Prime Minister apologises for Mumbai terror attack

Addressing the Parliament on Thursday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh offered apology for the Mumbai attack.

He called the Mumbai attack a calculated one and said that the government needs to review systems for fighting terror.

"Our country needs a modern and efficient police forces to meet these challenges. Our country has emerged stronger with every attack and will do so again," the PM said.

"There can be double standards in fighting terrorism. Our restraint should not be taken by anyone as our weakness. We need to act and respond with greater speed," he said.

Singh said that much more needs to be done to defeat terrorism. "Need to strengthen police forces at ground level," he said.

"We have to defeat terrorism. Perpetrators of these crimes must pay a price," he said.

Speaking about Pakistan, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Pakistan needs to do more to curb terror.

"All aircrafts in our airspace will be monitored," he said.

JuD, Hafiz Saeed added to UN terror list

United Nations: Acceding to India's request, a UN Security Council committee on Wednesday designated Jamat-ud-Dawah (JuD), the frontal organisation of Lashkar-e-Taiba, as a global terrorist organisation and its leader Hafiz Mohammad Saeed a terrorist in the wake of their alleged involvement in the Mumbai terror attacks. With this they are subject to freezing of assets, travel ban and arms embargo. In a letter to the Security Council on Friday, India had urged the 15-member UN body to "proscribe" them as they were involved in the Mumbai mayhem which killed more than 170 people including several foreigners. Pak ready to ban JuD if evidence is provided Moving quickly, given the seriousness of the issue and the information provided by India in support of its demand, the Security Council Al Qaeda and Taliban Sanctions Committee at its meeting held at the UN headquarters on Wednesday afternoon approved the names as requested by India. In addition to this, the Sanctions Committee also designated two other LeT leaders as terrorists. They are Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, chief of operations of Laskhar-e-Taiba, and Haji Muhammad Ashraf, chief of finance of the group. These names were added at the request of the US. Pakistan foreign minister talks of war All the three are Pakistani nationals and their names have appeared in connection with the Mumbai terrorists attack. The Sanctions Committee also designated Mahmoud Ahmed Bahaziq, an India-born Saudi national, as a terrorist. He served as LeT leader in Saudi Arabia and raised money for the terrorist outfit. Mumbai terror attack special In addition to JeD, the frontal organisations of two other Pakistan-based terrorist outfits have also been included in the Security Council's terror list. These include Al Amin Trust of the banned Al Rashid Trust and Pakistan Relief Foundation of Al-Akhtar Trust International.

India in ‘wait and watch’ mode to Pakistan arrests

New Delhi: India on Monday reacted cautiously to reports from Pakistan that security agencies there had taken into custody senior Lashkar-e-Taiba operatives wanted in connection with the Mumbai terrorist attacks.

Though Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) — the publicity wing of the Pakistani armed forces — on Monday formally noted that an “intelligence-led operation against banned militant outfits and organisations” is under way and that “arrest and investigations are on,” Indian officials told The Hindu that the nature of the action being taken was still not clear. According to Pakistani newspapers, LeT commanders Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Zarar Shah are among those arrested, though no official in that country has been willing to confirm this on record.

“We don’t know if they have really been arrested, nor do we know what being arrested actually means. For example, are they really being locked up or merely being transferred from one state guest house to another,” an official said.

The officials also cautioned against reading too much into Pakistan’s reply to India’s December 1 demarche in which New Delhi had asked Islamabad to take “strong action” against those responsible for the Mumbai attacks.

In its reply on Monday, Pakistan essentially reiterated what it has been saying publicly over the past five days, the officials said, including an assurance that it would not allow its territory to be used to stage terrorist strikes against its neighbours and an offer of a joint investigation.

India, the officials said, was less interested in assurances and wanted Pakistan to act decisively against terrorist groups operating on its territory.

The officials dismissed the emphasis being placed on the extradition of Masood Azhar, Dawood Ibrahim and Tiger Memon and the ‘list of 20 most wanted fugitives’ as media speculation, and reiterated that India had made a number of specific, well-focussed demands which it was not prudent to speak about in public.

Pakistan launches operation against banned organisation

Lashkar commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi said to be among those arrested

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Operation confined to Muzaffarabad area

Plan to send high-level team to India

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Hafiz Mohammad Saeed

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan military said on Monday it had mounted an “intelligence-led operation” against a banned militant organisation in Pakistan-adminstered Kashmir and made several arrests.

Military spokesman Major-General Athar Abbas did not specify that the target of the operation was the Laskhar-e-Taiba, nor would he confirm if Lashkar commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, suspected by Indian investigators of having masterminded the Mumbai attacks, was among those arrested.

The military spokesman declined to divulge the exact number of those arrested. The operation was “ongoing,” he said, and added that details would be made available soon. “At the moment,” the operation was confined to the Muzaffarabad area, he said.

Independent sources have said security forces raided a “centre” of the Jamat-ud-Dawah, a LeT front organisation, 5 km from the POK capital Muzaffarabad, and that Lakhvi was among those taken into custody.

Dawn newspaper reported he was among those arrested after the operation began on Sunday afternoon. Local media estimates about the arrests have ranged from nine to 20.

The raid came amid massive international pressure, led by the United States, to act “urgently” against terrorists operating from Pakistani territory.

Alongside, in what appeared a renewed bid to defuse the crisis between the two countries, Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir proposed, in a meeting on Monday with the Indian envoy, Satyabrata Pal, that a “high-level delegation” from Pakistan should visit New Delhi “as soon as possible.”

In a demarche to the Indian High Commissioner, the Pakistan government indicated this would help to carry forward investigations that it had initiated “on its own” into the alleged involvement of “any individual or entity in Pakistan” in the Mumbai attacks, and reiterated its offer of a joint investigation.

New Delhi is now expected to respond to the proposal but Indian officials said they were awaiting some clarity from the Pakistani side on the composition of the delegation.

The Cabinet Defence Committee said after a meeting on Monday that “that all actions taken [by the government] will be within the ambit of Pakistani law.”

Diplomatic observers believe this to be an indirect rejection of the demand by India for its “most wanted.”

A statement issued after the meeting said it was “imperative to proactively defuse the prevailing tensions.”

Present at the meeting were the Prime Minister, the Defence, Foreign, Interior and Information Ministers, the three service chiefs, and heads of intelligence organisations.

The Defence Committee reiterated that Pakistan would not allow its soil to be used for any kind of terrorist activity anywhere in the region or and the world, and the offer of “full cooperation with India, including intelligence sharing and assistance in investigation as well as setting up of a joint investigative commission.”

Unwarranted: Saeed

Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi

Hafiz Saeed, founder-leader of the Lashkar-e-Taiba and its front group, the Jamat-ud-Dawah, reacted angrily to the Pakistan military raid on his outfit, saying India “wants to crush Azad Jammu and Kashmir.”

In an interview to Geo News, Mr. Saeed said the Muzaffarabad operation against his groups was carried out under “Indian pressure” and was “unwarranted.”

He said the targeting of Kashmiri organisations without any proof was an expression of Pakistan’s “weakness.”

He has been confined to his house in Bhawalpur

Maulana Masood Azhar

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has confined Maulana Masood Azhar, the Jaish-e-Mohammed chief wanted by India, to his home in Bhawalpur in the south Punjab province, an unconfirmed report in a Pakistani newspaper said on Tuesday.

No confirmation

There was no official confirmation of the restrictions on the JeM founder-leader, and it remained unclear if his confinement, reported by The News daily, was a house arrest in the legal sense of the term.

The only word has come from the country’s Defence Minister Ahmed Mukhtar, who told an Indian television channel that Lashkar-e-Taiba commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Azhar had been “picked up.”

Mastermind in custody

Lakhvi, the alleged mastermind of the Mumbai attacks, is said to have been among the several LeT cadres taken into custody in Sunday’s raids on a “centre” run by the outfit near the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir capital Muzaffarabad, but again there has been no official word about this.

Two residents of Bhawalpur, who cannot be named, reported no unusual activity or the presence of police or security forces around the Model Town home where Azhar’s family lives.

He has not been seen in public in Bhawalpur, even though his outfit has a high profile in the town despite the ban on it.

Earlier this year, the JeM – it now goes by the name Khudam-ul-Islam and is headed by Azhar’s younger brother Abdul Rauf — held a public meeting to launch a book authored by Azhar. It is not known if he attended the meeting.

Freed in swap

Azhar, who was under arrest in India, was freed by the Indian government in 1999 as part of a negotiated deal with the hijackers of IC 814.

The only time Pakistani authorities arrested him was in December 2001 after a U.S. ban on the group, but he was released in December 2002.

Speaking in his hometown Multan, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said handing over any Pakistani to India was “out of the question.” He confirmed the arrests in the raids on Sunday.

“The arrests are being made for our own investigations. Even if allegations are proved against any suspect, he will not be handed over to India,” the Foreign Minister said.

“We will proceed against those arrested under Pakistani laws.”

Photos of 8 slain terrorists released

The ultras did not know of one another’s identity until they set sail on hijacked trawler Kuber

Bada Abdul Rehaman Taj Palace

Mumbai: The police on Tuesday released the names of nine terrorists involved in the terror attacks here. They also released photos of eight of them.

Abu Ali Taj Palace

Joint Commissioner (Crime) Rakesh Maria said the four terrorists killed at the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower were Hafiz Arshad alias Bada Abdul Rehaman from Multan, Javed alias Abu Ali from Okara district, Shoaib alias Abu Soheb from Narowal in Sialkot and Nazeer alias Abu Umer from Faisalabad. As Umer’s body was badly charred, the police could not get his picture.

Abu Soheb Taj Palace

Some of the photos were taken from the fake identity cards which the assailants carried, Mr. Maria said.

Abdul Rehaman Chota Oberoi Hotel

The Nariman House attackers were Nasir alias Abu Umar from Faisalabad and Babar Imran alias Abu Akasha from Multan.

Fahad Ullah Oberoi Hotel

The terrorists who targeted Trident-Oberoi were Abdul Rehaman alias Abdul Rehaman Chota from Arafwala, Multan Road, and Fahad Ullah alias Abu Fahad from Dipalpur taluka in Okara.

The Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus pair had long been identified as Ismail Khan alias Abu Ismail from Dera Ismail Khan district in the North-West Frontier Province and Mohammad Ajmal Amir ‘Kasab’ (Iman) alias Abu Mujahid, his training name. Ismail was killed in the Girgaum Chowpatty encounter and Ajmal was nabbed and his photo is already in public domain.

Among the attackers, Shoaib, 20, was the youngest and Umar, 28, the oldest. “He was married. His wife is either dead or has been divorced,” Mr. Maria said. Ajmal was 21 and the rest fall in the age group of 23 to 25.

Ismail Khan CST

The terrorists did not know of one another’s identity until they set sail on the hijacked trawler Kuber, said Mr. Maria.

The Kuber journey lasted around three-and-half days and the information on the identities were obtained through Ajmal’s interrogation.

Umar, Umer and Ismail were experienced fighters and not new to combative action, he said.

“Misled”

Nasir alias Abu Umar Nariman House

Ajmal, who reportedly felt that he was “misled” into conducting the terror attack, underwent an indoctrination process of three weeks before he joined the group.

In a six-line letter to his parents, he reportedly regretted not having listened to the elders. He opined that youth should not be led by indoctrination, Mr. Maria said.

Arrest warrants

Babar Imran alias Abu Akasha -Nariman House

The police have obtained warrants for Lashkar operative Fahim Ansari and terror suspect Mohammad Sabahuddin.

Both were arrested in the case of attack on the CRPF Group Centre in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, said Mr. Maria.

They are likely to be produced in court soon for custody.

Direct attack costs of terrorist conspiracies

.In one of its reports on terrorist financing, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) -- an inter-governmental body whose purpose is the development and promotion of national and international policies to combat money laundering and terrorist financing -- has explored the range of methods used by terrorists to move funds within and between organisations. According to it, the three primary methods used are: through the financial sector, by physical transportation, and, through the commercial trade system. Charities and alternative remittance systems have also been used to disguise movement of terrorist funds, the report says. As the fight against terror has to be fought on many fronts — blocking access to finance is too important a front to be ignored. Here is a look at the direct attack costs of some of terrorist conspiracies:

Pak on track to being named terrorist state

WASHINGTON : The United States is dusting off a long-discarded proposal to declare Pakistan a state sponsor of terrorism. But with the Bushadministration now in its final six weeks in office, a decision in this regard is being left to the incoming Obama government, sources said, contingent on corrective actions taken in the meantime by Islamabad to the satisfaction of India, US and other countries affected by Pakistan's toxic export of death. ( Watch ) US intelligence circles are now re-evaluating Pakistan's contribution to the war on terror, and the ISI's dominant role in the country and its ties with jihadi outfits, at the behest of the Bush administration. The White House itself lost faith in the Pakistan Army's bonafides several months ago which led to Washington's decision to withdraw support to military ruler Pervez Musharraf and back a new civilian government, officials and congressional aides who spoke on background explained. The decision to dump Musharraf was taken at vice-president Dick Cheney recommendation, they added, because of evidence that Pakistan was continuing to help Taliban elements attacking Nato forces. Now the Bush administration is even more convinced that the Pakistani Army and its intelligence arm ISI, who still calls the shots in Islamabad, are continuing their toxic policies. But firm action against them is constrained by both the transition phase in Washington and the US dependence on Pakistan to maintain supply lines to its troops in land-locked Afghanistan. Officials are now re-examining options in this regard, particularly US leverage against Islamabad if Pakistan considers interdiction strategies. Pakistan came close to being named a state sponsor of terrorism in 1992 when then Secretary of State James Baker charged then prime minister Nawaz Sharif of supporting terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir. The then US envoy in Islamabad Nicholas Platt conveyed to Sharif that "we (US) are very confident of our information that your intelligence service, the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate, and elements of the Army are supporting Kashmiri and Sikh militants who carry out acts of terrorism... This support takes the form of providing weapons, training and assistance in infiltration ... We're talking about direct, covert support from the Government of Pakistan." In his talking points, Platt continued: "Our information is certain. It does not come from the Indian Government. Please consider the serious consequences to our relationship if this support continues... If the situation persists, the Secretary of State may find himself required by law to place Pakistan in the U.S.G. [United States Government] State sponsors of terrorism list... You must take concrete steps to curtail assistance to militants and not allow their training camps to operate in Pakistan or Azad Kashmir." The situation was defused by Sharif government removing then D-G of ISI Javed Nasir even as Washington was going through a transition phase (from Bush Sr to Clinton). But it now appears that the ISI has cranked up its policy from mere infiltration and support to outright commando style attacks. Despite a soft-line adopted by Bush administration in public to the benefit of doubt to Pakistan's civilian government and spur it into action, Washington has little doubt that the terrorist attack on Mumbai was sponsored and planned with state support, US officials are saying privately. One things is certain; this was not a run-of-the mill LeT operation. "I think this event looks a lot more like a classical Special Forces or commando-style raid than it does like any terrorist attack we've seen before," David Kilcullen, a counter insurgency military analyst who served as an advisor to Gen. Davis Petraeus tells Fareed Zakaria in the upcoming edition of his program GPS, articulating what US officials are saying in private. "No al-Qaida-linked terrorist group and certainly never Lashkar-e-Taiba has mounted a maritime raid of this type or complexity." The US intelligence community believes that hijacking a fishing vessel, infiltrating via the sea, via inflatable boat, launching diversionary attacks designed to pull the first responders out of the way of the subsequent follow on groups that struck the Oberoi, the Taj Mahal, the Nariman Center and the equipment the terrorists carried and their attire were all in the vein of a covert special-forces raid rather than a traditional terrorist attack.

Pak agrees to 48-hour timetable for action against LeT: Report

WASHINGTON / NEW DELHI: Pakistan has agreed to a 48-hour timetable set by India and the United States to formulate a plan to take action againstLashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and to arrest at least three Pakistanis who Indian authorities say are linked to the multiple attacks in Mumbai, a top US daily reported, citing a top Pakistani official. ( Watch ) The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of diplomatic sensitivities, said India had also asked Pakistan to arrest and hand over LeT commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhwi and former chief of Pakistan's spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Hamid Gul, in connection with the probe into the Mumbai carnage, which killed nearly 200 people, the Washington Post reported on Saturday. This development comes in the wake of reports in the Indian media that some top Pakistan military and intelligence officials had admitted that the perpetrators of Mumbai were Pakistani terrorists owing allegiance to the Lashkar. According to the reports, Pakistan officials admitted this in Islamabad before Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the US Joint Chief of Staff, who conveyed it to government officials in India. The agency report from Washington, quoting the newspaper, said that Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari is expected to consult his nation's top military and intelligence officials on how to follow through on India's demands. "The next 48 hours are critical," the official was quoted as saying by the influential US daily. A week after the terrorist assault in the Indian financial capital, Indian officials have stepped up their efforts to make a clear case of link between the carnage and Pakistani elements. According to the Post, a high-level source in the Indian government, speaking on condition of anonymity, said India has "clear and incontrovertible proof" that LeT had carried out the attacks and that the group's leaders were trained and supported by Pakistan's ISI. "We have the names of the handlers. And we know that there is a close relationship between the Lashkar and the ISI," the source said. Indian and US investigators have identified Yusuf Muzammil, an LeT leader, as the mastermind behind the attacks. US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice has already asked Pakistan to turn in Muzammil and other suspects, the report said. Mullen visited India on Thursday when he is said to have conveyed this to officials in India. He had visited Islamabad before that. In India, he met NSA M K Narayanan, defence minister A K Antony and navy chief Admiral Sureesh Mehta. "It's possible that in the face of international pressure some of them admitted in a private conversation what we believe is a fact. Even if it is true, we don't think it is enough," said an Indian official. According to Indian officials, US is convinced about the involvement of Pakistani nationals because it has been able to establish the identity of lone terrorist survivor Ajmal Amir Kasab and his family members living in Pakistan. The US also has access to evidence to prove where some of the perpetrators trained in Pakistan. Earlier, Mullen had asked Pakistan's top leadership to "investigate aggressively any and all possible ties to groups based in Pakistan", the US embassy had said in a statement. While taking note of the recent success of Pakistani security forces in operations against militants on the Afghan border, Mullen "also encouraged Pakistani leaders to take more and more concerted action against militant extremists elsewhere in the country", the statement said.

India may carry out surgical strikes on Pak, warns McCain

ISLAMABAD: India may carry out surgical strikes against individuals and groups linked to the Mumbai

terror attacks in a "matter of days" ifPakistan does not act on "irrefutable evidence" against such elements, prominent US senator John McCain has warned.

There is enough evidence of the involvement of former ISI officers and generals in the planning and execution of the Mumbai attacks and of the existence of terrorist training camps in Pakistan, McCain told a small group of senior Pakistani journalists at an informal lunch in Lahore yesterday.

A report in the Daily Times quoted McCain as saying that he believed it could be a "matter of days" before India carried out surgical air strikes if Pakistan did not act on evidence provided to it on elements linked to the attacks.

According to the report, McCain had said that if "Pakistan does not act, and act fast, to arrest the involved people, India will be left with no option but to conduct aerial operations against select targets in Pakistan".

McCain, who visited New Delhi before coming to Islamabad, said this is what he and other visiting Senators were told by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who, as McCain put it, was "reeling from the shock" of the Nov 26 attacks.

Other sources privy to the meeting told PTI that McCain had pointedly referred to "irrefutable evidence" gathered by both the US and India about the involvement of Pakistani elements, including some retired generals and members of the Lashker-e-Taiba, in the attacks.

McCain also said that terrorist training camps were being emptied "as we speak", a senior editor present at the meeting told Dawn News channel.

26/11 terrorists trained by Pak army, navy instructors: Report

LONDON: The ten terrorists involved in the Mumbai attacks were among 500 men trained to "elite" commando standards by the Pakistani army andnavy instructors and were directly supported by the ISI, a media report here said on Sunday. The Indian intelligence have the names of the 26/11 terrorists' ISI trainers and handlers and have intercepted internet phone calls between them, The Sunday Times said. Quoting sources close to the Indian intelligence, it claimed that another attack before next year's general election would make war inevitable between the two countries. The Indian intelligence claimed the terrorists involved in the Mumbai attacks were among a large group of volunteer "fidayeen" or suicide attackers trained in commando tactics by the Pakistan army and navy instructors over 18 months from December 2006. "The training of these 500 men was in three phases. The first was basic physical fitness and firearms training. The second was marine navigation and swimming. The third involved training to sabotage underwater installations such as oil rigs, ships and submarines," one official was quoted as saying. "They were trained to a level of US Seals or Pakistani marine commandos. They were elite. Ten of these men were the ones who attacked Mumbai." If true, this training would have been in addition to later preparation said to have been given by Lashkar-e-Toiba, which is suspected to be behind the attacks. The militant group was created with ISI support in the 1990s to operate in Afghanistan and Jammu and Kashmir.

Terrorist SIM card trail leads to Kolkata

KOLKATA/NEW DELHI: In a major breakthrough that shows that the Pakistan-based terrorists exploited the weaknesses in the issuance of SIM cards,Kolkata police have arrested two people, one from Kolkata and the other from Delhi, for their alleged role in the Mumbai terror attack. ( Watch ) The duo, Kolkata-resident Tousif Rehman (26) and J&K police constable, Mukhtar Ahmed Sheikh (34), arrested from Delhi, had allegedly bought 22 SIM cards that terrorists involved in the Mumbai carnage used. They had brought the SIMs from different shops in Kolkata after faking documents of a dead man. However, the two, arrested on Friday, have been booked for fraud and criminal conspiracy. Terrorists used 22 SIMs, purchased from West Bengal, during the attack and police are looking for the people who bought the remaining ones -- three from Kolkata and another 10 from Barasat, police say. Rehman acted as local contact in the ring, and procured 19 SIMs in October after submitting his uncle Ashraf Naumani's voter identity card. Ashraf had died in 2005. The SIMs belong to various service providers —Vodafone, Airtel and Aircel. Senior intelligence sources were reluctant to call the arrests a major breakthrough. The initial assessment was that Tausif and Sheikh were engaged, using fake papers, in procuring SIM cards which were later sold at a huge premium to shawl sellers from Kashmir and others. In this connection, the fraudulently obtained SIM cards landed with Lashkar that has a big network in network in J&K, and which had long planned to target Mumbai. But they were not ruling out anything yet. "We have to examine it thoroughly," said a senior source familiar with the details of the case. The arrests highlight the continued vulnerabilities in the system which have repeatedly been exploited by the terrorists and their collaborators to obtain cell phone connections. Moreover, given the Kashmir connection, investigators would also like to ascertain whether the other terrorists and their collaborators were also among the 'customers' of Tausif and Sheikh. Mukhtar apparently was cocky that he would give the cops a slip and booked himself into the heavily-guarded J&K government's guest house in New Delhi's Chanakapuri diplomatic enclave. He was in Delhi along with his colleague SI Latif Ahmed for an official assignment. Earlier, sub-inspectors Partha Mukherjee and Pulak Dutta from Kolkata police had travelled to Srinagar to follow up on Mukhtar's lead. Tousif wasn't home when the police came to arrest him earlier this week. Cops, however, swooped down on Howrah station and arrested him on Friday evening. Tousif told interrogators that Mukhtar had engaged him to collect the SIMs and also spilled the beans about his whereabouts. A police officer said Mukhtar came to Kolkata from Srinagar seven years ago in 2001 as a shawl seller and married a local girl the next year. Thereafter he stayed with his in-laws in Kolkata for a few years. Some years later, Mukhtar returned to Srinagar but frequented Kolkata regularly. During his last Kolkata visit in October, Mukhtar asked Tousif to arrange some SIMs for him and offered four to five times the market price. Tousif did the job for him for the cut. A Mumbai Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) team is coming to Kolkata and is likely to the take the two in transit remand for further investigations into the fake SIM racket operating in the country that might help them to track various terror modules in operation. Following various leads, Kolkata police tracked the shop at Park Circus that had issued the SIMs against the ID card of dead man Ashraf Numani. After raiding his home, police discovered that Numani is no more and that his nephew Tousif had actually bought the SIMs. Tousif's statement to the police points to a large fake SIM racket that has been operating for the last couple of years. What the police have unearthed could be a tip of an iceberg. "We've booked them for cheating and forgery as they produced fake documents to get the SIMs. We've also slapped conspiracy charges against them for they had an ulterior motive. The arrests will throw light on the Mumbai terror module," Kolkata police's Jawed Shamim said.

DRDO Seeks Partners to Co-Develop Kaveri Engine for LCA Tejas Fighter Jet

In the process of scouting for a partner to develop higher thrust engine for its ambitious Light Combat Aircraft and
the present version will take to the skies in 2010, Defence Minister A K Antony said on Saturday.

"LCA will be a reality. For higher thrust engine, we must have a new engine. We are looking for a partner to develop this," he told reporters after inaugurating the new campus of Defence Avionics Research and Establishment (DARE), a premium research unit for avionics at DRDO complex. IAF and DRDO are working jointly towards this, he said.
IAF has already placed orders for 20 LCA and orders for another 20 was in the pipeline, Antony said, and denied that IAF was not interested in these aircraft. Earlier, addressing the gathering, Antony stressed the need for developing indigenous technologies to counter the challenges posed by import restrictions and technology transfers. He said the country would have to face problems if scientists did not develop indigenous technologies and the state-of-the-art equipment in the field of aeronautics.

DRDO located in Bangalore, an IT and technology hub, has been entrusted with the task for delivering high precision system to IAF, he said. Antony said scientists should aim to minimize costs and cut down time with minimum dependence on foreign assistance. "Our endeavor is to develop cutting edge technologies and we will give required support," he said.

Indian Army Officers to be Trained for Optimal Utilization of Space Based Resources

set to make forays in use of space applications, the Indian Army will take a leaf out of US forces' experience to train its officers in optimizing the effective use of space-based resources to meet its operationalrequirements.

A week after India announced setting up of an integrated cell to co-ordinate all military operations based on space assets, the Army's Directorate of Perspective Planning (DoPP) will organize a training programme on Monday for officers to make them understand the tricks of the trade, Army sources said today. To be inaugurated by Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) General Deepak Kapoor, the seminar would also look into the role of space-based applications in recent conflicts around the world.

"In particular, the use of space-based assets by the US forces in Afghanistan and Iraq would be debated. Army officers would learn the practices adopted by the US forces in utilizing space applications to counter enemies in its battles in Iraq and Afghanistan," sources said.

The meet, to be organized in association with the Centre for Land Warfare Studies (CLAWS), would witness officers discussing and imbibing "space-based application used by military's of the space-faring nations," sources said.

"It is imperative that Indian Army, being the largest user of space, exploits space-based resources optimally to meet its operational requirements," a note prepared by the DoPP to organize a day-long training for officers, said.

france Looking to Make Inroads in Indian Defence Market

After having made inroads in to the Indian armed forces’ air and sea segments, France is now making a determined bid to supply equipment to the army.

"France is willing to co-produce high technology weapon platforms with its strategic partners," said French Defence Minister Herve Morim, while inaugurating Eurosatory 2008, the world's largest land weapon systems exposition in Paris on Tuesday. India and France became all weather all-issues strategic partners in 1998. The relationship was reiterated during French President Nicolas Sarkozy's visit to India in January this year and will be given an impetus during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to France later this month.

Leading the French showcasing of its land weapon systems to senior Indian Ministry of Defence officials here is Nexter, known earlier by the more recognised name of Giat. Paris believes that New Delhi would be comfortable in dealing with this company since it is fully owned by the government.

The Nexter has already bagged an order for supplying turrets to the army but the order is again for the air segment. It is now eyeing the much more lucrative tender for self-propelled artillery guns that will replace the ageing Bofors howitzers.

On offer is the Caesar, a truck mounted artillery gun, accompanied by full transfer of technology.

As opposed to towed and tracked artillery guns, truck mounted howitzers are considered the spearhead of the 21st century artillery although for reasons known to itself the Indian Army is tendering for all three versions. The company offers a look into its recent past to argue that the offer to pass on technology will be matched when it comes to practice.

Along with the change in name from Giat to Nexter, the company downscaled its workforce from 18,000 to just 3,500.

“So we now make only core products not available in the open market. That means for the Indian army, we are totally open to full transfer of technology and co-development,” argues Laurent Nicholas, the company’s business chief for Asia and Australia. “We are also totally open to India offering its chassis, whether by the Tatas or anyone else. But we need time to work with the local industry.”

The time schedule required to indigenise the product is a “serious issue” not understood by New Delhi, added Mr. Nicholas, seeking to speak for the defence industry world-wide dealing with India.

Another area that France wants to enter is the armour-plated troop carrying assault vehicles for the mechanised infantry, for long the preserve of the Russians. With Russian origin BMP vehicles ageing, The Nexter wants to push its more modern nuclear warfare proof armoured vehicles that are used to rush the infantry through heavy fire to assault sites.

The exposition saw the company unveiling its ‘Aravis’ 4x4 vehicle for counter-insurgency operations. Developed after the experience of Iraq and Afghanistan, the Aravis can be transported by the C-130 Hercules which will shortly be inducted in the Indian armed forces.

“We can bring it for tests by October 1, should India desire that,” offers Alain Marchand, the company’s business development manager for Asia.

“Tests by India should vindicate our claim that can defeat 10 kg of mines, fire from machine guns, something that is needed for anti-insurgency operations in Kashmir, the North-East and Central India,” he adds.

In case France enters the Indian armed force’s land weapon systems market, it will add another chapter to the unique defence relationship. Till the mid-80s, political ties were lukewarm and indeed at a low ebb in the 50s and 60s when Paris was irritated by India’s support to national liberation movements in Africa and Asia, where France had a substantial colonial footprint. But that did not deter a close defence relationship during which France sold Mystere fighters when none was willing to help, and later the Mirage jets.
Submarines

After the turning point in 1998, France is now building advanced submarines for the Navy, helping India reduce its dependency in this area on Russia. “We are now more than keen to help the Indian Army, more because our ability to supply good quality systems consistently is well known. And that too without any political preconditions,” observes the French Ambassador to India, Jerome Bonnafont.

India To Transfer Three Islander Aircrafts to Myanmar; Train Myanmarese Officers At Kochi Naval Base

Indian newspaper 'The Hindu' reports that India is all set to transfer three Islander aircrafts to Myanmar. These aircrafts are of British origin.

India is stepping up military supplies to Myanmar including training to its military personnel to handle more sophisticated defence equipment such as aircraft. India has also started training officers of the Tamdaw Lay (Myanmar Air Force) at the naval base in Kochi in handling characteristics.

Both sides are discussing the transfer of more Islander planes after firming up maintenance and servicing issues.

It is planning to replace most of these planes with new Dornier aircraft. "The cooperation with our neighbors is in keeping with the Prime Minister's desire to improve relations with them," said a senior officer in the security establishment.The move to gift the aircraft was viewed by Britain as an attempt to bolster the military government.

Indian Navy Chief Visiting Myanmar; Defense Deals Top Agenda

India's Naval Chief Admiral Sureesh Mehra has embarked on a nine-day tour of Burma and Singapore to give a leg up to bilateral ties and military cooperation with the neighbouring countries. His visit begins on Wednesday.

Heading a high level naval delegation, the Navy Chief delegation will hold talks with top leaders of the ruling Burmese military junta during his stay in Rangoon. "The issue of arms transfer to Myanmar is likely to figure prominently during the Naval Chief's parleys with SDPC members," a former naval officer and currently director of India's leading think tank told 'Mizzima News' on condition of anonymity.

India recently supplied Burma with two Islander Naval surveillance aircraft as well as small naval gun boats and light artillery guns as part of its effort to strengthen military ties with Burma.

The strategic importance of Burma in the Indian Ocean has made India look towards naval cooperation with Burma. A number of Indian naval personnel have been visiting Burma off late. Former Indian Naval Chief Admiral Madhvendera Singh had visited the key Burma naval base of Coco Islands in 2003. His successor former Admiral Arun Prakash had visited Burma in January 2006 where he presented a consignment of communication equipment to his counterpart.

Admiral Mehra is the second Indian Navy Chief to visit Burma in a year's time. He will tour Singapore after his visit to Burma , to attend the International Maritime exhibition. The Indian Navy has sent two warships to take part in the exhibition.

Cooperation between India and Burmese navies seems to be forgoing ahead. Two Indian warships, INS Ranjit and ISN Kuthar did joint naval maneuvers with the Burmese Navy in December 2005. The Indian warships' visit to Burma ports was the third, in the past three years.

In December 2002, an Indian naval fleet, comprising a submarine and two destroyers, berthed at the Rangoon Port. Then in September 2003, two more Indian warships carried out four-day joint naval maneuvers with the Burmese Navy. In exchange, a Burmese corvette docked at Port Blair to take part in "Milan 2006." This was the first time in four decades that a Burmese ship had visited a foreign port.