, but guess what that did not happen and with running out of options, Indian sarkar finally decided to go along the lines.

Indian elections this year - and the Indian media had played judge, jury and executioner on Pakistan, condemned her, and whipped up public hysteria and anger against Pakistan to the extent that the Congress led GoI had no choice but to follow the lead.

It proved to be completely counterproductive, and has poisoned the atmosphere for a long time to come, though not too long I hope.

 

[Flintlock]

David Miliband has managed to convince Pranab Dada eh?

Good, good - lets see how this works out.

 

[Omar1984]

Chalo Mumbai drama khatam...lets move on with our lives and continue on this fake india-pakistan "friendship".

 

[AgNoStiC MuSliM]

Chalo Mumbai drama khatam...lets move on with our lives and continue on this fake india-pakistan "friendship".

Not quite yet - it remains to be seen whether the GoP has enough evidence to try the suspects, and whether India will offer more 'technical evidence', than what she already has (transcripts of interrogations, phone conversations etc. only at this point). I mean, how does a judge validate that some lines on a piece of paper are actually true?

I imagine we would need recordings of the taped conversations, validate them as not being 'spliced', and voice analysis to match them to the suspects.

Kasab's own testimony will likely be needed at some point, possibly through a video link in an Indian court?

So there is still much to be resolved.

 

[Omar1984]

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has arrested 124 people in its crackdown on groups allegedly linked to the Mumbai attacks, a top official said Thursday, adding that the information that India had handed over still needed work before it would be used as evidence in court.

Despite the announcement, the Interior Ministry chief, Rehman Malik, dodged a question on whether Pakistan was conceding that the attack that killed 164 people in November was plotted in Pakistan.

India says that a Pakistan-based militant group, Lashkar-e-Taiba, masterminded the attack. In the days afterward, the UN Security Council declared that Jamaat-ud-Dawa, a charity in Pakistan, was a front for the outlawed militant organization.

In a news conference, Malik said 124 people had been arrested, while the authorities have taken steps against 20 offices, 87 schools, 2 libraries, 7 religious schools and other organizations and Web sites linked to the charity. He also said the authorities had shut several relief camps of the charity, some of which had been alleged to have been militant training grounds.

It was unclear exactly how many people remained in Pakistani custody, however, and Malik at one point indicated many may simply be under surveillance now.

Among those who are being held, including under house arrest, are Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, the head of the charity who helped establish the militant group, which was banned in 2002. Also in custody are Zaki ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Zarrar Shah, two men India accuses of planning the Mumbai attacks.

Malik said Pakistan was trying to act responsibly and went after the charity and those linked to it because of the UN declaration. He repeated Pakistani calls for a joint investigation into the attacks, pledging that would "bring quick results." He urged India to hand over more information to assist Pakistan's inquiry.

He said India had handed over some information, but "we have to inquire into this information to try to transform it to evidence, evidence which can stand the test of any court in the world and of course our own court of law."

As other officials have from the start, he appeared to rule out handing over suspects to India, saying that Pakistani laws allowed for the prosecution of citizens who committed crimes elsewhere.

"We have to prove to the world that India and Pakistan stand together against terrorists because they are the common enemies," Malik said.

Arrests in Mumbai attacks number 124, Pakistan reports - International Herald Tribune

 

[ajpirzada]

Indian visitor criticises Indian media for Mumbai references

* Says locals’ hospitality shows their love for neighbours

By Abdul Manan

LAHORE: The Indian media should stop referring to the Mumbai attacks and the consideration of war, and should instead promote some sort of peace process, Jathedar (party leader) Yudhisterlal Ji Maharaj said on Thursday.

A delegation of Hindu pilgrims reached Pakistan on January 8, and attended Shada Ram’s 300th birth anniversary at Shadami Darbar in Hayat Pitafi village in Sindh. Maharaj was the 9th Gaddisar of Shadami Darbar and was the son of late Gobind Ram, who was elevated to Shadami Gaddi on April 4, 1960. On April 22, 2003, the saint Swami Gobind Ram Maharaj passed away and Yudhisterlal was chosen the Gaddisar.

Yudishterlal said he had not found any preparation of war in Pakistan. He said his delegation had visited two provinces of the country, and found people living in peace. He demanded that the Indian government should control the country’s media.

Hospitality: He said he was shocked to see the warm reception given at Wahgah Border by the Pakistani people. He said the Sindh local administration and the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) officials served his delegation very well. He said the members of his delegation appreciated the country’s hospitality, saying he received countless invitations to gatherings in Lahore. He said it showed the love of the Pakistani people for their neighbouring country. He said local caretakers and ETPB officials were looking after all functions of Shadami Darbar. He said Hindus in Sindh were faced with only one problem – kidnapping of their youths. He demanded that the Sindh government should take steps to stop the kidnapping of Hindu youth.

When asked whether Pakistan should hand over the people accused of being linked to the terrorism in India, he said the two countries did not have a bilateral contract in this regard. However, he said if international rules and agencies allowed the country to do so, Pakistan should hand them over immediately.

Daily Times - Leading News Resource of Pakistan

 

[roopesh]

oops! I heard pakistan offered him citizenship!

 

[ajpirzada]

oops! I heard pakistan offered him citizenship!

loool.. so u have decided not to appreciate anything.

 

[roopesh]

loool.. so u have decided not to appreciate anything.

He heard that Shakeel Siddiqui got harrased in india. Ofcouse he came up with this logic inside pakistan to protect him. He might become media figure and some money over there!