ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari yesterday pledged strong action against any Pakistani citizen involved in the Nov. 26 Mumbai terrorist attacks that Indian officials said killed 172 people and injured 296.
“The government will not only assist in investigation but also take strong action against any Pakistani elements found involved in the attacks,” said Zardari in an official statement issued after he met with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
Zardari also said that Pakistan is determined to ensure that its territory is not used for any act of terrorism.
Rice, who flew in here yesterday after meeting Indian leaders in New Delhi, told reporters after meeting Zardari: “I found the Pakistani leadership very focused and committed to act.” She had earlier met with Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and senior army officers.
The White House, meanwhile, said Pakistan must cooperate fully and communicate with India. “Pakistan needs to act with resolve, urgency. They need to cooperate fully and transparently and they need to keep the line of communication open between their country and India,” White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said. “We will continue to try to help make that happen,” she said.
India suspects two senior leaders of a banned Pakistani group orchestrated the attacks. According to two Indian government officials familiar with the investigation, evidence collected so far has pointed to two members of outlawed Pakistani group Lashkar-e-Taiba as masterminds in the attacks.
The men, Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Yusuf Muzammil, are believed to be in Pakistan, the officials said. Lakhvi was identified as the group’s operations chief and Muzammil its operations chief in Kashmir and other parts of India. The lone surviving gunman in the assault told police Lakhvi recruited him for the operation, and the assailants called Muzammil on a satellite phone after hijacking an Indian vessel en route to Mumbai. During the attacks, the gunmen used mobile phones taken from hotel guests to place calls to the Pakistani city of Lahore.
At the State Department, spokesman Robert Wood said President Zardari had “said all of the right things” about cooperating with the investigation during his talks with Rice. “What’s important now is that we have action,” Wood said.
Pakistan’s military chief yesterday vowed to maintain peace and security in the region. The pledge came as Chief of the Army Staff Gen. Ashfaq Kayani addressed a meeting of top military commanders in the garrison city of Rawalpindi.
— With input from agencies
