Posted on 03/09/2009 4:35:14 AM PDT by MyTwoCopperCoins
CHICAGO: US security experts believe that the Pakistan-based Lashker-e-Taiba (LeT), with the help of a "global jihadist syndicate" of disaffected young Pakistanis, could well stage the next major attack on the American mainland.
"We are and should be concerned about the threat LeT poses, given its global network," Juan Zarate, deputy national security adviser for counter-terrorism in the Bush administration, told the Chicago Tribune in an interview published on Sunday.
According to Zarate, the FBI and other US intelligence agencies had been focussing on the LeT as the next big threat to US security even before the Nov 26-29, 2008, Mumbai terror attacks. The Tribune quoted US authorities as saying that the LeT was in many ways a bigger threat than the Al Qaeda, whose leadership was on the run from numerous Predator strikes in the Pakistan's northwestern tribal areas.
Zarate's remarks come amidst reports that the LeT had got a new set of commanders to replace Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi and Zarrar Shah who the Pakistani authorities detained after the Mumbai carnage that India has blamed on the terror group.
Pakistani investigators initially pointed to an LeT hand in last week's attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore but later ascribed it to the Al Qaeda.
"We are and should be concerned about the threat LeT poses, given its global network," Zarate told the Tribune.
"It doesn't just reside in South Asia. It is an organisation that has potential reach all over the world, including the US," he added.
Bruce Riedel, chairman of the Obama administration's Pakistan-Afghanistan strategy review team, said he believed such a "global jihadist syndicate" of disaffected young Pakistanis was the most likely mechanism for launching an attack on US soil.
The Mumbai attacks, according to Riedel, was only the latest of several such by such militants on soft targets frequented by Americans, including hotels in Kabul and Islamabad. The Mumbai mayhem had claimed the lives of over 170 people, including 26 foreigners - six of them American citizens. India had subsequently given the FBI access to Ajmal Amir Kasab, the sole terrorist captured alive during the carnage.
India says Kasab and nine other LeT operatives, all of whom were killed during the attacks that lasted for over 60 hours, had staged the assault.
India had also asked the FBI to examine evidence collected from five GPS phones used for coordinating the attack, requesting the FBI to analyse the data. The FBI established that the attack was mounted from the sea.
The Tribune said that Washington wanted Pakistan to not only dismantle LeT but also other similar groups founded during the Afghan war or later to participate in the insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir.
Quoting US and allied intelligence sources, the report claimed that potentially tens of thousands of Pakistanis had been trained in the LeT's guerrilla camps in Pakistan, many of whom had gone on to fight for the Al Qaeda.
This includes a small number of US residents, some of who are believed to have returned home. Nearly a dozen Americans, including many members of the so-called Virginia Jihad Network, have been convicted in US courts of training at LeT camps and conspiring to provide material support to the group.
The US is also concerned about the thousands of disaffected Westerners and Pakistanis in Britain and other countries in Europe who travel frequently to Pakistan, the newspaper said.
Citizens of these countries do not need a visa for coming to the US. An unknown number of those have trained in LeT camps, and after getting "indoctrinated in its hatred of the West and returning home, they were free to travel to the United States with virtually no background check", the Tribune said.
http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/india/states/jandk/terrorist_outfits/lashkar_e_toiba.htm
The LeT’s professed ideology goes beyond merely challenging India's sovereignty over the State of Jammu and Kashmir. The Lashkar's ‘agenda’, as outlined in a pamphlet titled Why are we waging jihad includes the restoration of Islamic rule over all parts of India. Further, the outfit seeks to bring about a union of all Muslim majority regions in countries that surround Pakistan. Towards that end, it is active in J&K, Chechnya and other parts of Central Asia.
Hafiz Saeed, a scholar of Islam, has said that the purpose of Jihad is to carry out a sustained struggle for the dominance of Islam in the entire world and to eliminate the evil forces and the ignorant. He considers India, Israel and US to be his prime enemies and has threatened to launch Fidayeen (suicide squad) attacks on American interests too.
The Lashkar-e-Toiba does not believe in democracy and nationalism. According to its ideology, it is the duty of every 'Momin' to protect and defend the interests of Muslims all over the world where Muslims are under the rule of non-Muslim in the democratic system. It has, thus chosen the path of Jihad as the suited means to achieve its goal. Cadres are drawn from the Wahabi school of thought.
Jihad, Hafiz Saeed said during the All Pakistan Ulema Convention held on July 17, 2003, at Lahore, is the only way Pakistan can move towards dignity and prosperity.
The LeT has consistently advocated the use of force and vowed that it would plant the 'flag of Islam' in Washington, Tel Aviv and New Delhi.
Why would anyone attack us..Didn’t Zero and his team restore everyone’s love for us????? ?s
Why not just negotiate with the “moderate” elements?
The people of the U.S. have made a huge mistake. They haven't woken up to it yet, but when they do, they'll curse the day they pushed that button, colored in that dot, or flipped that switch.
Obomas world destruction is just getting started. He's not even close to being finished yet. We've seen the horrors of the last 2 months. There's still another 3 years and 10 months for him to finish the job.
why, these terrorist who subvert from within Pakistan and who hate the Govt of Pakistan, would never do that
Bamster the brilliant strategist, with the equally brilliant joe o’biden, together at the helm of the ship of state.. said they would invade pakistan if necessary
and fix the bush mistakes
s-a-r-c
If I were in the White House, I’d announce that ANY attack by a Muslim group within the US would result in our largest hysrogem bomb being dropped on Mecca. I would designate additional targets for repeat performances.
We no longer deserve the Right of Self Defence. Ask any democrat/commie.
I heard Zeroooo is also negotiating with Syria and Hizbolla also, might clinch a so called peace deal with them as they did with Taliban in SWAT by Porkis....
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