Move on please, decisively

The forthcoming meetings of the Pakistani and Indian foreign secretaries and prime ministers on the sidelines of the Non-Aligned Movement summit in Egypt on July 14 and 15, again raise hopes for a revival of the composite dialogue process, suspended since the Nov 26 2008 attacks in Mumbai.

India accuses Pakistan of not doing enough to contain terrorism. Pakistan counter-accuses India of not cooperating in terms of sharing evidence and translations.

The Mumbai attacks came barely four days after President Asif Ali Zardari’s ground-breaking address to The Hindustan Times Leadership Summit via satellite link from Islamabad. Zardari, Pakistan’s first head of state to offer a ‘no-first nuclear-strike’ policy against India, talked of a common South Asian economic bloc, even a passport-free ‘flexible Indo-Pak visa regime’.

It’s an all-too familiar pattern — goodwill gestures followead by incidents of violence that are used to set back the peace process (Bus yatra — Kargil; talks — Samjhota Express; peace overture — Mumbai). Who benefits? Certainly not the ordinary people but the rightwing, the security apparatuses, military establishments and arms lobbies on either side.

Those who critique the push for peace as an obsession of the ‘liberal elite’ and the ‘Punjabi lobby’ ignore sentiments at the grassroots level: while aware of the problems, people on both sides are keen to live as neighbours in peace.

At a seminar in Karachi recently to honour Nirmala Deshpande (Didi), the peace activist who passed away in May 2008, most audience members were women from low-income localities. Prominent writers, political leaders and activists who addressed the seminar included three Indian delegates (the visas of the other two were ‘pending for clearance’).

Mumtaz, a young Pakhtun mother distracted by a six-year-old and a suckling toddler, said that her husband was a daily-wage labourer. What did she think of the event? ‘I don’t understand everything but I do understand that they want peace between India and Pakistan,’ she replied, adding, ‘We should live in peace with our neighbours. Maybe then our lot will improve. We all want that.’

Jaipur-based Kavita Srivastava of India’s People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), had come with a concrete agenda: to get information about five Indian prisoners incarcerated in Pakistani prisons since 1991.

‘Only two are in touch with their families, we don’t even know if the other three are alive,’ she said. ‘When they heard that I got my visa, their families walked for a whole day to meet me. With tears in their eyes they begged me to bring any information I could.’

Kavita spent an evening in Ranchore Lines with Silawat women, Rajasthanis with families on both sides of the border. Shakeel Silawat of the Youth Progressive Council who helped organise the meeting, says such visits are important to increase contacts. ‘After all, we are one region. We should be able to meet.’

I remember an engineering student I interviewed in 1995 for the Indian magazine Outlook’s launch issue. He hated India’s Kashmir policy and wouldn’t wear Indian-made jeans — but believed that India and Pakistan should cooperate economically even while maintaining separate identities.

A student from Calcutta, who visited Lahore with the Nirmala Deshpande-led women’s peace bus in 2000 following the Kargil conflict, had no partition baggage or ties to Pakistan. Yet she was overcome with emotion on arriving here. She befriended an engineering student who was volunteering with the group ‘out of curiosity’ (having never met an Indian but despising India and Indians). He told me that, despite disagreeing with official policies ‘now at least we can talk about our disagreements’. Young Pakistanis and Indians wept as they said goodbye three days later.

I am reminded of these encounters by Ashutosh Varshney’s essay ‘Founding Myths’ (in The Great Divide) in which he suggests that India-Pakistan rivalry be re-imagined ‘as a thoroughgoing competition, not as a do-or-die conflict’.
‘A distinction needs to be drawn between two terms: adversaries and enemies. Adversaries can be respected, even admired; enemies are killed. India and Pakistan must cease to be enemies; they need to become adversaries competing vigorously to become better than the other.’

The stakes are high for both nuclear-armed neighbours riddled by internal insurgencies and ‘religious’ militancy, endemic poverty and high military budgets that directly and negatively impact development.

Zardari’s talk of a South Asian bloc and easing visa restrictions did not emerge from a vacuum — peace activists have been presenting such out-of-the-box ideas for years. The visiting Indians added more to the previous talk, like twinning press clubs and even dual nationality for Indians and Pakistanis (‘believe me, many would take it,’ asserted award-winning social activist Sandeep Pandey from Lucknow).

These ideas may be ahead of their time — but so then was the Pakistan-India Forum for Peace and Democracy notion first articulated in 1994 that Kashmir is not just a territorial dispute between Pakistan and India, but a matter of the lives and aspirations of the Kashmiri people, who must be included in any dialogue about their future. This formulation has now permeated political discourse.
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When Sandeep Pandey and others participated in a peace march in 2005 from Delhi to Multan, villagers enthusiastically welcomed them along the way (though the urban-based media largely ignored this rural activity) and endorsed their demands: one, resolve all problems through dialogue; two, de-weaponise and remove armies from the borders; three, end visa restrictions.

‘One cyclist stopped and said, ‘Make the third demand your first. Once that happens, the rest will sort out’,’ recalls Pandey.

The Indian delegates have now left with a renewed sense of the urgency Pakistanis feel about the need for peace with India. They also realise the need to go against the tide back home and push the Indian government to go beyond pressurising the Pakistani government to ‘take action’.

There may be no immediate results to any of these initiatives. But the fact that the governments allow them to take place itself speaks for the realisation of the need to at least maintain such contacts. And in the long run, they create a pressure for peace from below, something for the political and bureaucratic establishments to bear in mind when they next meet.

The writer is a freelance journalist and documentary filmmaker based in Karachi.

India could have pre-empted Mumbai attacks: Malik

ISLAMABAD: Mumbai attacks could have been avoided had India not withheld important information, Interior Minister Rehman Malik said on Saturday.

Mr Malik said India had not informed Pakistan about the arrests of Ansari and Sabahuddin who, according to New Delhi, had been arrested before the attacks and charged with involvement in the Mumbai massacre.

Rehman Malik told a press conference after a meeting with Acting Indian High Commissioner Manpreet Vohra: ‘This has created doubts in our minds. Pakistan wants to know if they really are involved in the attacks, and why Indian authorities did not inform Pakistan about their arrests before the Mumbai incident.’

‘If India had shared information of their arrests, we would have taken action to avoid the Mumbai incident.’

The minister said the trial of the five accused, including the alleged mastermind Zakiur Rahman Lakhvi, would start next week.

Blaming India for the delay in investigations into the Mumbai terror attacks, Mr Malik said whereas India took more than 90 days to complete its probe, Pakistan took only 76 days. ‘This shows Pakistan’s seriousness on the issue. Pakistan cannot be accused of causing a delay.’

‘Accusations of being slow, being non-serious must end today … after this final investigation and the trial, which is likely to commence in the next few days,’ he said.

Mr Malik said five out of the nine accused had already been arrested and the investigation into their role was almost complete.

Lakhvi would be charged with masterminding the attacks while the four others would be indicted for acting as facilitators and managing funds and hideouts used by the attackers.

They are: Hamaad Amin Sadiq, Mazhar Iqbal, Abdul Wajid and Shahid Jamil Riaz. A second challan of the accused would be submitted in court on July 20.

Citing security concerns, Mr Malik said the trial would take place in a maximum security prison in Rawalpindi. ‘The court will decide if the trial will be open to public or not.’

He said he was confident that the culprits would be punished on the basis of evidence collected during investigations.

Criticising India for not providing information, the minister said: ‘Our seriousness can be gauged from the fact that all intelligence agencies are working on the case.’

Mumbai attacks, floods on agenda for Indian elections

MUMBAI: Terrorism was on the top of the agenda Thursday as the people of Mumbai voted in India’s monthlong elections under the shadow of the deadly attack that rocked the country’s financial capital.

Thursday’s vote was the third of five phases of polling that ends May 13, and results are expected May 16. With more than 700 million voters, India normally holds staggered elections for logistical and security reasons.

Among the regions voting in this round was Mumbai, bringing terrorism to the head of the national debate after an election campaign dominated by local issues, caste, and religion.

Sonia Gandhi, the head of the governing Congress party, sought to defend her party’s handling of the attack and a string of others that have hit India in the five years of Congress rule.

‘We don’t require any certificate from anyone to prove our stand against terrorism,’ she told an election rally in New Delhi. Indian law bars politicians from campaigning in voting areas on the day of the polls.

Gandhi said the main opposition, the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, should not criticize Congress for being soft on terror, recalling the BJP’s decision to negotiate with hijackers of an Indian airliner during their earlier stint in power and release three senior militants to secure the release of the hostages.

Some voters, however, said they would hold the government accountable for the attack.

‘We need a change as the present government has failed to provide protection to the people,’ said Sachin Dhangi, a 35-year-old salesman.

For others, India’s long-standing battle with poverty remained their top concern.

Sameer Singade, 32, a resident of one of Mumbai’s sprawling slums — which gained prominence in the Oscar winning ‘Slumdog Millionaire — said he had voted for a new party formed by a firebrand local politician Raj Thackeray ‘in the hope that it will do something for the poor people.’

Thackeray has made his name as a xenophobic, rabble-rousing politician championing the Marathi language and the rights of residents of Maharashtra state, of which Mumbai is the capital.

The fragmented debate in this country of nearly 1.2 billion people has ensured that neither of the two national parties has been able to dominate the elections.

Polls indicate neither Congress, nor the main opposition BJP, will win enough seats in the 543-seat lower house of Parliament to rule on their own.

That means the election will likely leave India with a shaky coalition government cobbled together from across the political spectrum — a situation giving the next prime minister little time to deal with a growing number of challenges like the economic crisis.

Local issues remained key in other areas. In northern Bihar state, the voting was dominated by the devastating floods that left millions homeless in October when the Kosi river burst its banks and shifted course.

‘The Kosi flood has washed away divides on caste and community lines,’ said Gajendra Yadav, 38, a voter in Madhepura, one of the districts worst hit by the floods. ‘Everyone, Hindu or Muslim want a solution to the Kosi floods.’

The first two rounds of voting were marred by violence from communist rebels. However, this was not expected to be a factor Thursday as most of the insurgency-affected areas have completed their voting.

There was heavy security in Indian-controlled Kashmir, where separatists urged residents to boycott elections and called for a general strike and demonstrations.

Anti-India sentiment runs deep in mainly Muslim Kashmir, where most people favor independence from India or a merger with Pakistan. Kashmir is divided between the two nuclear-armed neighbors, who both claim the region in its entirety and have fought two wars over it.

Pak must end Mumbai attacks investigations logically: Mukherjee

NEW DELHI: Indian External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said Pakistan first time acknowledges for the first time that the Mumbai attacks were partly planned in Pakistan and now Pakistan should end Mumbai attacks investigations logically.

In a statement issued regarding Mumbai attacks, Mukherjee said Pakistan should dismantle terrorists network.

source : jang.com.pk

Use of force not only option in Swat: PM

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani Friday said not all issues could be resolved through military means alone and other measures also need to be taken to stabilise situation in Swat.

Talking to media after attending a briefing at the Planning Commission on country’s future course of action towards development, PM Gilani said the global economic recession had its impact on Pakistan, but hoped that economic indicators would help the country through this period.

Gilani said the IMF has also noted that Pakistan has met its targets. The prime minister when questioned about the petroleum prices said it was for the first time in country’s history that his government proportionately lowered the prices.

Asked whether Pakistan plans a similar response from India over the Samjhota Express tragedy as it did on Mumbai attacks, Gilani said additional information has been sought from India.

Adviser on Finance Shaukat Tareen said the government has to take tough decisions to address the state of economy that it inherited. He hinted that it would take some time before the economy could be turned around.

source : jang.com.pk

Pakistan arrests ‘main operator’ in Mumbai attacks

ISLAMABAD – Pakistan acknowledged for the first time that the Mumbai terrorist attacks were launched from its shores and at least partly plotted on its soil, saying Thursday that it had arrested most of the chief suspects including one described as “the main operator.”

Interior Ministry chief Rehman Malik said Pakistan has started criminal proceedings against eight suspects — some of them also named by India as the masterminds of the attacks — but he reiterated that authorities needed more evidence from New Delhi to secure convictions.

The revelations suggest Pakistan is serious about punishing those behind the November attacks, which killed 164 people and stirred fear that the nuclear-armed neighbors could slide toward war and that Pakistan might be distracted from its struggle against the Taliban and al-Qaida.

India and the U.S. have pressed Pakistan hard to dismantle Lashkar-e-Taiba, a banned Pakistan-based group fighting Indian rule in the divided Kashmir region that is widely blamed for the Mumbai carnage. Islamabad and New Delhi have fought two out of their three wars since 1947 over the region.

India’s Foreign Ministry called Pakistan’s announcement “a positive development” and said it would consider Islamabad’s request for further information.

Malik said investigators had traced a boat engine used by the attackers to sail from Pakistan to India and busted two hideouts of the suspects near the southern city of Karachi.

Other leads pointed to Europe and the United States, and Malik said Pakistan would ask the FBI for help.

“I want to assure the international community, I want to assure all those who have been victims of terrorism that we mean business,” Malik said, waving a copy of Pakistan’s initial findings at reporters gathered inside his ministry.

“We will continue our investigation, but we want tenable evidence from India. We want full cooperation from India so that this kind of ring be smashed.”

India says all 10 gunmen — only one of whom was captured alive — were Pakistanis and that their handlers in Pakistan had kept in close touch with them by phone during the three-day assault.

New Delhi provided a dossier of evidence to Islamabad, testing Pakistan’s insistence that it would do all in its power to punish those responsible — and that it has truly abandoned its past sponsorship of Islamist militants including the Taliban.

In Pakistan’s first detailed response, Malik said criminal cases had been opened against eight suspects on charges of “abetting, conspiracy and facilitation” of a terrorist act.

He said six of them were in custody, including Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Zarrar Shah, both Lashkar-e-Taiba leaders named by India as the masterminds of the attack, and a person who sent an e-mail claiming responsibility for the attacks.

Indian media said at the time that they received an e-mail in the name of the previously unknown Deccan Mujahideen — a name which suggested an Indian rather than Pakistani group was behind the attacks and which now appears to have been a decoy.

Malik said the culprits were “non-state actors,” a phrase used by Pakistani authorities to counter allegations that its intelligence agencies had a hand in the attacks.

Malik said the assailants used three boats to travel from Pakistan to Mumbai.

He said detectives had traced an engine recovered from one of the vessels to a shop in the southern Pakistani port city of Karachi. He said the shopkeeper had provided the phone number of the buyer which led to a bank account in the name of Hammad Amin Sadiq.

Malik said authorities had arrested Sadiq and obtained from him information that led them to bust two “hide-outs of the terrorists,” one in Karachi and one about two hours drive away.

He described Sadiq, a 37-year-old who had been living in Karachi, as “the main operator” but didn’t elaborate.

He said the detainees had told of how the group used a spot on the Pakistani coast to practice their sea-borne attack.

To stiffen its case, Pakistan was sending 30 questions to India about the attacks, Malik said. Among the additional details sought are the DNA of the 10 gunmen and information on intercepted phone conversations between the militants and their handlers.

He also asked New Delhi to investigate what contacts — and help — the attackers had inside India. The terrorists also used phones with Indian SIM cards, he noted. Their two suspected handlers are still at large.

India’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the government will consider Islamabad’s request. “After that examination, we will share whatever we can with Pakistan,” the statement said.

On Thursday, Malik also suggested a wider international dimension to the crime.

One suspect, Javed Iqbal, had been “lured” back from Barcelona, Spain, where he had been living, and was now in Pakistani custody. While in Spain, Iqbal had arranged Internet telephone accounts used in the attacks and bills had been paid in Italy, Malik said.

Suspects also used a digital teleconferencing system whose service provider is based in Houston, Texas, while a Thuraya phone was issued in a Middle Eastern country, he said.

Other bills were paid by a company in Islamabad and two people have been arrested as a result, Malik said.

“It is not only Pakistan, but the system of the other countries has also been used,” Malik said.

source : news.yahoo.com

Mumbai attacks sans inside help not possible: Narendra Modi

NAGPUR: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, Narendra Modi has said that Mumbai attacks could not have been possible without the indoor help and blamed the government for not taking any action against the local groups.

Addressing a BJP Convention here, Indian state Gujrat Chief Minister, Narendra Modi slamming the Indian ruling party Congress policies said that their existing economic and foreign policies have failed, while alliance government has failed to ensure security for the people.

He said that Mimbai attacks could not have been possible without inside help, while the ruling alliance has not taken any action thus far against any local groups involved in the November 26 incidents.

Narendra Modi said that terrorism at no cost would be tolerated and urged for a tit-for-tat reply. He sarcastically said that the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh was the PM not perceivable.

source : jang.com.pk

India prepares to mark Republic Day

NEW DELHI: India is gearing up to mark Republic Day, the 59th anniversary of its creation as a republic. Coming less than two months after the Mumbai attacks that left 174 dead, the annual military parade will be fortified with security, and heavy with symbolism, as Indians strike a pose of strength.

source : jang.com.pk

Pak vows to bring Mumbai attackers to justice

ISLAMABAD: Interior Adviser Rehman Malik said on Thursday that Pakistan is committed to bringing the perpetrators of Mumbai attacks to justice. He said Pakistan and India were nuclear states and that the Indian government was under intense public pressure to act.

Talking to journalists here, Malik said the government of Pakistan had launched probe into Mumbai attacks soon after the tragic incident occurred. ‘The government has banned Jamaat-ud-Dawah publications and shut down six Dawah’s websites”, advisor said.

Malik further said that 124 activists of Jamaat-ud-Dawah were nabbed including Hafiz Saeed, Mufti Abdur Rehman, Colonnel (Retd.) Nazir Ahmed, Amir Hamza and Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and five camps were closed down. He said the FIA was looking into the Indian dossier but more evidence was required.

Interior Advisor said that Pakistan had assured India of its unconditional support to India in Mumbai probe. He urged India to establish direct diplomatic channels with Pakistan for the exchange of information on Mumbai attacks instead of using indirect channels.

source : jang.com.pk

Ajmal Kasab belonged to Pakistan: Official sources

ISLAMABAD: Ajmal Kasab, allegedly the top suspect in Mumbai attacks, hailed from Pakistan, official sources said Wednesday.

Initial probe has proved that Ajmal Kasab is a Pakistani national.

Pakistan demands access to Mumbai attacks sites

ISLAMABAD: Despite official rejections of the dossier handed over by India on evidence of the Mumbai attacks, Federal Information and Broadcasting Minister Sherry Rehman has said the government is still processing the evidence.

Speaking exclusively to foreign T.V channel Sherry said, “Pakistan will wait until its investigations are complete, and that it would like its investigators to be given access to the sites of the terror attacks in Mumbai.”

source : jang.com.pk

Pakistan using terrorism as state policy: Indian PM

NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday once again blamed Pakistan for whipping up war hysteria and using terrorism as state policy.

“ Pakistan was whipping up war hysteria, and that the Mumbai attacks must have had support from some official agencies within Pakistan”, Singh told a security conference in New Delhi

“The terrorist attack in Mumbai in November last year was carried out by the Lashkar-e-Taiba.”

Manmohan Singh said foreigners had been targeted in the Mumbai attacks to convey instability in India.

Dr Singh said that most of the terrorists act in connivance with intelligence agencies in neighbouring countries.

While commenting on the challenges faced by India, the Indian Prime Minister said that problems faced by our country are compounded by vulnerable security environment and fragile governments in the neighbouring countries.

He further stressed on the need for a holistic approach to deal with the menace of terrorism.

Underlining the need to review the current security set-up, the Indian Prime Minister called for better co-ordination among various wings of intelligence. A review of the training and equipment for the security forces was also called for, he added.

The PM said infiltration was also taking place from Bangladesh and Nepal though it had not ceased from the Line of Control (LoC).

Manmohan Singh said that India must “implement a policy of zero tolerance” towards terrorism and few countries had suffered from terror attacks in the way that India had.

Stressing that terror should not be conceptualised solely in military terms, the PM stated, “We must ensure the concept of terrorism is delegitimised.”

source : jang.com.pk

India hands over evidences on Mumbai attacks

ISLAMABAD: India said Monday it has handed over some concrete evidences on the Mumbai attacks to Islamabad including six photographs of suspects indulged in Mumbai plot.

It also said the provided documents on Mumbai carnage revealed that the perpetuators belonged to Multan, Okara, and Faisalabad, cities of Pakistan’s Punjab.

According to sources, it also disclosed the Internet telephones; one amid others was of U.S’s VOIP, allegedly utilized in the Mumbai plot.

Evidences also include information sought from Ajmal Kasab during investigation.

source : jang.com.pk

Official: Pakistan cancels military leave

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – A senior military official says Pakistan has canceled leave for members of the armed forces because of tension with India following the deadly Mumbai attacks.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity Friday because he was not authorized to talk to the media.

India has said the gunmen who carried out last month’s attacks were Pakistani and had connections to the Pakistan-based terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba. Pakistan has demanded India share evidence of its allegations.

Both countries have said they want to avoid conflict over the attacks, which killed more than 160 people. But India has not ruled out the use of force, and Pakistan has said it will respond to any attack and has placed its military on alert.

source : news.yahoo.com

Pakistan to retaliate befittingly incase of Indian aggression: Rabbani

ISLAMABAD: Leader of the house Mian Raza Rabbani has said if India makes the mistake of launching aggression against Pakistan, a tit for tat reply will be given.

Wrapping up debate over national security in senate on Wednesday Mian Raza Rabbani said government of Pakistan exercised restraint against irresponsible attitude of India following Mumbai attacks. Government made all out efforts to foster national consensus in the country.

India should not consider positive attitude of Pakistan as its weakness, he said adding if India tried to thrust war on Pakistan then people, government and armed forces would jointly inflict crushing defeat on enemy.

He reiterated India should provide evidence to Pakistan. Chief of Interpol had also said India had not given any evidence so far.

If India provided any solid proof on involvement of any Pakistani in Mumbai attacks, then we would register a case against him as per law of land and no Pakistani citizen would be handed over to India, he announced.

Pakistan had stepped up diplomatic contacts in the post Mumbai attacks situation, he said adding President, prime minister and foreign minister had contacted their counterparts and Pakistan embassies were reactivated, he told.

It was made clear on the world that steps being taken by India were threatening for the global and regional peace

Replying on a point of order he said no plan was under consideration to slap emergency in the country nor any summary had been worked out in this respect. He ruled out any difference between President and Prime Minister with reference to chairmanship of NFC meeting.

On a Point of Order in the Upper House on Wednesday, Opposition Leader in the Senate Mian Raza Rabbani was of the view that security situation in tribal areas is extremely dangerous hoping that Government would end the miseries of people residing in Tribal Areas at the earliest.

Government has no Magic Lamp to solve the problems in Tribal Areas at once, he held.

Opposition Leader in the Senate Mian Raza Rabbani was of the view that undoubtedly it is an Ideological War urging Government is involved in a process of dialogue with Elders of Tribal Areas since last many days to defuse Tension.

source : jang.com.pk

Pak is ready to face challenge: PM

LAHORE: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said Pakistan is ready to face any adventure, however, he has rejected chances of war between Pakistan and India.

Talking to media here, Prime Minister Gilani said India did not provide evidences in connection with Mumbai attacks if it really has any evidence than it must be shared with Pakistan. Pakistan is reviewing the situation and while India is trying to flee.

Premier said there is no chance of war between Pakistan and India; however, Pakistan is fully prepared to take on any challenge if imposed on it.

source : jang.com.pk

ISI not involved in Mumbai attacks: FBI

WASHINGTON The US investigators probing Mumbai attack have concluded after quizzing the lone captured terrorist Ajmal Amir Kasab that there was no involvement of Inter Services Intelligence in the carnage.

According to sources, Federal Bureau of Investigation personnel were allowed to interrogate Kasab for nine hours during which they were able to establish that he was a Pakistan national.

The source said FBI investigations have further established that the attackers had reached Mumbai from Pakistan, where the plan was allegedly hatched and the terrorists were provided necessary training by Laskar-e-Taiba.

Based on Indian example of allowing FBI to probe Kasab, the US and UK are now pressuring Pakistan to allow their investigators to grill those arrested by Pakistani authorities.

Besides, the renewed US pressure on Pakistan government to rein in ISI, the sources said, was because of previous involvement of ISI in ‘questionable activities’.

source : jang.com.pk

ISI not linked to Mumbai attacks: John Kerry

NEW DELHI: US Senator John Kerry has said that Inter Services-Intelligence (ISI) is not linked to Mumbai attacks and the U.S. would like to see the ISI operating under civilian government.

Talking to media here, Senator Kerry said he would ask Pakistani government to hand over Maulana Masood Azhar to India. He expressed hope that Pakistan would take strict action against militants and dismantle terror camps being operated by non-state actors.

Jamaatud Daawa has no hand in Mumbai attacks: Qureshi

PARIS: Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Sunday made it clear that Jamaatud Dawaa has no hand in Mumbai attacks adding if any evidence is found about involvement of this outfit or some one else then action will be initiated against them.

Foreign Minister was talking to media men here Sunday. He alleged Indian politicians wanted to take political mileage out of post Mumbai attacks situation.

No evidence had been provided to Pakistan about involvement of any of its national in Mumbai attacks, nor had we found any such evidence that Aamir Ajmal Kassab or his 9 other accomplices were Pakistanis , he underlined.

Neither had we acknowledged nor rejected involvement of Pakistani nationals in Mumbai incident, he said adding if India had any such evidence it should be provided to Pakistan.

He made it clear all the schools, colleges, hospitals and other welfare institutions being run by Jamaat ud Dawaa were not being closed. No such proof had been received by us which showed Jamaat ud Dawaa was behind Mumbai attacks, he told. Crack down was launched against Jamaat ud Dawaa under UN restrictions, he told.

Indian accusations on involvement of Pakistani elements in Mumbai attacks were baseless, he remarked. Certain Indian politicians wanted to use Mumbai incident for political gains, he regretted.

The need was there that leadership of both the countries should think beyond their political considerations for the sake of their people as war was not in the interest of any one, he urged.

He ruled out possibility of any meeting in Paris in terms of Afghanistan. Desire for peace is not weakness at all and on the other hand voice raised for peace is more powerful, he underscored.

In an interview with a private TV channel he said “Pakistan was our country. We have to see what is in our interest. It will not work what US and India say, he added. “If US says some thing in our interest then we will do it and if it does not talk in our interest then we are not subordinate to it, he held. Our strategy was based on our national interests, he added.

At what momentum heads of the states and foreign ministers of world countries were visiting Pakistan we could not say Pakistan was an isolated state, he underscored.

‘Killing not in my plan’ – gunman

THE gunman captured in last month’s Mumbai attacks told police he had originally only intended to seize hostages and call the media to make demands.

Mohammed Ajmal Kasab, 21, said in a statement to police that he and another terrorist, who attacked the city’s main train station, had planned a rooftop standoff, but they couldn’t find an access to the roof.

The two killed dozens of people inside the station, but it is unclear if they held any hostages.

At least 164 people plus nine gunmen died in the three-day siege of India’s financial capital that began on November 26.

Kasab said the attacks were originally set for September 27, but he did not explain in the statement why they were delayed.

Police said that Kasab, who has been repeatedly interrogated since his arrest, has also written to Pakistani officials to request legal help.

In a letter last week, he asked for “legal aid” from the Pakistani consulate and to meet a consular representative.

The letter was forwarded to India’s Government to relay to Pakistani officials, but it was unclear whether it had been delivered.

Kasab is being held on 12 offences, including murder and waging war, but has not been formally charged.

Police maintain Kasab said he was a Pakistani national and member of the banned terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba.

Islamabad has refused to acknowledge Kasab’s nationality, complaining that India has yet to give any evidence.

Meanwhile, Pakistan yesterday accused India’s air force of violating its airspace, which draw a swift denial from New Delhi.

Pakistan said an Indian jets had flown over the Pakistani-administered part of Kashmir and the eastern city of Lahore on Saturday.

But India’s military denied any violation.

Pak land will not be allowed for use of terrorism: President Zardari

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has said that Pakistan land would not be allowed for hatching terrorism and added that Pakistan was ready to extend full cooperation in investigation of the Mumbai attacks in the interest of the region.

President Asif Ali Zardari in a meeting with the British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown told this here. He said that the blame game was spoiling the peace of the region.

British prime minister on this occasion said that the tension or fighting was not in the interest of any one and the Pak-India leadership will overcome the situation with acumen.

India pressed to share Mumbai evidence with rival

NEW DELHI: In the days after the deadly Mumbai attacks, India demanded that Pakistan crack down on militants, shutter charities linked to extremists and jail suspected plotters.

With a flurry of raids, Pakistan took many of those steps this week. Now it’s up to India to do what it likes least: share intelligence with its archrival about what it knows and how it knows it.

Keeping the alleged plotters in jail will require unprecedented investigative cooperation across a border mined with distrust and suspicion, and the onus has shifted to India.

Pakistani authorities say they will prosecute in their own courts anyone linked to the three-day siege in Mumbai that left 164 dead — they just need the proof.

“Our own investigations cannot proceed beyond a certain point without provision of credible information and evidence,” said Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi.

But Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee said it was too early to share any of what investigators say is ironclad evidence tying the attacks to Pakistani soil. According to India, the 10 gunmen were from Pakistan, as were the handlers, masterminds, weapons, training camps and financing.

Ajmal Qasab is Pakistan resident?

FARID KOT: Ajmal Qasab, allegedly involved in Mumbai attacks and presently in Indian custody, is a resident of Farid Kot, Pakistan.

Geo News team that arrived in Farid Kot to investigate this, started inquiring the local people about Ajmal Qasab. Most of the people seemed unwilling to speak. However, a man or two confirmed that Ajmal Qasab’s father Amir Azam Qasab used to sell ‘Pakora’ in the area while his son Ajmal Qasab worked in the crop fields.

It was investigated that Ajmal Qasab ran away from home four years ago because his father failed to provide him new clothes on Eid as his son desired.

India did not present evidences of Mumbai attacks: SM Qureshi

ISLAMABAD: Foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said that Pakistan would not allow to use its territory for terrorism.

Giving the policy statement at the foreign office, he said that India did not present any evidence of the Mumbai attacks despite Pakistan’s request.

He said that Pakistan is itself a victim of terrorism and it is making serious efforts for the elimination of terrorism in the region.

The foreign minister told that investigations against the Jamaat-ud-Dawa are already going on but solid evidences are required for further investigations regarding the Mumbai attacks.

He said that Pakistan would itself address all matters relating to terrorism according to the law.

Pakistan bans charity linked to Mumbai attacks

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – Pakistan moved Thursday to dismantle an Islamic charity linked to militants suspected in the Mumbai attacks, arresting its leaders, closing its offices and freezing its assets.

The ban on Jamat-ud-Dawa came a day after it was declared a front for terrorists by the United Nations, subject to U.N. sanctions including an asset freeze, travel ban and arms embargo.

India says the Mumbai attackers were all Pakistani citizens and the assault was directed and planned in Pakistan. Islamabad is under intense international pressure to crack down on anyone connected to the attacks.

“The government has decided to proscribe Jamat-ud-Dawa,” said Information Minister Sherry Rehman.

Lahore police chief Pervez Rathor said the group’s head, Hafiz Mohammed Saeed and four other leaders had been placed under house arrest for three months. He did not say whether they would be charged with any crime.

“We have taken action in response to orders from the federal government,” he said.

Earlier Thursday, authorities in the country’s largest city, Karachi, said they had closed nine premises associated with the group. An Associated Press reporter outside one Jamat office in the city said it was locked up and deserted.

It was unclear what was happening at the group’s large headquarters close to the eastern city of Lahore.

Pakistan has already arrested at least 20 people, including two extremists alleged by India to be key players in the Mumbai attacks, but India has made it clear it wants to see more action.

The attacks on Mumbai, India’s financial center, killed 171 people and sharply raised tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors, which have fought three wars over the last 60 years.

U.S. officials say Jamat is a front for Lashkar-e-Taiba, a banned militant group accused by India of carrying out and planning the Mumbai assaults.

The U.N. designation of Jamat and four of its leaders, including Saeed, came after Indian and U.S. pressure.

The group, which has offices, schools and medical clinics around the country, has repeatedly said it has no links to Lashkar.

Central Bank spokesman Syed Wasimuddin said all Pakistani banks had been ordered to freeze any of the group’s assets. It is unclear how much money the group has under its control, but its Web site has details of a bank account to receive donations.

Earlier, Jamat chief Saeed denied that the charity was involved in terrorism and denounced the U.N. He said the group would petition the U.N. as well as national and international courts to overturn the decision.

“If India or the U.S. has any proof against Jamat-ud-Dawa, we are ready to stand in any court. We do not beg, we demand justice,” he said.

Pakistan has promised to pursue those responsible for the Mumbai attacks.

But it complains that India has not shared evidence from its investigation, underlining the mistrust hampering U.S. efforts to avert a deeper crisis between the two countries.

India: Pakistan must sustain resolve

Pakistan agreed Tuesday to ban Jamaat-ud-Dawa – a charity considered a front for the militant group tied to the Mumbai attacks – if the United Nations requests it.

New Delhi – For a world eager to see India and Pakistan climb down from a standoff that has included the threat of war between nuclear-armed rivals, India has one request: Wait and see.

Pakistan’s decision to arrest the alleged architect of the Nov. 26 attacks in Mumbai (formerly Bombay) is seen as a positive step. As is the announcement Wednesday that Pakistan would abide by a United Nations resolution outlawing Jamaat-ud-Dawa, the charity accused of being a terrorist front.

But Pakistan has repeatedly cracked down on militants, only for its resolve to vanish when international pressure fades. In coming days, India will look for “assurance that this is not something being done only for cosmetic reasons,” says C. Raja Mohan, a security analyst at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.

Shutting down militant camps that are an “open secret” in Pakistan, according to one American analyst, would be a start, Mr. Mohan says. So would charging the detained militant leaders with crimes and putting them on trial, even in Pakistan.

Many in India’s Army and intelligence agencies want more. Pakistan should hand over individuals who have clear links to terrorism or risk “military action to show them how serious we are,” says Brig. Gen. Gurmeed Kanval, director of the Center for Land Warfare Studies, a think tank in New Delhi.

The Times of India reported Wednesday that the Indian Air Force is on “high alert” and has reduced the number of personnel on leave from 30 percent to 10 percent.

US hopes for Pakistani ’shift’ on Lashkar

WASHINGTON: The White House said Wednesday that it hoped Pakistan would “shift” to a tougher approach towards Lashkar-e-Tayyeba, the group considered the prime suspect in the Mumbai attacks.

“What we are looking is to see if there’s going to be a shift in Pakistan as to how they deal with LeT,” said spokeswoman Dana Perino, using the organization’s initials.

“If it proves out, over time, that there is that shift, then that would be a good one, and something that we would welcome, but it’s just too early for us to say,” she told reporters.

Perino’s comments came after Pakistan’s Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said authorities there had arrested two senior members of Lashkar-e-Tayyeba (LeT) in the wake of the bloody terrorist siege of Mumbai, which left 172 dead.

“What we have seen are preliminary reports out of region. We are following those reports very closely. I couldn’t tell you definitely that all that’s been reported is accurate,” said the spokeswoman.

“We continue to urge the Pakistanis and Indians to work together to get to the bottom of who was responsible for these attacks — and most importantly to try to prevent follow-on attacks,” said the spokeswoman.

Gilani said that Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Zarar Shah — both named by Indian media as suspected planners of the attacks in Mumbai — were in detention and an investigation is under way.

Mumbai attacks manifest real challenges facing Pakistan: Gen Petraeus

ATHENS: US Army Commander for Iraq and Afghanistan, General David Petraeus has said that the Mumbai attacks were of more significance for Pakistan than India, as these attacks help comprehend the magnitude of challenges confronting Pakistan.

Addressing at American Studies Centre in Rome, General David Petraeus said that the terrorist attacks in Mumbai were although quite horrible for India also, but for Pakistan this situation was more dangerous than the one that had emanated in the aftermath of 9/11. “He doesn’t mean that these attacks were less dangerous for India, but these attacks have brought to the fore the challenges facing Pakistan”, he said.

He further said that the Mumbai attacks were a bitter experience for the entire world along with the two countries. He said that Pakistan security forces operation against the masterminds of the Mumbai attacks was encouraging.

Mumbai attacks manifest real challenges facing Pakistan: General Petraeus

ATHENS: US Army Commander for Iraq and Afghanistan, General David Petraeus has said that the Mumbai attacks were of more significance for Pakistan than India, as these attacks help comprehend the magnitude of challenges confronting Pakistan.

Addressing at American Studies Centre in Rome, General David Petraeus said that the terrorist attacks in Mumbai were although quite horrible for India also, but for Pakistan this situation was more dangerous than the one that had emanated in the aftermath of 9/11. “He doesn’t mean that these attacks were less dangerous for India, but these attacks have brought to the fore the challenges facing Pakistan”, he said. He further said that the Mumbai attacks were a bitter experience for the entire world along with the two countries. He said that Pakistan security forces operation against the masterminds of the Mumbai attacks was encouraging.

India-Pakistan could jointly probe Mumbai attacks, if needed

ISLAMABAD: Defense Minister, Ahmad Mukhtar has said that India and Pakistan could jointly investigate into the Mumbai attacks, if needed and interrogation of the suspected persons could also be carried out.

Talking to an Indian TV, Ahmad Mukhtar said that if any one found involved in Mumbai attacks, then Pakistan would be taking action under its own laws and regulations and the terrorism in no way would be tolerated. He said that the Lashkar-e-Taiba commander, Zaki ur Rahman Lakhvi has been arrested and the defunct Jaish Muhammad leader, Maulana Masood Azhar has been confined his residence.

Muslims condemn Mumbai attacks, worry about image

RAMALLAH, West Bank – Muslims from the Middle East to Britain and Austria condemned Sunday the Mumbai shooting rampage by suspected Islamic militants as senseless terrorism, but also found themselves on the defensive once again about bloodshed linked to their religion.

Intellectuals and community leaders called for greater efforts to combat religious fanaticism.

Indian police said Sunday that the only surviving gunman told them he belongs to the Pakistani militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba. The group is seen as a creation of Pakistani intelligence to help fight India in the disputed Kashmir region. Another group, Jaish-e-Mohammed, has also operated in Kashmir. Both are reported to be linked to al-Qaida.

Ten gunmen attacked 10 targets in the three-day assault including a Jewish community center and luxury hotels in India’s commercial hub. More than 170 people were killed.

Many Muslims said they are worried such carnage is besmirching their religion.

“The occupation of the synagogue and killing people in hotels tarnishes the Muslim faith,” said Kazim al-Muqdadi, a political science lecturer at Baghdad University. “Anyone who slaughters people and screams `Allahu Akbar‘ (God is Great) is sick and ignorant.”

In Britain, home to nearly two million Muslims, a spokesman for the Muslim Council of Britain, Inayat Bunglawala, said that “a handful of terrorists like this bring the entire faith into disrepute.”

A previously unknown Muslim group, Deccan Mujahideen, claimed responsibility for the attacks. The name suggests origins in India.

Pakistan has denied involvement and demanding that India provide proof. In Pakistan, Jamaat-ud Dawa, an Islamist group believed to have ties to Lashkar-e-Taiba, denounced the killing of civilians.

In Islamic extremist Web forums, some praised the Mumbai attacks, including the targeting of Jews.

A man identified as Sheik Youssef al-Ayeri said the killings are in line with Islam.

“It’s all right for Muslims to set the infidels’ castles on fire, drown them with water …. and take some of them as prisoners, whether young or old, women or men, because it is one of many ways to beat them,” he wrote in the al-Fallujah forum.

In the Gaza Strip, the territory’s Islamic militant Hamas rulers declined comment. Hamas has carried out scores of suicide attacks in Israel, killing hundreds of civilians in recent years. However, Hamas has said it does not want to get involved in conflicts elsewhere.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad referred to the attacks as terrorism, but added that the violence is rooted in “unjust policies” aimed at destabilizing the region. He did not elaborate.

India is seen by many in the Arab and Muslim world as a Western ally. For example, Israel has become an important arms supplier to India, angering Muslim Pakistan.

Saudi Arabia said in a statement carried earlier this week by the Saudi Press Agency that it “strongly condemns and denounces this criminal act.” An editorial Friday in Saudi’s English-language Arab News said that “no civilized person … can be anything but revolted and sickened by the terrorist attacks in Mumbai.”

However, Jonathan Fighel, an Israeli counterterrorism expert, said Saudi organizations have been funneling money to Muslim militants in Kashmir.

“This demonstrates exactly the double game and, I would say, the hypocrisy of the Saudi regime,” said Fighel of the Israel-based International Institute for Counter-Terrorism.

Throughout the Muslim world, the attacks set off soul-searching.

“I think that Muslims should raise their voice against such actions. They should forge a coalition to fight such phenomena, because it harms them and damages their image,” said Ali Abdel Muhsen, 22, a Muslim engineering student in the West Bank city of Nablus.

Muslims and Arabs must confront the violence “that is taking place in our name and in the name of our (Islamic) tenets,” wrote Khaled al-Jenfawi, a columnist for Kuwait’s Al-Seyassah daily.

“Unfortunately, we have yet to see a distinguished popular condemnation in the traditional Arab or Muslim communities that strongly rejects what is happening in the name of Islam or Arab nationalism,” wrote al-Jenfawi.

Thai woman killed in Mumbai attacks: foreign ministry

BANGKOK: A female Thai hotel worker has been killed in the bloody militant assault in Mumbai, Thailand’s foreign ministry said Saturday, the country’s first reported death in the attacks.

The woman, who worked at the Oberoi/Trident spa, was one of six Thais employed by the luxury hotel which was attacked on Wednesday.

“Five Thais have been rescued, but sadly one who worked in the spa was killed by gunfire,” the statement said.

The ministry said officials at the Thai consulate in Mumbai would quickly arrange for the repatriation of her body.

World leaders slam Mumbai attacks

ISLAMABAD: World leaders have expressed anger and condolence Thursday after militant attacks in Mumbai left more than 100 people dead.

Pakistan Premier Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has strongly denounced the attacks and expressed grief over loss of lives in Mumbai.

Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari, whose country has seen an upsurge of Islamist attacks, “stressed the need for taking strict measures to eradicate terrorism and extremism from the region”.

An Australian, a Britain, an Italian, a German, and a Japanese businessman were among foreigners confirmed dead while Americans, Israelis, Canadians and a Jewish rabbi were said to be among those still held hostage.

Almost 300 people have been reported wounded in the attacks which have been claimed by a group calling itself the Deccan Mujahedeen.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown sent Indian Premier Manmohan Singh a message assuring that “the UK stands solidly with his government as they respond, and to offer all necessary help.

“These outrageous attacks in Mumbai will be met with a vigorous response,” he said. The US State Department called the attacks “horrific” and US president-elect Barack Obama said they showed the need for the United States to work with other nations to “root out and destroy terrorist networks.”

“These coordinated attacks on innocent civilians demonstrate the grave and urgent threat of terrorism,” said Obama’s chief national security spokesman Brooke Anderson.

President George W. Bush telephoned Singh to offer help in the investigation, the White House said.

Afghanistan’s President Hamid Karzai said: “Terrorists are especially challenging South Asia. A vigorous response to counter these terrorist challenges requires an even more intensified regional cooperation and coordination in all aspects.”

NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer blasted the “despicable” raids.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the violence was “totally unacceptable”.

The European Union expressed “horror and indignation” after European parliament members were caught up in the carnage.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao sent a telegram to Singh saying Beijing “firmly opposes all forms of terrorism.” A Vatican spokesman described the attacks as “tragic and frightening.”

Indian PM to address nation after Mumbai attacks

NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was to address the nation Thursday over the coordinated militants’ attacks against the country’s economic capital Mumbai.

The Press Trust of India said Singh would give a televised address at 4:30 pm local time (1100 GMT).

A group of gunmen launched attacks against luxury hotels and other targets in Mumbai late Wednesday, taking foreign hostages and killing over 100 people. Army and police commandos were still battling the militants into Thursday afternoon.