">Forum Views ()
">Forum Replies ()
Read more with google mobile :
Top Indian official admits 'lapses' in attacks
Navigation
Primary Navigation
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Top Stories
Most Popular
Secondary Navigation
Australia
China
India
Indonesia
Japan
Malaysia
Philippines
Thailand
Vietnam
Search
Search:
Top Indian official admits 'lapses' in attacks
By MUNEEZA NAQVI,Associated Press Writer AP - 2 hours 39 minutes ago
MUMBAI, India - India's top law enforcement official admitted Friday there were government "lapses" in last week's terror attack on Mumbai, amid a public uproar over security and intelligence failures in the deadly siege.
"There have been lapses. I would be less than truthful if I said there had been no lapses," Home Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram told reporters, saying he was seeking to bolster the country's security.
The assault on India's financial capital left 171 dead and 239 wounded. Chidambaram, only days in the post after the previous minister was ousted after the attacks, made the acknowledgment as new details surfaced that a Pakistani militant group had used an Indian operative as far back as 2007 to scout targets in the Mumbai plot.
Indian officials have accused Pakistani-based extremists in the Nov. 26-29 attacks, an assertion echoed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday.
"The territory of a neighboring country has been used for perpetrating this crime," Singh said after meeting with visiting Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. "We expect the international community to wake up and recognize that terror anywhere and everywhere constitutes a threat to world peace and prosperity."
The surviving gunman, Ajmal Amir Kasab, 21, told interrogators he had been sent by the banned Pakistani militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba and identified two of the plot's masterminds, according to two Indian government officials familiar with the inquiry.
Hafiz Mohammed Saeed, Lashkar's leader, said in an interview that his group was not involved in the attacks, and called on Indian authorities to act like "a responsible country."
"The Indian leadership is using Pakistan as a punching bag to cover its failures at home," Saeed told Outlook magazine in an interview released Friday. "Instead of blaming Pakistan, India should have acted as a responsible country, shown patience and focused on investigating the attacks to find out the real culprits."
"I can say with authority," he continued, "that the Lashkar does not believe in killing civilians."
The interview was conducted in Lahore on Wednesday with the magazine's foreign editor, Aijaz Ashraf.
Kasab told police that a senior Lashkar leader, Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, the group's operations chief, recruited him for the attack, and the assailants called another senior leader, Yusuf Muzammil, on a satellite phone before the attacks.
The information sent investigators back to another reputed Lashkar operative, Faheem Ansari.
Ansari, an Indian national, was arrested in February in north India carrying hand-drawn sketches of hotels, the train terminal and other sites that were later attacked in Mumbai, Amitabh Yash, director of the Special Task Force of the Uttar Pradesh police, said Thursday.
During his interrogation, Ansari also named Muzammil as his handler in Pakistan, adding that he trained in a Lashkar camp in Muzaffarabad _ the same area where Kasab said he was trained, a senior police officer involved in the investigation said.
In Pakistan, the Interior Ministry chief told reporters he had no immediate information on Lakhvi or Muzammil.
According to the U.S., Lakhvi has directed Lashkar operations in Chechnya, Bosnia and Southeast Asia, training members to carry out suicide bombings and attack populated areas. In 2004, he allegedly sent operatives and funds to attack U.S. forces in Iraq.
Lashkar, outlawed by Pakistan in 2002, has been deemed by the U.S. a terrorist group with ties to al-Qaida. The group has derived some of its funding from organizations based in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, with its leaders making fundraising trips to the Middle East in recent years, U.S. officials say.
Islamist charity Jamaat-ud-Dawa, accused by the U.S. of being the front group for Lashka, on Thursday denied any connection to the attacks.
"It is true we had links with Lashkar-e-Taiba in the past, but please remember, the past is the past," said Abdullah Muntazir, spokesman for the group, based on the outskirts of Lahore, Pakistan. "We are the victim of baseless Indian propaganda, we are not involved in attacks in India, we are just doing welfare work and nothing else."
Ansari told police about a planned Lashkar attack on Mumbai, providing eight or nine specific locations to be targeted, Yash said, adding that Ansari had detailed sketches of the sites as well as escape routes.
Ansari said he carried out reconnaissance in the fall of 2007 of different Mumbai locations, including the U.S. Consulate, the stock exchange and other sites that weren't attacked, Yash said. Ansari also confessed to arranging a safe house in Mumbai.
Authorities were working to determine whether Ansari, who is in Indian custody, helped the attackers acquire "such intricate knowledge of the sites," said Rakesh Maria, a senior Mumbai police official.
Indian authorities already face a torrent of criticism about missed warnings and botched intelligence. Linking an Indian national to the plot also undermines India's assertion that Pakistani "elements" were solely responsible.
Ansari linked up with Lashkar while working at a printing press in Dubai. He was taken by sea to Pakistan to the Lashkar camp in Muzaffarabad and received a false Pakistani passport and citizenship papers, Yash said.
After traveling to Nepal last year, Ansari crossed back into India and settled in Mumbai, Yash said.
He was arrested Feb. 10 in the northern city of Rampur after suspected Muslim militants attacked a police camp, killing eight constables. He said he was there to collect weapons to bring to Mumbai for a future attack.
Yash said Ansari's arrest did not derail Lashkar's plans for an attack. "When they found that their mole in Bombay had been caught ... they carried out the operations in a different way," he said.
Meanwhile, police officers said they were trying to get as much detail as possible from Kasab.
"A terrorist of this sort is never cooperative. We have to extract information," said Deven Bharti, the head of the Mumbai crime branch.
Indian police are known to use interrogation methods that would be regarded as torture in the West. Bharti provided no details on interrogation techniques, but said "truth serum" would probably be used next week. He did not specify what drug would be used.
Police described Kasab as a fourth grade dropout from an impoverished village who was gravitating to a life of crime.
"Lashkar recruited him, preying on a combination of his religious sentiments and his poverty," Maria said.
____
Associated Press writers Ramola Talwar Badam in Mumbai, Sam Dolnick, Ashok Sharma and Tim Sullivan in New Delhi, and Biswajeet Banerjee in Lucknow contributed to this report.
Email Story
IM Story
Printable View
Blog This
Recommend this article
Average (0 votes)
Sign in to recommend this article »
Most Recommended Stories »
Related Articles: Asia Pacific
Former KRouge prison chief to face extra charges: courtAFP - 35 minutes ago
Pakistan charity under suspicion in India attacksAP - 36 minutes ago
Car bomb kills 17 in Pakistani city of PeshawarAP - 39 minutes ago
Thaksin's ex-wife Pojaman flying back to Thailand: policeAFP - 1 hour 8 minutes ago
Ousted premier Thaksin's ex-wife returning homeAP - 1 hour 32 minutes ago
Most Popular – Asia Pacific
Viewed
Big Three automakers face skeptical Congress in rescue plea
Do not disturb eggs: MP reveals Britain's oddest laws
Cruise ship runs aground in Antarctica
Central banks slash interest rates to drive back recession
Wall Street plunges as recession becomes reality
View Complete List »
Search:
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Top Stories
Most Popular
Other News on Friday, 5 December 2008
New JK Rowling book goes on sale around the world
China tells US to get economy in order
China tells France Dalai Lama meeting could hurt trade
Israel opens Gaza border to foreign journalists
Obama calls Iraq PM to discuss cooperation
Indian airports on high alert after new warning
UN climate talks: strut your stuff and save the planet
Doctor visits Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi: witnesses
AP IMPACT: Pakistan police losing terrorism fight
Vietnam court upholds blogger's jail term
Winfrey to host TV show from Washington
Racy Madonna is new face for Marc Jacobs at Vuitton
Thai king's illness sparks anxiety
Secretive NKorea set to launch mobile phone service: report
Ghana's 'miracle': Logging underwater forests for exotic timber
Houghton cutting jobs, streamlining divisions
Oscar `Knight'? Batman rises to serious contender
Highlights in life of Thailand's monarch
Myanmar sends political prisoners to remote areas
China lacks moral authority to be a superpower: Dalai Lama
Lawsuit over silent screen star Mary Pickford's Oscar opens
Madrid opera house boss hopes to attract more fans
US Anglicans in breakaway move
Viacom cuts 850 jobs, freezes executive pay
Jane Fonda's '33 Variations' sets date and theater
Madrid opera's new avant-garde director reveals ambitious plans
Falun Gong follower's rights not breached by deportation: court
Vodafone says will appeal two billion dollar Indian tax demand
China currency likely to remain stable: commerce minister
Honda to cut 760 jobs in Japan: spokesman
US, China vow economic teamwork amid currency tensions
Afghan women say danger growing for female leaders
Afghan women leaders face growing Taliban threats
HMH cuts jobs; Penguin, HarperCollins freeze wages
Flickr revamps its mobile video-sharing features
National Board: `Slumdog' is 2008's best film
More online journalists than print journalists behind bars: CPJ
Plans for Salzburg Sound of Music hotel hit sour note
India names Pakistani masterminds, date plot to 07
Emory University gets collection of rare novels
Police: Forces swarm Delhi airport but no injuries
CBS' Grammy show attracted 7.1 million viewers
16 New York chefs to cook up 19th century feasts
Police: Forces swarm Delhi airport but no attack
NBC Universal cuts 500 jobs, about 3 pct of staff
Microsoft to offer software, support to Russia's IT companies
Smartphone sales slow down in third quarter
'Slumdog Millionaire' gets pre-Oscars award
First a top hit, now Grammy nod: M.I.A. firmly pop
Major alert at Delhi airport, police say situation 'normal'
India names Paki masterminds, date plot to 2007
Facebook diplomacy: peace may be just a click away
NY soldier acquitted by jurors in officers' deaths
Israeli soldiers drag settlers out of Hebron house
Pakistan vows to hunt Mumbai attack plotters
| International
|
Mugabe must go: Kenyan PM
Yahoo Internet search exec defects to Microsoft
Violence flares up in Hebron after settler eviction
Putin rules out early presidential elections
Canadian PM wins suspension of Parliament
| International
|
Zimbabwe pleads for help amid growing cholera epidemic
Cruise ship runs aground in Antarctica
World population growth challenges farms: group
| International
|
European central banks slash interest rates to tackle recession
Israel evicts Jewish settlers from Hebron house
| International
|
US, European stocks trade lower after rate cuts
Central banks slash interest rates to drive back recession
US targets sanctions at accused German terrorists
Filipino superstar Pacquiao faces De la Hoya in dream fight
Congo, Rwanda agree plan to disband FDLR militia
| International
|
Credit Suisse issues profit warning, announces big job cuts
Under-fire Canadian PM gets reprieve, parliament suspended
Major alert at Delhi airport, police say situation 'normal'
Gunmen attack vessels in Nigeria's restive delta
| International
|
Iraq presidential council endorses US security pact
Honda poised for Formula One pullout: reports
S.Korea c.bank to supply $3 bln in swaps next week
Israel criticized at top U.N. human rights
| International
|
UN says poor nations need $130B for climate change
S.korea T-bond supply fears overdone- fin ministry
Nokia sees mobile phone sales shrinking faster
| Technology
|
Seoul shares open higher on econ stimulus hopes
Destructive Koobface virus turns up on Facebook
| Technology
|
New Zealand wholesale sales fall in Q3
Tough love inspires Facebook group
| Technology
|
NZ govt. accounts in deficit in October
Microsoft taps key ex-Yahoo executive for post
| Technology
|
Cambodia seeks foreign aid despite global woes
India inflation hits seven-month low, paves way for rate cuts
Oscar `Knight'? Batman rises to serious contender
Britain's DNA database violates privacy: court
| Technology
|
Consumer electronics group cuts 4th-quarter view
| Technology
|
HTC buys design house to accent smartphone style
| Technology
|
Don Cornelius enters not guilty plea
Fabric can wipe away toxic chemicals: study
| Technology
|
Ex-'CHiPs' star Estrada to patrol with Ind. police
Ex-NY Gov Spitzer to write column for Slate.com
| Technology
|
Obama inauguration-goers to party round the clock
Benedict, actor in `The Jeffersons,' dies at 70
Beyonce rings up new No. 1 single
| Entertainment
|
Mark Ruffalo's brother shot in head
| Entertainment
|
Demand from Potter fans prompted new book: Rowling
| Entertainment
|
Slumdog Millionaire wins first Oscar season award
| Entertainment
|
Michael Sheen finds career in real people roles
| Entertainment
|
Royal Ballet seeks new revenue from fashion tie-in
| Entertainment
|
War flick, Taiwan yokel film lead Golden Horse pack
| Entertainment
|
Viacom cuts 7 pct of staff, suspends some pay raises
| Entertainment
|
Police seek 2 in shooting of Ruffalo's brother
Many seniors feel younger despite old age: study
Russian spy exhibit sheds light on secret 1941 plan
China school officials detained in student deaths
Russia's Medvedev set to sign nuclear deal in India
Google-Facebook entice websites to join their social circles
British filmmaker takes on burden of history in Timor
Britain's Mike Leigh in Cuba to receive cinematic tribute
Japanese climber dies hours before rescue on NZealand mountain
Blast in southern Philippines wounds 6 civilians
RPT-GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian shares gain after cen banks slash rates
Man killed for not sharing karaoke microphone
Credit crunch forces AirAsia to abort privatisation plan: report
Back to business at Thai airport but turmoil remains
N.Korea knows what is needed for nuclear deal-U.S.
India names Paki masterminds, date plot to 2007
Cambodia cuts term for convicted US child molester
Weather forecast for the Asia-Pacific region
Pump prices fall for second time this week
Drought forces Australian state to purchase water
With India on edge, Pakistan promises help in attacks probe
Honda to quit F1 over financial crisis
Malaysia set for parliamentary by-election battle
Iraq OKs pact with timetable; attacks kill 17
Russian media unimpressed with Putin's phone-in performance
China scholar warns of social turmoil as growth slows
| International
|
Do not disturb eggs: MP reveals Britain's oddest laws
Fate of Big Three automakers up in the air
Canadian PM wins suspension of Parliament
| International
|
China to draw up blacklist of dangerous ingredients
| International
|
Russian warship to pass through Panama Canal: embassy
Six killed in south Thailand violence: police
US military deaths in Iraq war at 4,209
New videogames lure players into the kitchen
| Technology
|
Sembawang to build $164 mln Brunei solar film plant
Sembawang to build $164 mln Brunei solar film plant
Malaysia's Proton renews old partnership with Mitsubishi
Gates pushes military to embrace 'irregular warfare'
Singapore may face U.S. challenge on bank secrecy laws
Chinese steel firms post first monthly loss in six years: report
Fidel Castro says Cuba can talk with Obama
Ex-KRouge prison chief awaits genocide court decision
Industry sales good so far: Take-Two
| Technology
|
S.Korea c.bank to sell 3.0 trln won MSB on Monday
ADB lends $500 mln to clean up dirtiest river
Seoul shares up as econ plan hopes lift sentiment
Chinese banks' bad loans likely to rise in 2009: state media
Crisis-hit Canadian PM fends off opposition revolt
Singapore may face years of slow growth
SKorea plans help for struggling carmakers
India names Pakistani masterminds
China, US set $20 bln for trade as talks wrap up
Rolling Stones insider pins Altamont fracas on cops
| Entertainment
|
Factory owners protest in China
Credit crunch forces AirAsia to abort privatisation plan: report
Guitarist accuses Coldplay of plagiarism
| Entertainment
|
NZ dollar steady ahead of U.S. data; debt firm
Awards contenders enter box office ring
| Entertainment
|
Clint Eastwood veers off course in comic Torino
| Entertainment
|
Lil Wayne and Coldplay lead Grammy field
| Entertainment
|
Hippies' old vehicles evoke lost era in Kathmandu
China to issue blacklist of harmful food additives
Southeast Asia's new nightlife capital -- Jakarta?
NUH sets up special unit to give more comprehensive diagnosis
Singapore economy may shrink next year
Thai king's illness sparks anxiety amid crisis
Six law firms awarded licenses to practise in Singapore
First NFL game in 3-D fumbles, then recovers
Malaysia's government faces critical by-election test
Thailand reopens main international airport
'Gomorrah' success no threat to veteran mafia reporter
From the bottom of Jaycee's heart
URA gazettes Singapore’s Master Plan 2008
US, NKorea talks delayed in Singapore
SKorean businesses suffer setback since border clampdown
Top Indian official admits 'lapses' in attacks
Yeh Yong-jeh clarifies rumors on Ivy Li's death
Man jailed two weeks, fined S$500 for tampering with fuel gauge
SingTel, M1 among bidders for S'pore broadband network
Rice trip to South Asia nets promises, little else
Aaron Kwok plans stage play for 2011
Pakistani group under fire after India attacks
Teresa Cheung swears in as American citizen
Warehouse fire in South Korea kills 6, injures 2
Militants kill 2 police in northwestern Pakistan
US, China promise $20 billion to finance trade
Thai king's illness sparks anxiety amid crisis
Oliver Stone blasts Bush, optimistic about Obama
China: Factory owners protest for payment of debts
4 die in bombing trap in southern Thailand
Militant attacks kill 8 in northwest Pakistan
Top Indian official admits 'lapses' in attacks
India, Russia sign nuclear energy, space deals
Public advised to remain vigilant against crime during festive season
India, Russia ink nuclear deal
Dalai Lama arrives in Poland for visit that irked China
MediaCorp plans to expand regionally despite global economic downturn
Thai king's illness sparks anxiety amid crisis
Maoist rebels kill 5 police officers in east India
US: 14 insurgents killed in southern Afghanistan
Iranian militants killed 16 kidnapped police
NASA lands a cosmic first with "tweets" from Mars
Diamond thieves pull off $100 mln Paris heist
Politics on hold as Thais pray for ailing king
| International
|
Diamond thieves pull off $100 million Paris heist
U.S. military frets over Iraqi prisoners
| International
|
US calls for Zimbabwe's Mugabe to step down
Head of Russian Orthodox Church dead: official
U.S. says Mugabe's time is up
| International
|
Paris jewellery thieves pull off $64 million heist
India and Russia sign deal for new nuclear plants
| International
|
Powerful head of Russian Orthodox church Alexiy dies
| International
|
Afghan jail operation kills 8 prisoners in Kabul
| International
|
Japan opens nationality to kids born out of wedlock
| International
|
UN: Nepal agrees to release all child soldiers
Climate change, drought to strain Colorado River
Suicide blast in northwest Pakistan kills 6
| International
|
Passengers rescued from Antarctic cruise ship
| International
|
US, China pledge to jointly tackle global crisis
NZ man gets life in SKorean backpacker's death
Koobface virus turns up on Facebook
| Technology
|
HK stocks climb 2.5 pct on China stimulus hopes
Chinese man sentenced for plane hijacking
Toshiba to halt chip output due to weak demand
| Technology
|
SKorean firms confident NKorean zone won't close
Asia is still a dynamic region, says PM Lee
Donors pledge $5 bln soft loans, grants to Vietnam
Taiwan dollar flat after c.bank move, eyes US jobs
Microsoft taps key ex-Yahoo executive for post
| Technology
|
Pakistan Commission says floor on equity index illegal
China, US promise $20 billion for trade
China shares rise on hopes of more stimulus
Japan stocks extend losses ahead of US jobs data
Boy George guilty of imprisoning male escort
| Entertainment
|
What's age got to do with it? Tina Turner still terrific
| Entertainment
|
Will Smith rolling out low-profile Oscar bid
| Entertainment
|
India, Russia ink nuclear deal
Boy George guilty of false imprisonment
Gai Mattiolo arrested for alleged bankruptcy fraud
Viacom to cut 850 jobs in response to downturn
Kyrgyz state radio suspends BBC broadcasts
Avery meets with Bettman, awaits suspension length
President Nathan sends condolences to family of Mr Ho See Beng