Tahawwur Rana, a key conspirator within the 2008 Mumbai terror assaults, had allegedly mentioned that Indians “deserved it”, after 166 individuals misplaced their lives in the course of the 26/11 assaults.
The US Division of Justice, which facilitated the extradition of Tahawwur Rana to India, additional mentioned that the important thing conspirator recommended the 9 LeT terrorists killed in the course of the assault, suggesting that they need to be given “Nishan-e-Haider”, Pakistan’s highest gallantry award.
The US on Wednesday extradited Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a Pakistan-born Canadian citizen, to face trial in India over the ten prison prices stemming from his alleged position within the 2008 terrorist assault in Mumbai.
“Rana’s extradition is a crucial step towards looking for justice for the six Individuals and scores of different victims who had been killed within the heinous assaults,” the DoJ mentioned in an announcement.
Mumbai terror assaults: Indian’s ‘deserved it’?
India alleges that Tahawwur Rana orchestrated a fraudulent cowl in order that his childhood good friend David Coleman Headley, a US citizen born Daood Gilani, may journey to Mumbai to conduct a surveillance of potential assault websites for Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).
After the assault, Rana allegedly advised Headley, one of many essential conspirators of the assault, that the Indians “deserved it”, the DoJ assertion mentioned.
“In an intercepted dialog with Headley, Rana allegedly recommended the 9 LeT terrorists who had been killed committing the assaults, saying that “they need to be given Nishan-e-Haider”-Pakistan’s highest award for gallantry in battle, which is reserved for fallen troopers,” the assertion learn.
The ISI hyperlink
An investigation by the NIA has revealed that senior functionaries of banned terror teams LeT and HUJI had been concerned within the 12 co-ordinated Mumbai terrorist assaults between November 26 and November 29, 2008. The names which have emerged embody – Hafiz Muhammad Saeed alias Tayyaji, Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, Sajjid Majid alias Wasi, Illyas Kashmiri and Abdur Rehman Hashim Syed alias Main Abdurrehman alias Pasha.
These individuals allegedly had been working in lively connivance and help from Pakistan spy company ISI’s officers particularly Main Iqbal alias Main Ali, Main Sameer Ali alias Main Samir, all residents of Pakistan, officers have mentioned.
This has put India’s focus again on ISI’s position concerning the heinous crime, which shook the world to the core and has left a everlasting wound on India’s trendy historical past.
In keeping with sources quoted by NDTV, Tahawwur Rana will now be grilled over Main Sameer Ali and Main Iqbal.
Who’re Main Sameer Ali and Main Iqbal?
Each residents of Pakistan, Main Sameer Ali and Main Iqbal had been allegedly functioning as ISI officers on the time of the assault.
Main Iqbal, who has been recognized by the US as a serving ISI officer in 2010, had a serious position to play within the assault. As per an NDTV report, Main Iqbal had “financed, directed, and micromanaged” the survey missions the place Headley went to.
Mint couldn’t independently confirm this declare.
Headley has described the ISI agent because the one who was his major handler in an company that “recruited, skilled, and directed” him for the assaults.
A US indictment mentioned Iqbal was a “resident of Pakistan who participated in planning and funding assaults by Lashkar” and charged him with six counts of aiding terrorism and homicide, including he facilitated funds and sources to LeT.
Sameer Ali, however, was the one who oversaw the Mumbai assaults reside from an LeT management room in Karachi, in response to the NDTV report quoting 26/11 handler Zabiuddin Ansari (alias Abu Jundal) who was arrested in 2012.
Jundal in his testimony allegedly mentioned that Sameer Ali issued directions to LeT commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi in the course of the 26/11 assaults.
