US indicts Headley, Rana

vIndianz.com (15 Jan , 2010) — Washington: Tahawwur Hussein Rana and David Coleman Headley, the two Pakistani-origin Chicago-residents were indicted on Friday by a federal grand jury in the US on charges of helping plan the 26/11 Mumbai attacks that killed 163 people including six American nationals and plotting attack on a Danish newspaper which published a cartoon on Prophet Mohammed.

Rana and Headley are school time friends. Also indicted on conspiracy charges related to the Denmark plot were Ilyas Kashmiri, an alleged terror kingpin in Pakistan who is said to be in regular contact with Al-Qaeda leaders and Abdur Rehman Hashim Syed, a retired major in the Pakistani military, according to the US Department of justice said in a statement. Neither man is in US custody.

The 49-year-old Headley, a US citizen, faces the same 12 count that were filed against him on December 7, 2007.

The six counts of conspiracy involve bombing public places in India, murdering and maiming persons in India and Denmark, providing material support to foreign terrorist plots and providing material support to LeT (Lashkar-e-Taiba).

Six other counts include aiding and abetting the murder of US citizens in India.

Headley remained in federal custody in Chicago since he was arrested by the FBI on October 3.

According to foreign agency, Headley allegedly attended terrorism training camps in Pakistan maintained by LeT, and conspired with its members and others, including Rana, Kashmiri and Abdur Rehman, in planning and executing the attacks in Denmark and India in 2002 and 2003.

The American also allegedly conducted extensive surveillance of targets in Mumbai for more than two years preceding the November 2008 attacks.

Rana, also 49 year-old but a Canadian citizen, is a defendant in three of the counts charging material support of the terrorism plots in Denmark and India.

Thursday’s indictment charges Kashmiri for the first time, although he was identified by name in the charges filed previously against Rana, Abdur Rehman and Headley.

Rana is in federal custody in Chicago since he was arrested on October 18 last year in connection with the planned attack on a Danish newspaper.

LeT was designated as a foreign terrorist organisation by the United States in December 2001.

Kashmiri and “Major Abdur Rehman” or “Pasha”, were each charged with one count of conspiracy to murder and maim persons in Denmark, and one count of providing material support to the Danish terrorism plot.

LeT planned for 26/11 attack in 2005

LeT had started planning for the Mumbai terrorist attacks at least three years before its strikes in November 2008.

According to the charges filed by American federal prosecutors before a Chicago court, an unnamed Lashkar member A, who served as a “handler” for terror suspect Headley and another person associated with LeT, advised him in late 2005 that he would be travelling to India to perform surveillance of potential targets for Lashkar.

In an indictment filed before the Chicago court on Friday, federal prosecutors said, as per direction given by his LeT handlers Headley changed his given name of Daood Gilani on February 15, 2006, in Philadelphia, enabling him to present himself in India as an American who was neither Muslim nor Pakistani.

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26/11 attacks: US indicts Headley, Rana

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