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| Brown - we will quiz Mumbai bomber |
Islamabad
BRITISH Police are to interrogate Mohammed Ajmal Amir Qasal, the only surviving terrorist from the attack on Mumbai.
Met Police anti-terrorist will fly to Mumbai to quiz the young terrorist to see if his terror gang has any links to Britain.
Other ringleaders will also be questioned to see if the masterminds behind the Mumbai attack include any British nationals.
Islamist fundamentalist group Lashkar-e-Taiba, who are based in Pakistan, organised the massive attack on hotels, the train station and other targets across India’s second city, killing 179 people.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown secured the interview during talks in Delhi with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
One Brit and two people with dual nationality were killed in the 26/11 attacks.
And Downing Street officials said Mr brown had asked the Indian Prime Minister if British police could investigate their right to quiz someone who had committed a crime against a Brit..
Qasal faces charges of murder, attempted murder, waging war against a country and criminal conspiracy.
MI6 are also expected to be involved in the interrogations.
The terrorists used a network of sleepers and stashed guns, ammunition and explosives during their three day attack.
Mr Brown said the material from the interview could be vital to expose links between the Pakistani terror group, and to cross-reference the intelligence gleaned with current investigations in Britain.
Three quarters of Islamist plots against Britain originate or are supported by terrorists from Pakistan.
Qasal killed up to 50 people at Mumbai’s main train station and is now being “intensively interrogated” by Indian police at a Mumbai Jail.
Mr Brown said he also wanted to “build bridges” during his tour of Asia.
He travelled to India from Afghanistan, where he visited British troops on the frontline in Helmand.
And yesterday he arrived in Islamabad for talks with Pakistan's president Asif Ali Zardari.
There is mounting tension between India and Pakistan over the terror incident.
Before arriving in Islamabad, Mr Brown said he was sure that Pakistan-based group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) was responsible.
He flew into Pakistan after talks with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, after which he said he would pass on the concerns of the Indian authorities over the response to the Mumbai attacks.
India has announced a major beefing up of its security after admitting "lapses" in the siege by gunmen which it blames on Pakistan-based militants.
It has put huge pressure on its neighbour, which strongly denies any involvement, to do more to combat terrorism amid fears of a stand-off between the nuclear-armed nations.
Pakistan has moved to place a militant leader accused of links to the attacks under house arrest and President Zardari has pledged to take "strong action" against terrorists. But he has also called on India to share more information about the attacks.
Before arriving in Pakistan Mr Brown said: "I will talk to the president and I will explain the concerns that the Indian people have about what happened.
"We also know that the group responsible is LeT and they have a great deal to answer for.
"I hope to convey come of the views of the Indian prime minister to the president of Pakistan."
Mr Brown added that he had once again given his condolences to his counterpart and the Indian nation for the Mumbai killings, and pledged "every help" from Britain to tackle terrorism.
Before his talks with President Zardari he had a clear message: The Muslim nation must root out terrorists.
According to India, the 10 gunmen were from Pakistan, as were the handlers, masterminds, weapons, training camps and financing.
Pakistan has carried out raids on a charity believed to be linked to Lashkar, but called on India to provide further evidence.
India finds itself in the awkward position of having to investigate terrorist attacks hand-in-hand with its longtime nemesis. The two countries have fought three wars against each other since independence from Britain in 1947.
Despite a peace process that began in 2004, tensions remain high.
Britain's shared history with the subcontinent has been bolstered by recent terror activity. Britons with family ties to Pakistan, India and Kashmir have been involved in a host of attempted terrorist attacks in Britain since 2001.
Three of four British-born men who carried out the 7/7 suicide bombings in 2005 that killed 52 commuters had family ties to Pakistan.
Indian-born Dhiren Barot was jailed in Britain in 2006 over plots to bomb the New York Stock Exchange, other U.S. financial targets and landmark London hotels. Barot, who was raised in the U.K. and regarded by British intelligence as a key al-Qaida figure, traveled to Kashmir in 1995 to fight against Indian forces.
The ongoing dispute over Kashmir has emerged as a recurrent theme in the radicalization of young British Muslims, commonly cited as a justification for their attacks.
Britain is home to some 2 million Muslims but has a large Kashmiri population, many of whom identify themselves as Pakistanis.
Anti-India sentiment runs deep in Kashmir, where many people favor independence from India or a merger with Pakistan.
The region is divided between the two countries and both claim it in its entirety.
Militant separatist groups have been fighting since 1989 to end Indian rule. The uprising and a subsequent Indian crackdown have killed about 68,000 people, most of them civilians.
At a press conference in Islamabad Mr Brown said: “The time has come for action, not just words.
He announced Britain will fund a £6m programme to target the madrassahs in Pakistan that turn out radicalized Islamists.
Britain will also train Pakistani bomb disposal experts – there have been over 50 suicide bombings in Pakistan over recent months.., help improve its airport security and share more intelligence with Pakistan.
Each country’s intelligence networks will share files and forensic information about suspected terrorism.
Mr Brown added: “We are providing more capacity to Pakistan to help deal with these problems. I think it is right that we have to help Pakistan to root out terrorism inside its own country.
“All of us suffer when terrorists are active and are able to impose their will on us.”
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