vIndianz.com (28 Jan, 2010) — New Delhi: Meet David Coleman Headley, an Islamist at heart with a Christian name who claimed to be a Jew. His mission: Destroy India. At home: he is prison and Indian detectives are trying to find out the role of Headley role in the horrific 26/11 Mumbai terror attack.
The Pakistan-born American citizen was not alone in his mission to destroy India. Along with childhood friend and Canadian Tahawwur Hussain Rana — also born in Pakistan — he toured India extensively in the run up to the November 2008 Mumbai strike that left 166 Indians and foreigners dead in three days of naked terror.
Indian officials now say, privately, that Headley and Rana both reported to the same Pakistani jehadists who controlled the 10 male terrorists who sneaked into Mumbai a year ago and went on a slaughter spree.
It is now clear that it was Headley, looking every inch a middle class American, who lived in Mumbai for months to obviously sketch every site in the city that eventually came under attack from the terrorists.
The Lashkar-e-Taiba, the Pakistan-based terror group that is blamed for the Mumbai attack, could not have discovered a more loyal Islamist warrior than the 49-year-old from Chicago, Indian news agency India Abroad News Service said.
Now at the centre of an international probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) of India and the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), he is the first known case of the Lashkar drafting an American for terrorist attacks against India.
Headley, who apparently had no job, and Canadian businessman Rana have been accused of plotting terror attacks in India and Europe codenamed The Northern Project and Mickey Mouse respectively — which the FBI feels had the blessings of the Al Qaeda, the report says.
On the radar was a Danish newspaper that had published cartoons of Prophet Mohammed, triggering riots across the Muslim world.
The Northern Project sought to hit India, where the two men travelled extensively and repeatedly. Between them, they visited half-a-dozen cities including Mumbai, Pune, Lucknow, New Delhi, Kochi, Ahmedabad and Jaipur.
Headley paid nine visits to India since 2006. He came to Delhi at least thrice and he was in Mumbai on two occasions. When 26/11 happened, Headley and Rana were presumably in Pakistan.
Because of his Christian sounding name and American passport, Headley found it easy to get across India. Headley changed his name from Daood Gilani in 2006.
Further Reading- India may get access to Headley again – Hindustan Times
- Headley asked ISI to help Rana get back to Pak: FBI – Economic Times
- Headley’s visa documents go missing in Chicago
- Headley visa papers misplaced, search on
- Headley testimony: Pakistan against any ‘baseless speculation’ – Economic Times
- Why would my husband attack my second home India: Rana’s wife – Economic Times
- Chicago Trial May Unmask Pakistan’s Links to Militants – New York Times
- Report on Headley’s case
- Headley’s confinement hearing postponed until further notice
- Headley asked ISI to help Rana get back to Pak: FBI – Economic Times
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