.
Senin, 22 Desember 2008
Sabtu, 13 Desember 2008
Mumbai gunman's confession sheds light on massacre
From Yahoo News.
MUMBAI, India – The gunman captured in last month's Mumbai attacks had originally intended to seize hostages and outline demands in a series of dramatic calls to the media, according to his confession obtained Saturday by The Associated Press. Mohammed Ajmal Kasab said he and his partner, who massacred dozens of people in the city's main train station, had planned a rooftop standoff, but abandoned the plans because they couldn't find a suitable building, the statement to police says.
Kasab's seven-page confession, given to police over repeated interrogations, offers chilling new details of the three-day rampage through India's commercial center that left 164 people plus nine gunmen dead. He said the assault, which started Nov. 26, was initially set for Sept. 27, though he doesn't explain why it was delayed. The gunmen had been told by their handlers to carry out the attacks during rush hours when the station is teeming with commuters.
After reaching Mumbai, Kasab and his partner, Ismail Khan, the group's ringleader, headed to the train station by taxi. "Ismail and myself went to the common toilet, took out the weapons from our sacks, loaded them, came out of toilet and started firing indiscriminately toward the passengers," Kasab told police. As a police officer opened fire, the two militants retaliated with grenades before entering another part of the station and randomly shooting more commuters.
The men then searched for a building with a rooftop where they had been told to hold hostages and call a contact named Chacha, whom Kasab identified as Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, the suspected mastermind behind the attacks. Chacha, which means "uncle" in Hindi, would supply phone numbers for media outlets and specify what demands the two should make. "This was the general strategy decided by our trainers," Kasab said. Taking heavy fire from police, the two had trouble finding a "suitable building" and stormed a hospital they mistook for an apartment building. There, they searched for hostages and traded more gunfire with security forces. It's unclear if they ever held hostages.
When they left, a police van pulled up and the two tried to take shelter behind a bush during the shootout. Kasab was hit in the hand as Khan returned fire. "They got injured and the firing from their side stopped," he said. Police have confirmed the van was carrying top police officials, including the head of the anti-terror squad who was killed.
In the confession, Kasab, 21, describes his conversion from an aspiring street criminal to a loyal soldier for Lashkar-e-Taiba, the terrorist group banned by Pakistan in 2002 and blamed by India in the attacks. He came to the organization last year while looking to buy guns to commit robberies after quitting a low-paying job at a catering business. The search led him to several Lashkar "stalls" at a bazaar in the Pakistani city of Rawalpindi, he said.
Kasab went on to receive rigorous training in weapons handling and other skills, attending at least six Lashkar camps and visiting his parents twice during breaks, he said. Lashkar operatives even lectured recruits on India security and intelligence agencies, and taught them how to evade pursuing security forces.He said they were shown "clippings highlighting the atrocities on Muslims in India," images of Mumbai locations on Google Earth, and film footage of the train station. "We were instructed to carry out the firing at rush hour in the morning between 7 to 11 hours and between 7 and 11 hours in the evening," he said. The attacks ultimately started around 9:30 p.m.
After Kasab and nine others were picked among a group of 32 recruits, they headed to Karachi in September and practiced traveling on speed boats. On Nov. 23, the group was transported to a ship called the Al-Huseini far out at sea. Shortly after boarding, "each of us was given a sack containing 8 grenades, one AK47 rifle, 200 cartridges, two magazines and one cell phone for communication," he said. The Al-Huseini's crew, he said, later hijacked an Indian vessel, killing all but one crew member who was temporality kept alive and held at gunpoint to guide them into Mumbai's coastal waters. "When we were at some distance from the shore, Ismail and (another militant) killed the Indian seaman" before the group boarded a dinghy and came ashore "per the instructions received earlier."
Police said Saturday that Kasab, who's facing a criminal case in the attacks, has written to Pakistani officials to request legal help. In a letter written Thursday, he asked for "legal aid" from the Pakistani consulate and requested a meeting with a consular representative, said Rakesh Maria, Mumbai's chief investigator. The letter was forwarded to India's government to relay to Pakistani officials, but it was unclear whether it had been delivered, Maria said. Pakistani officials were not immediately available for comment. A number of Indian lawyers — including a prominent group of Mumbai attorneys — have refused to defend Kasab against criminal charges amid outrage over the attacks.
Kasab is being held on 12 offenses, including murder and waging war against the country, but has not yet been formally charged. Islamabad has refused to acknowledge Kasab's nationality, complaining that India has yet to furnish any evidence.
.
MUMBAI, India – The gunman captured in last month's Mumbai attacks had originally intended to seize hostages and outline demands in a series of dramatic calls to the media, according to his confession obtained Saturday by The Associated Press. Mohammed Ajmal Kasab said he and his partner, who massacred dozens of people in the city's main train station, had planned a rooftop standoff, but abandoned the plans because they couldn't find a suitable building, the statement to police says.
Kasab's seven-page confession, given to police over repeated interrogations, offers chilling new details of the three-day rampage through India's commercial center that left 164 people plus nine gunmen dead. He said the assault, which started Nov. 26, was initially set for Sept. 27, though he doesn't explain why it was delayed. The gunmen had been told by their handlers to carry out the attacks during rush hours when the station is teeming with commuters.
After reaching Mumbai, Kasab and his partner, Ismail Khan, the group's ringleader, headed to the train station by taxi. "Ismail and myself went to the common toilet, took out the weapons from our sacks, loaded them, came out of toilet and started firing indiscriminately toward the passengers," Kasab told police. As a police officer opened fire, the two militants retaliated with grenades before entering another part of the station and randomly shooting more commuters.
The men then searched for a building with a rooftop where they had been told to hold hostages and call a contact named Chacha, whom Kasab identified as Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, the suspected mastermind behind the attacks. Chacha, which means "uncle" in Hindi, would supply phone numbers for media outlets and specify what demands the two should make. "This was the general strategy decided by our trainers," Kasab said. Taking heavy fire from police, the two had trouble finding a "suitable building" and stormed a hospital they mistook for an apartment building. There, they searched for hostages and traded more gunfire with security forces. It's unclear if they ever held hostages.
When they left, a police van pulled up and the two tried to take shelter behind a bush during the shootout. Kasab was hit in the hand as Khan returned fire. "They got injured and the firing from their side stopped," he said. Police have confirmed the van was carrying top police officials, including the head of the anti-terror squad who was killed.
In the confession, Kasab, 21, describes his conversion from an aspiring street criminal to a loyal soldier for Lashkar-e-Taiba, the terrorist group banned by Pakistan in 2002 and blamed by India in the attacks. He came to the organization last year while looking to buy guns to commit robberies after quitting a low-paying job at a catering business. The search led him to several Lashkar "stalls" at a bazaar in the Pakistani city of Rawalpindi, he said.
Kasab went on to receive rigorous training in weapons handling and other skills, attending at least six Lashkar camps and visiting his parents twice during breaks, he said. Lashkar operatives even lectured recruits on India security and intelligence agencies, and taught them how to evade pursuing security forces.He said they were shown "clippings highlighting the atrocities on Muslims in India," images of Mumbai locations on Google Earth, and film footage of the train station. "We were instructed to carry out the firing at rush hour in the morning between 7 to 11 hours and between 7 and 11 hours in the evening," he said. The attacks ultimately started around 9:30 p.m.
After Kasab and nine others were picked among a group of 32 recruits, they headed to Karachi in September and practiced traveling on speed boats. On Nov. 23, the group was transported to a ship called the Al-Huseini far out at sea. Shortly after boarding, "each of us was given a sack containing 8 grenades, one AK47 rifle, 200 cartridges, two magazines and one cell phone for communication," he said. The Al-Huseini's crew, he said, later hijacked an Indian vessel, killing all but one crew member who was temporality kept alive and held at gunpoint to guide them into Mumbai's coastal waters. "When we were at some distance from the shore, Ismail and (another militant) killed the Indian seaman" before the group boarded a dinghy and came ashore "per the instructions received earlier."
Police said Saturday that Kasab, who's facing a criminal case in the attacks, has written to Pakistani officials to request legal help. In a letter written Thursday, he asked for "legal aid" from the Pakistani consulate and requested a meeting with a consular representative, said Rakesh Maria, Mumbai's chief investigator. The letter was forwarded to India's government to relay to Pakistani officials, but it was unclear whether it had been delivered, Maria said. Pakistani officials were not immediately available for comment. A number of Indian lawyers — including a prominent group of Mumbai attorneys — have refused to defend Kasab against criminal charges amid outrage over the attacks.
Kasab is being held on 12 offenses, including murder and waging war against the country, but has not yet been formally charged. Islamabad has refused to acknowledge Kasab's nationality, complaining that India has yet to furnish any evidence.
.
Kamis, 11 Desember 2008
India is the new Australia: Akram
An article from NDTVcricket.com
Mahendra Singh Dhoni's leadership has changed the face of Indian cricket, according to Pakistan's pace legend Wasim Akram who believes it is a matter of time before India upstages Australia as the number one team in the world.
Akram said Dhoni has completely transformed the team ever since he took over the mantle of captaincy and that Indian cricket was on the right track with a number of talented players in their ranks.
"Dhoni has changed the face of Indian cricket, there is no doubt about that. He leads from the front, he has charisma and players like him. You can't ask for anything more," Akram said in a telephonic interview.
"He has given the team the confidence. The players now believe that they can go and beat any team and it is this confidence that has helped India to bring about the desired results," the former Pakistan captain said.
Akram, regarded as one of the finest left-arm speedsters with 414 Test and 502 ODI wickets to his credit in a career spanning nearly 17 years, said Dhoni had also brought about a refreshing change in his attitude and approach to matches.
"It does not matter whether Sachin Tendulkar is resting or some other players are injured, the Indians are so confident that they go out and do the job. It was not the case about six or seven years ago, India did not have that confidence," he observed.
"If the captain leads from the front, half the job is done. That is what I like about Dhoni. He is cool, comes out with few quotes and gets the best out of his players," Akram said.
"Leading the Chennai team in the upcoming Champions League will be a good challenge for him since there will be a lot of international teams," he said.
Asked whether India would be able to topple Australia as the number one team in the near future, Akram said "India is the new Australia. I think they are on the right track to achieve that".
Akram also lavished praise on India's new pace sensation Ishant Sharma saying the Delhi youngster had improved by leaps and bounds in the last few months.
"Ishant has been a revelation. He has really improved in the last few months and I think he is a real asset to India," Akram said about the paceman who emerged as the man-of-the-series in the recent Test series against Australia.
"After the Australian tour late last year, his length was slightly short. But he has now rectified that and was simply brilliant in the recent series against Australia. The way he bowled, it seemed he had been around in Test cricket for five years or so," he said.
The cricketer-turned-commentator said Ishant will only get better with time but also cautioned that the youngster needed to be handled well to prolong his career.
"He (Ishant) will get quicker and better with time, there is no doubt about it. He just has to keep himself fit as fast bowling is hard work," Akram pointed out.
He said the Indian bowling line-up looked quite balanced at the moment and the presence of an in-form Zaheer Khan has provided a lot more sting.
"Zaheer has been fantastic. He has bowled the reverse swing well, got the ball to swing in and out... he has become a complete bowler now. He really provides that cutting edge to the attack," he said.
"India always had good spinners but I am happy to see these pacemen developing. They are winning matches for India", Akram said.
The ex-pacer said Harbhajan Singh was capable enough to shoulder the responsibility in the spin department following the retirement of champion leg spinner Anil Kumble.
"Harbhajan is a good spinner. It is now upto him to take upon the responsibility in the spin department. I think he is capable of doing it and also has the experience".
Akram also credited India's rise as a cricketing nation to the planning done by the BCCI over the last few years.
"Credit must also go the BCCI for India's rise in recent times. They have planned and implemented everything well. The results have started coming now," he added.
.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni's leadership has changed the face of Indian cricket, according to Pakistan's pace legend Wasim Akram who believes it is a matter of time before India upstages Australia as the number one team in the world.
Akram said Dhoni has completely transformed the team ever since he took over the mantle of captaincy and that Indian cricket was on the right track with a number of talented players in their ranks.
"Dhoni has changed the face of Indian cricket, there is no doubt about that. He leads from the front, he has charisma and players like him. You can't ask for anything more," Akram said in a telephonic interview.
"He has given the team the confidence. The players now believe that they can go and beat any team and it is this confidence that has helped India to bring about the desired results," the former Pakistan captain said.
Akram, regarded as one of the finest left-arm speedsters with 414 Test and 502 ODI wickets to his credit in a career spanning nearly 17 years, said Dhoni had also brought about a refreshing change in his attitude and approach to matches.
"It does not matter whether Sachin Tendulkar is resting or some other players are injured, the Indians are so confident that they go out and do the job. It was not the case about six or seven years ago, India did not have that confidence," he observed.
"If the captain leads from the front, half the job is done. That is what I like about Dhoni. He is cool, comes out with few quotes and gets the best out of his players," Akram said.
"Leading the Chennai team in the upcoming Champions League will be a good challenge for him since there will be a lot of international teams," he said.
Asked whether India would be able to topple Australia as the number one team in the near future, Akram said "India is the new Australia. I think they are on the right track to achieve that".
Akram also lavished praise on India's new pace sensation Ishant Sharma saying the Delhi youngster had improved by leaps and bounds in the last few months.
"Ishant has been a revelation. He has really improved in the last few months and I think he is a real asset to India," Akram said about the paceman who emerged as the man-of-the-series in the recent Test series against Australia.
"After the Australian tour late last year, his length was slightly short. But he has now rectified that and was simply brilliant in the recent series against Australia. The way he bowled, it seemed he had been around in Test cricket for five years or so," he said.
The cricketer-turned-commentator said Ishant will only get better with time but also cautioned that the youngster needed to be handled well to prolong his career.
"He (Ishant) will get quicker and better with time, there is no doubt about it. He just has to keep himself fit as fast bowling is hard work," Akram pointed out.
He said the Indian bowling line-up looked quite balanced at the moment and the presence of an in-form Zaheer Khan has provided a lot more sting.
"Zaheer has been fantastic. He has bowled the reverse swing well, got the ball to swing in and out... he has become a complete bowler now. He really provides that cutting edge to the attack," he said.
"India always had good spinners but I am happy to see these pacemen developing. They are winning matches for India", Akram said.
The ex-pacer said Harbhajan Singh was capable enough to shoulder the responsibility in the spin department following the retirement of champion leg spinner Anil Kumble.
"Harbhajan is a good spinner. It is now upto him to take upon the responsibility in the spin department. I think he is capable of doing it and also has the experience".
Akram also credited India's rise as a cricketing nation to the planning done by the BCCI over the last few years.
"Credit must also go the BCCI for India's rise in recent times. They have planned and implemented everything well. The results have started coming now," he added.
.
Rabu, 03 Desember 2008
Jobless, yet busy
Taking inspiration from Sid's post which said, even if you have nothing to say, then just blog about it, I am now doing the exact same thing. Maybe to account for at least one post a month. :P I am here again playing stickcricket online and since the last so many days I have been trying to defeat this one team (Sri Lanka). Finally I did it today! They were the number 4 team in the World Domination list (all this is stickcricket.com lingo). With a target of 507 in 20 overs, it was a tough ask. I punched my fist in air when I won :)
[click to enlarge]
It was a cold winter morning. With heavy snowfall last evening, the roads in Rapid City were decorated with snow and it got worse when the roads started becoming slippery. My Nissan Altima with its front-wheel-drive merely could manage to get me to School. Before I get to School everyday I remind myself of the pile of work I need to wrap-up before it gets too late but once I am at School, I am sleepy! I had a class at 1, and then I had all the time in the world to play stickcricket.
I had been struggling to defeat Sri Lanka because of the huge target of over 500 in 20 overs. I could barely reach 470 in earlier attempts against this team. Today was 'the' day. Everything went on perfect- a perfect start, a perfect 368-run 1st wicket partnership, a whopping run-rate of over 28 runs an over, and lots of sixes! I was so elated to see just 15 runs required off the last over, that I knew I had made it. Every other time I needed over 70 runs off the last over! Anyways, I finished it off with a six, and with 2 balls to spare in the last over! (psst...)
Now with only about a fortnight remaining for the semester to end, I have the following tasks to complete. 5 assignments, a project, 2 final exams and research briefing. Yet another year is coming to an end, and I just keep reflecting upon myself how hard this year has been for me. Just so much alone with none by my side to walk hand-in-hand and share all the sad and the success stories. Guess that's what's life, and yeah, as some say, "grow up; life moves on!".
.
[click to enlarge]
It was a cold winter morning. With heavy snowfall last evening, the roads in Rapid City were decorated with snow and it got worse when the roads started becoming slippery. My Nissan Altima with its front-wheel-drive merely could manage to get me to School. Before I get to School everyday I remind myself of the pile of work I need to wrap-up before it gets too late but once I am at School, I am sleepy! I had a class at 1, and then I had all the time in the world to play stickcricket.
I had been struggling to defeat Sri Lanka because of the huge target of over 500 in 20 overs. I could barely reach 470 in earlier attempts against this team. Today was 'the' day. Everything went on perfect- a perfect start, a perfect 368-run 1st wicket partnership, a whopping run-rate of over 28 runs an over, and lots of sixes! I was so elated to see just 15 runs required off the last over, that I knew I had made it. Every other time I needed over 70 runs off the last over! Anyways, I finished it off with a six, and with 2 balls to spare in the last over! (psst...)
Now with only about a fortnight remaining for the semester to end, I have the following tasks to complete. 5 assignments, a project, 2 final exams and research briefing. Yet another year is coming to an end, and I just keep reflecting upon myself how hard this year has been for me. Just so much alone with none by my side to walk hand-in-hand and share all the sad and the success stories. Guess that's what's life, and yeah, as some say, "grow up; life moves on!".
.
Langganan:
Postingan (Atom)