Abingdonboy
ELITE MEMBER
The al-Qaeda and the Lashkar-e-Tayyeba are jointly planning a deadly terror attack on World Cup venues in India.
The al-Qaeda and the Lashkar-e-Tayyeba ( LeT) are jointly planning a deadly terror attack on World Cup venues in India, according to a tip-off from foreign intelligence agencies that said the attacks will be launched from Pakistan soil.
Following the "specific intelligence" from the foreign agencies, the Centre has sent as many as four alerts in the last six days to all state governments, with special alerts to those hosting World Cup matches, asking them to take steps to avert the terror strike.
The tip-off suggests that there could be up to 15 attackers - five more than the number involved in the November 2008 Mumbai massacre - who would infiltrate India through both the land and sea routes.
Alarm bells have gone off after it emerged that the leader of an LeT group is suspected by Indian agencies to be one of the handlers of the 26/ 11 attackers who has already "researched" the match venues.
However, there are fears that the hectic activity from the government might have come a little late. According to the Union home ministry alert of March 7 to all states, the first module of the terror group has already entered India.
World Cup-related alerts were sent to the police chiefs of Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal and the police commissioners of Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Nagpur, Chandigarh and Delhi.
The cricket venues in Maharashtra and Gujarat - specifically Nagpur, Mumbai and Ahmedabad - are "special concerns" as they are near the western coast. However, the government has not deployed NSG commandoes yet at any of the eight World Cup venues. An alert sent out on Wednesday to all states says an LeT group led by Zabiuddin Ansari is behind the plot.
This module had reportedly "researched" the eight ICC World cup venues in India in October 2010 and has drawn up a plan to use explosive chemical compounds and detonators in the terror strike.
Sources claimed Ansari is a 30-year-old Maharashtra- born terrorist whom Indian agencies suspect to be among the handlers of the 26/11 terrorists. Sources claimed that he had directed the terrorists on phone from Karachi and had been addressed as Abu Jindal by the terrorists.
Ansari has been missing from India since 2005 when he reportedly slipped into Pakistan for terror activities. Home minister P. Chidambaram had said earlier, "There was a handler in 26/11 whom we have known for long, or suspected for a long time, could be an Indian. That's something we have known for many, many months now. He goes by the name Abu Jindal, but that is not his real name." The Al-Qaeda module trying to enter India from the sea are possibly "Urdu-speakers from the Punjab province of Pakistan," warns the home ministry alert of March 7, adding that even the upcoming Assembly elections could be a target. "A collateral input reveals that Al-Qaeda operatives involved in the attacks could travel to India by boat…that these operatives could be well-acquainted with maritime travel to reach their targets in quick time," the alert says.
The government's priority is, without doubt, the safe completion of the World Cup. A top government source said additional layers of security have been added at all World Cup venues in India with specific attention to the India-South Africa clash in Nagpur on Saturday, the quarterfinal match scheduled in Ahmedabad on March 24, the semifinal fixture in Mohali on March 30 and the final at Mumbai on April 2. The navy and the Coast Guard have been put on alert to thwart any intrusion from the sea.
"The government is taking this alert very seriously. It is not a general alert by any means," a source said, adding that Union home secretary G.K. Pillai is in touch with all the police chiefs concerned.
Sources said that the foreign intelligence agencies who alerted India have also sent a message to Pakistan to check any terror attack being planned from its soil. "The message has gone to Pakistan that people in its territory are planning such attacks on India of the magnitude of 26/11 and that Pakistan should be careful to not allow anything to happen," a source said.
In its alert on March 3, the Union home ministry asked the states to track the whereabouts and movements of the Indian Mujahideen absconders. "The LeT group associated with Zabiuddin Ansari has come to notice seeking information on explosive chemical compounds which can be used for fabrication of IEDs," the alert said.
The home ministry alert sent out on Wednesday added that the group has also researched household items that can be used as chemicals. In another alert sent out on Wednesday, the MHA has asked the states concerned to have better deployment of police personnel inside stadia.
I know this has already been posted but I would like to ask a few questions regarding this news.
1) how ready are all the various states mentioned, I know maharastra has force one and Delhi has SWAT but the other states??
2) why haven't the NSG been deployed yet, it seems they are deployed at every other whim to meet the politicians will but if there is such a strong and credible threat why not deploy them?? They can provide counter sniping, bomb disposal, quick reaction teams etc. And wasn't one of the concerns of 26/11 the time delay??
3) how well/far are the NSG regional hubs set up?? Are they fully staffed? Equipped?? Trained?? With access to adequate transport for quick deployment ??
4) finally a question on the NSG as a whole, how has has it come since 26/11?? Is the QRT team in Delhi properly equipped and ready to be deployed quickly, goes for regional hubs to. Do they have better rifles?? BPJs?? Fatigues?? Stun grenades?? Robots?? Etc or is all this stuff still just on "order" clogged up in the bottleneck that is India's procurement system?? Or have the NSG/GoI/MHA woken up and fast tracked needed equipment??
Hopefully all goes well as an attack on the ICC would be disastrous on India's public image (not to mention the tragic loss of life) and standing in the world. The CWG passed without incident so there is hope, but then the Feds did deploy ALOT of resources that are apparently not being used at the ICC??