Mumbai terrorist came from Pakistan, local villagers confirm

by Sanjay Jha | December 7, 2008 at 07:16 pm

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A British newspaper has rebuffed Pakistani government's denial of any links with Mumbai terrorists. The Observer, a British newspaper, has found sole surviving terrorists in Mumbai Attack belonging to Pakistan. Indian and Pakistan have been squabbling over the claims of nationality of sole surviving terrorist since the terrorist attacks in Mumbai. Speculation has been rife about the birthplace of the lone surviving gunman, Ajmal Amir Kasab.Pakistan has refused to accept that terrorists came from Pakistan and President Asif Ali Zardari called them "stateless actors".

According to Indian Police, sole surviving terrorists have claimed to come from the Punjab province in the Pakistan. The newspaper tracked down the killer's home - and his grandfather - and found conclusive proof of his identity.

Ajmal Amir Kasab, interrogated in custody after last month's attacks, which killed 163 people, reportedly told Indian security officials that he came from a place called Faridkot in the Punjab province. His father was named as Mohammed Amir, married to a woman named Noor. During the past week, Pakistani sources have cast doubt on the authenticity of the leaked information, which has had a predictably explosive impact on relations between the two countries.

The Observer has obtained electoral lists for Faridkot showing 478 registered voters, including a Mohammed Amir, married to Noor Elahi. Amir's and Noor's national identity card numbers have also been obtained. At the address identified in the list, a man identifying himself as Sultan said he was the father-in-law of Mohammed Amir.

A villager, who cannot be named for his own protection, said the village was an active recruiting ground for the banned militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba. 'We know that boy [caught in Mumbai] is from Faridkot,' he said. 'We knew from the first night [of the attack]. They brainwash our youth about jihad, there are people who do it in this village. It is so wrong,' he added.

According to the villager and other locals, Ajmal has not lived in Faridkot for about four years but would return to see his family once a year and frequently talked of freeing Kashmir from Indian rule.

The truth about Ajmal's origins are key to the ongoing investigation of where the attackers came from and will have a profound impact on relations between India and Pakistan. Islamabad has repeatedly said that no proof has been provided to back Indian accusations that all the gunmen came from Pakistan. The terrorist outrage has pushed the two nuclear-armed countries to the brink of confrontation but, until now, there had been no solid evidence that any of the militants were from Pakistan.