Granby01033

Trying to figure out what's going on in India is not that easy. I can judge the accuracy of the news sources I use and hedge my bets as necessary. With the foreign press, it's not so easy to tell. The news coverage of the cable channels is terrible. They are focusing on what's happening. The important questions for us, however, are, who's responsible and why have they attacked and taken hostages?

It seems unlikely that Pakistan isn't involved. Due to the strength of Pakistan's Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI) security forces and the lawlessness in parts of the country, the Prime Minister has limited power. The head of these forces is reported to be coming to India to discuss the terrorist events to assure the Indian government that they had nothing to do with it, but there are factions within the ISI that may have trained members in the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), an Islamacist terror group known for highly coordinated attacks resulting in the death of innocent civilians. The LeT has close ties to the Taliban and Al Qaeda as does the ISI.

If the Indian military and police have indeed taken several terrorists prisoner, there's a good chance they already know who's behind the attack. Since Indian security forces have recovered cell phones, it's likely that the informati0n contained in the following article is likely to be accurate.

The Times of India is reporting:

MUMBAI: The arrest of three Pakistani nationals hailing from Multan in connection with Mumbai siege has once again revealed the role of Lashkar-e-Taiba in terror strikes in India after the Akshardham attack in 2002.

Police and central security personnel have arrested at least three Pakistanis including Ajmal Amir Kamal, a resident of Faridkot near Multan in Pakistan's Punjab province. All the three belong to the suicide squad of Lashkar-e-Taiba.

The militants had told interrogators that 12 of them had left in a merchant vessel from the port-city of Karachi, which was on its way to Vietnam, from which they got down and rowed 10 nautical miles into Indian waters upto Gateway of India.

The dozen people split into at least five groups that created havoc in five star hotels -- Taj and Trident (Oberoi). The terrorists were carrying dry fruits, suggesting they were prepared for a long-drawn battle.

The sources said the group was joined by some of the local contacts who provided them logistics like bags and dry fruits, the sources said, adding initial reports suggested that the terror group had come to the metropolis in the intervening night of Sunday and Monday.

However, new leads suggested that they had entered the Indian waters on early Wednesday morning, the sources said.

--Mb