Pakistan Backed Group Suspected in Mumbai Siege

This article was reported by Eric Schmitt, Mark Mazzetti and Jane Perlez and was written by Mr. Schmitt.

WASHINGTON — Lashkar-e-Taiba, the Pakistani-based militant group suspected of conducting the Mumbai attacks, has quietly gained strength in recent years with the help of Pakistan’s main spy service, assistance that has allowed the group to train and raise money while other militants have been under siege, American intelligence and counterterrorism officials say.

American officials say there is no hard evidence to link the spy service, the Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence, or ISI, to the Mumbai attacks. But the ISI has shared intelligence with Lashkar and provided protection for it, the officials said, and investigators are focusing on one Lashkar leader they believe is a main liaison with the spy service and a mastermind of the attacks.

As a result of the assault on Mumbai, India’s financial hub, American counterterrorism and military officials say they are reassessing their view of Lashkar and believe it to be more capable and a greater threat than they had previously recognized.

“People are having to go back and relook at all the connections,” said one American counterterrorism official, who was among several officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation was still progressing.

Pakistani officials have denied any government connection to the siege on Nov. 26-29, in which nine gunmen and 163 other people were killed, and on Sunday, one Pakistani official confirmed that security forces had initiated an operation against at least one Lashkar camp in Pakistani territory. The official gave no details about the operation, Pakistan’s first known response against the group suspected of attacking Mumbai.

----------------

see toon at top

Pakistan Moves Forces as Tensions With India Rise

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan is moving some troops away from its western border with Afghanistan, where the United States has pressed it to combat Taliban militants, and stopping many soldiers from going on leave amid rising tensions with India, senior Pakistani officials said Friday.

A senior military official said in an interview that the decision to sharply restrict leave for soldiers was taken “in view of the prevailing environment,” namely the deteriorating relations with India since the Mumbai terrorist attacks last month. He added that the Pakistani air force was “vigilant” and “alert” for the same reason. A second Pakistani security official would not say where the forces were being sent, but confirmed the troop movements and the restrictions on leave, saying “there’s an obvious reason for that.”

The redeployment came as Indian authorities warned their citizens not to travel to Pakistan given the heightened tensions between the two nations, news agencies reported, particularly since Indian citizens had been arrested there in connection with a bombing in the Pakistani city of Lahore.

March 18 (Bloomberg) -- David Coleman Headley pleaded guilty in federal court in Chicago to helping plan the November 2008 terror attacks in Mumbai and an assault on a Danish newspaper that wasn’t carried out.

Headley, 49, entered his plea today before U.S. District Judge Harry D. Leinenweber, admitting to all 12 counts against him, including conspiracy to bomb sites in India, aiding and abetting in the murder of Americans there and providing material support to terrorists.

“That’s right, your honor,” Headley said when asked whether he was part of plot to kill people.

Headley is required by his plea agreement to cooperate with the U.S. government as well as in prosecutions in other countries. Federal prosecutors said they won’t seek the death penalty in the case when Headley is sentenced “after the conclusion of his cooperation.”

Leinenweber told Headley that he could face a life sentence.

-------------------

David Coleman Headley, formerly known as Daood Sayed Gilani, (born June 30, 1960) is a Pakistani-American businessman based in Chicago, who has pleaded guilty[1] to involvement with terrorism.[2][3] He changed his name to hide his Muslim identity.[4]

-----------------------

see toon at top...