Former CIA officer Bruce Riedel: Lashkar-e-Taiba 'more dangerous than Al Qa

[Darth Vader]

Press Trust of India

WASHINGTON: With al-Qaeda on the backfoot, Hafeez Saeed founded LeT has emerged as the world's most dangerous terror group and has connections with Pakistan's ISI and army, a former senior CIA officer has said.

The November 2008 attack by ten LeT terrorists on multiple targets in Mumbai was the most significant and innovative terrorist attack since 9/11, Bruce Riedel, Senior Fellow Foreign Policy at Brookings Institution, a Washington based think tank, wrote in The Daily Beast.

He however noted that more than three years after the attack, LeT has paid no serious price.

"It (Mumbai attacks) marked the maturation of LeT from a Punjabi-based Pakistani terror group targeting India exclusively to a member of the global Islamic jihad targeting the enemies of al Qaeda: the Crusader West, Zionist Israel, and Hindu India," he said.

He also referred to the arrest of LeT terrorist Abu Jundal and noted it was a major breakthrough. He said Saudi role in capturing Jundal is also "significant".

"Riyadh is Islamabad's closest ally and the ISI has very strong links with its Saudi counterparts. The Pakistani community in the Kingdom and the Gulf states has long been a major source of the LeT's finances," he said.

If the Kingdom is now ready to act against LeT then the group will face some financial trouble, Ridel said.

"But not yet trouble at home. More than three years after the attack LeT has been sanctioned by the UN and the US but has paid no serious price for its attack in Mumbai. It operates freely in Pakistan and has continuing connections with the Pakistani intelligence service and army," he said.

Riedel added that LeT founder and leader Hafeez Saeed has a USD 10 million bounty on his head from the US, but regularly appears on Pakistani television and routinely addresses large anti-American rallies "organized with the help of the ISI".

"LeT has a global presence, with cells throughout South Asia, the Persian Gulf, and into Europe, Australia and North America".

"With al Qaeda on the ropes, LeT, with the help of its Pakistani backers, is now probably the most dangerous terror group in the world," he said.

 

[A1Kaid]

Bruce Reidel is a lunatic and has been on a steady stream of propaganda. What is more dangerous than AQ and LET is the CIA, the institution he was once apart of. He is vehemently anti-Pakistani and is frustrated about the CIA's recent losses in Afghanistan and places the blame on Pakistan. This man is lucky to be alive considering how much he shoots off his mouth.

 

[regular]

Mr Bruce Reidal has gone out of this senses and I guess is suffereing from hallucinations, can't sleep at night........

 

[KRAIT]

Western propaganda...trying to malign human right acctivist group, LET........

 

[Mercenary]

Western propaganda...trying to malign human right acctivist group, LET........

Although I disagree with him in saying that LeT has a global presence.

I think anyone who espouses for a free Kashmir suddenly becomes a LeT supporter.

 

[GR!FF!N]

Western Propaganda..actually no LET exists..only HR group JUD..

 

[KRAIT]

Although I disagree with him in saying that LeT has a global presence.

I think anyone who espouses for a free Kashmir suddenly becomes a LeT supporter.

Not necessarily, but these terrorist groups have links with each other.....Kashmir is the reason quoted by all these groups in all terrorist attack, Parliament,26/11.etc So in some way it becomes free kashmir supporters.

 

[T90TankGuy]

these Kashmir supporters will have a lot more credibility when they have peaceful demonstrations , and not people brandishing ak47 in ever rally they take out .

 

[Solomon2]

Mr Bruce Reidal has gone out of this senses and I guess is suffereing from hallucinations...

Bruce Reidel is a lunatic...This man is lucky to be alive considering how much he shoots off his mouth.

And you two are, of course, perfectly convinced of your own sanity.

The possibility that lunatics are running a South Asian asylum for Muslims never occurs to you.

Or if it does you refuse to evaluate the possibility.

Or if you do evaluate the possibility you refuse to accept conclusions that are at odds with all the myths you've learned or that conflict with your egos.

Or if you do accept such conclusions you don't dare say anything about it to your fellow Pakistanis because he who "shoots his mouth off" "is lucky to be alive".

Even the post-Stalin Soviet Union was better than this!

 

[regular]

And you two are, of course, perfectly convinced of your own sanity.

The possibility that lunatics are running a South Asian asylum for Muslims never occurs to you.

Or if it does you refuse to evaluate the possibility.

Or if you do evaluate the possibility you refuse to accept conclusions that are at odds with all the myths you've learned or that conflict with your egos.

Or if you do accept such conclusions you don't dare say anything about it to your fellow Pakistanis because he who "shoots his mouth off" "is lucky to be alive".

Even the post-Stalin Soviet Union was better than this!

Yea! U right....I guess U right about that...we guyz need to go and live in Soviet Union now at least we would be alive then.....

 

[SLIM]

Laskar more dangerous by Us expert they were focus on Al-Qaeda because they were against them now is Laskar - What's this whole thing about Terror Management whats the game ?

 

[airmarshal]

What a complete idiot this man is!!

If you have anything against Hafiz Saeed, bring it to the court of law. Pakistan is not Afghanistan. Its courts are working very well and if there is evidence on which he can be prosecuted, so be it.

US only wants to blackmail Pakistan on this issue. Actually US has its hand in that Mumbai drama. It is being played up all over again and again to keep Pakistan under pressure.

I keep wondering how Hafiz Saeed can become as big as Osama or Al-Qaeda. Osama had support of CIA and Al-Qaeda is a known CIA outfit. Compared to that HAfiz Saeed is allegedly supported by ISI, a wing of the army of country run on US 'aid'. What bullshit!!!

 

[MilSpec]

Bruce Reidel is a lunatic and has been on a steady stream of propaganda. What is more dangerous than AQ and LET is the CIA, the institution he was once apart of. He is vehemently anti-Pakistani and is frustrated about the CIA's recent losses in Afghanistan and places the blame on Pakistan. This man is lucky to be alive considering how much he shoots off his mouth.

Sure LET are messengers of peace and love, right?

 

[Gandhi G in da house]

Pakistani terror groups today are the most numerous in the world as well as the most dangerous . The only international terror group that rival Pakistani groups today are the Afghan Taliban .

The Middle eastern and North African groups are has- beens compared to Pakistani groups .

 

[MilSpec]

I keep wondering how Hafiz Saeed can become as big as Osama or Al-Qaeda.

Only Seal team 6 can answer that !!