Squaring off in US: Preet Bharara vs Pakistani-Americans....

[takjhank]

Squaring off in US: Preet Bharara vs Pakistani-Americans

Chidanand Rajghatta, TNN, May 4, 2010, 11.39pm IST

​

WASHINGTON: The arrest of a Pakistani-American Faisal Shahzad by US law enforcement authorities in connection with the Times Square terror plot will once again put the focus on Preet Bharara, the India-born US Federal Attorney, who is already under attack in some Pakistani quarters for allegedly carrying out a "witch-hunt" against Pakistanis in the US.

Bharara, 41, who is one of the 93 US Attorneys appointed the US President, heads the US Attorney's office for the Southern District in New York, which covers Manhattan, where the attempted bombing took place, and JFK Airport, where terror suspect Faisal Shahzad was arrested.

Bharara, who was born in Ferozepur, Punjab, and moved to the US with his parents when he was only two, grew up in New Jersey and graduated from Harvard in 1990 and Columbia Law School in 1993 (which are also President Obama's alma mater), before embarking on a legal and political path where he was marked as a rising star very early in his career.

Obama appointed him US Attorney in the summer of 2009, and in the months since, he has handled several high-profile prosecution cases including that of Ponzi scammer Bernie Madoff and 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.

But in a vicious attack some weeks back, a Pakistani newspaper accused Bharara of carrying out a witch-hunt against Pakistanis in the US because of his "ideological beliefs" going back to the sub-continent's partition days.

The Nation newspaper also alleged that Bharara appointed a "like-minded controversial Indian who is also known for his hatred and venomous propaganda against Pakistan, Anjan Sahni, as Chief of the Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit soon after he assumed the charge of US Federal Attorney of New York."

But there is very little in Bharara's life or career that points to any prejudice or bias. In fact, among the prosecutions he is handling is one against the Galleon Group, where defendants include Sri Lankan Raj Rajaratnam and Indian-Americans Anil Kumar and Rajiv Goel. Although a Democrat (he worked on New York Senator Charles Schumer's staff before being appointed US Attorney), he has earned praise across party lines.

Bharara's father is a Sikh and his mother is Hindu and they both moved from what became Pakistan to the Indian side during partition. But his father-in-law is a Muslim who moved in the other direction and his mother-in-law is from Palestine and is of Jewish origin.

In a statement following Shahzad's arrest, Bharara said "the dedicated agents, detectives, and prosecutors on this case will continue to follow every lead and use every tool to keep the people of New York City safe," and pledged that "we will not rest until every terrorist, whether homegrown or foreign-based, is neutralized and held to account."

Shahzad is not the first Pakistani-American to be arrested in the US in connection with terrorism. Besides the infamous Daood Gilani alias David Coleman Headley, there have been several recent cases where Pakistani-Americans have been apprehended, including one involving Chicago cab driver Raja Lahrasib Khan in March this year.

In fact, almost every terror plot unearthed in the United States, going back to World Trade Center I attack in 1993 and the 9/11 catastrophe, has its footprints and fingerprints of its so-called ally Pakistan, and not the usual American suspects such as Iran or Syria, much less outliers such as Cuba and Venezuela.

More recently, US experts have warned of attempts by al-Qaida and their terror affiliates to use US citizens of Pakistani origin, who meld easily into American society (such as David Headley, and now Faisal Shahzad) for terrorist attacks.

The warnings led to Washington instituting extra scrutiny for fliers from Pakistan and 13 other "countries of interest," but a TSA directive this effect was withdrawn after a major tantrum by Pakistan that its nationals were being unfairly singled out.


"After reading this article, i read the comments. And really surprised that how much indian are speaking against pakistan and muslims. They all r going to be mad..... I am posting that link, u go there and watch......."

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/5890990.cms

 

[takjhank]

But Indians R Still Accusing Us

US Officials: No Credible Evidence That Terrorists Trained Shahzad

WASHINGTON No credible evidence has been found so far that the Pakistani-American man accused in the Times Square bombing plot received any serious terrorist training from the Pakistani Taliban or another radical Islamic group, six U.S. officials said Thursday.
There is nothing that confirms that any groups have been found involved in this for certain, one U.S. official told McClatchy . Its a lot of speculation at this point.

Faisal Shahzad may have, at the most, had incidental contact with a terrorist organization, and he may have been encouraged to act, said one of the officials, who declined to elaborate further.
Four U.S. intelligence and counterterrorism officials and two other U.S. officials with knowledge of the case spoke only on the condition of anonymity because they werent authorized to discuss classified intelligence or the ongoing investigation publicly.
According to a five-count criminal complaint filed by U.S. prosecutors in federal court in Manhattan on Tuesday, Shahzad admitted after his arrest on Monday to receiving bomb-making training in Waziristan, a part of Pakistans tribal area bordering Afghanistan , during a five-month trip to his homeland that ended in February.
According to the criminal complaint, Shahzad admitted that hed parked a Nissan SUV loaded with propane tanks, gasoline canisters, fertilizer and fireworks coupled to two alarm clocks in New Yorks Times Square on Saturday evening and fled.
The vehicle began smoldering, but failed to explode. Shahzad was apprehended on Monday night on a Dubai -bound Emirates flight at John F. Kennedy Airport that hed been allowed to board even though his name was on the no fly list.
The U.S. intelligence and counterterrorism officials, however, said that the bungled nature of the bombing and the trail of clues that led the FBI to him suggest that he never received even rudimentary terrorist training or instructions on how to evade arrest.
Nor has any credible evidence been uncovered verifying his story of being trained in Waziristan, they and the other U.S. officials said.
Weve seen nothing suggesting that Shahzad received even minimal training, and everything about what he did suggests otherwise, one U.S. official said.
The official cited, among other things, the would-be bombers use of the wrong kind of fertilizer and the fact that he made little or no effort to conceal his identity or that of the vehicle he used.
Another U.S. official said that Shahzad hadnt even removed the plastic caps on the propane tanks valves before he abandoned the vehicle.
Nor does it appear that he made plans to escape after leaving the car in an illegal parking space where it was sure to attract attention in an area that one U.S. official said has about the heaviest police and surveillance presence of any public space in this country.
Several news reports on Thursday, though, said that U.S. officials had gathered mounting evidence that the Pakistani Taliban had trained Shahzad.
Officials said that after two days of intense questioning of the bombing suspect, Faisal Shahzad , evidence was mounting that the group, the Pakistani Taliban, had helped inspire and train Mr. Shahzad, The New York Times reported.
However, Richard Kolko , an FBI spokesman, said Thursday that it could be weeks or months before U.S. investigators are able to corroborate all aspects of Shahzads tale, saying they have to interview detainees and other people in Pakistan .
If he went to a (training) camp, it is a lengthy process, Kolko said. Everything has to be checked.
Did somebody encourage him to try to do this? Thats possible, given where he was and for how long and his financial circumstances, a third U.S. official said. But did anybody show him how to do it? Nothing we know points in that direction, and I dont know why some people are talking as if we had something solid. Inspired, maybe. Trained? Not in any serious sense of the word.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs Thursday dodged questions about whether links had been found between Shahzad and foreign extremist groups.
This is a rapidly developing, ongoing investigation. And if there are developments that need to be made public, theyll likely be done so through the Department of Justice , he said.
Shahzad, 30, is the son of a retired senior air force commander from Mohib Banda , a village near Peshawar , the main city in violence-torn northwestern Pakistan . He came to the U.S. in 1998 on a student visa and became an American citizen last year.
Testifying before the Senate Appropriations Committee , Attorney General Eric Holder said Thursday that Shahzad was providing investigators with valuable information.
Mr. Shahzad is continuing to cooperate with us, Holder said.

(Jonathan S. Landay and John Walcott)

 

[Raaz]

I am surprised that why Fasil shahzad did this type of thing.

Was he doing CIA job or he was targeted just by chance or by the shirt changing clip.?

 

[contra]

Zaid Hamid mentality

TJ bhai, provide a source for this article.

1. To blame the country which has suffered an attack or was about to suffer an attack is what Zaid Hamid is all about.

2. You people survive on American aid. Your army gets its weapons and money from US, why do you forget this?

3. The right person to listen to is the US Attorney General Eric Holder. The investigation is still going on and of course initially the information is going to be sketchy. Which happens in almost every situation.
eg. Ashura bombing in Karachi, first it was said that it was a suicide bombing, then it was said that it was a planted bomb. So should we assume that the government itself carried out this bombing or had a part in it?

Shahzad was apprehended on Monday night on a Dubai -bound Emirates flight at John F. Kennedy Airport that hed been allowed to board even though his name was on the no fly list.

4. The no-fly list is updated every 24hrs. The airline was unable to see his name because it was put on the list only a few hrs. before he booked the ticket.
This has now been amended, and the no fly list will be updated every 2 hrs.

 

[takjhank]

TJ bhai, provide a source for this article.

1. To blame the country which has suffered an attack or was about to suffer an attack is what Zaid Hamid is all about.

2. You people survive on American aid. Your army gets its weapons and money from US, why do you forget this?

3. The right person to listen to is the US Attorney General Eric Holder. The investigation is still going on and of course initially the information is going to be sketchy. Which happens in almost every situation.
eg. Ashura bombing in Karachi, first it was said that it was a suicide bombing, then it was said that it was a planted bomb. So should we assume that the government itself carried out this bombing or had a part in it?


4. The no-fly list is updated every 24hrs. The airline was unable to see his name because it was put on the list only a few hrs. before he booked the ticket.
This has now been amended, and the no fly list will be updated every 2 hrs.

Contra Bhai...... This is the link of article.. I hope now u will agree....... :P :)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcclatchy/20100507/wl_mcclatchy/3497935

1- I didn't blame the US nor defending the Faisal Shehzad. If he did wrong, he must be punished. I just posted an article, which i didn't wrote:- And by the way, why u Indian's are so scared by Zaid Hamid. He is just like YOUR BALL THAKURAY or some other patriot indian. Don't worry dear. He is nothing. Just leave him on his own, like so many Pakistanies..... :) He can't do anything, whenever ur RAW is active... :)

2- I know, Pakistan is surviving on USA aid. No body deny if he is realistic. That's why Pakistan is main ally or USA in Afghan War. That's why Pakistan suffering lots of problems, only because of a war partner of USA. U know, what is the main problem between, Pakistan and USA ???? THAT MAIN REASON IS "INDIA" dearrrrrr......... Even not whole India, only some terrorist Indian's, who make the plan's, how can they de-stabilise Pakistan. Those Indian's who support Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan, Those indian's who support BLF, Those Indian's who provide ammunition to those anty pakistan and anty USA eliments, who don't like friendship of Pakistan and USA.
So, Plz don't enter in the Pakistan and USA good Affair's, just stop ur those elements, who r expanding terrorrism between, Pakistan and USA. And keep in ur mind that "PAKISTAN'S BIG ENEMY IS NOT USA BUT INDIA"..........

And the main point, which has to be noted that Pakistan owe to USA, but the whole world even USA also know's that Pakistan's lot's of people have their black money in some European countries, some UK and some in USA as well. And that is prooved. So, Why USA still giving aids to Pakistan? Why USA don't get those money by hook or by crook from those banks, where a huge amount of USA's loan is saved?????????

This is the truth.. even u accept or not........