MUMBAI, Feb 8:
Pakistani-American terrorist David Coleman Headley, a key LeT operative, today illustrated how his outfit had planned the 26/11 attacks and executed it after two failed attempts and gave details of the role played by ISI whose three officials he named.
Headley, who is serving 35-year prison sentence in the US for his role in the Mumbai attacks, spoke about the role of LeT founder Hafiz Saeed, another LeT commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi as well as his handler in the outfit Sajid Mir.
He gave the sequence of events leading up to the November 26, 2008 assault as he deposed before Special Judge GA Sanap via video link, in the first such case of deposition in an Indian court from foreign land.
The 55-year-old, who has turned approver in the case, revealed details about his training by LeT in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Abbottabad near Islamabad under the guidance of LeT founder “Hafiz Saeed sahab”, whose picture he identified in the court, as also Lakhvi, and how he got in touch with three officers of Pakistan’s ISI — Major Ali and Major Iqbal and Major Abdul Rehman Pasha.
Headley told the court that he had changed his name from the original Dawood Gilani after instructions from the LeT commanders, including Lakhvi, and ISI officials to carry out recce in India for an attack, an “adventurous” task for him.
He also revealed that the 10 terrorists, who struck at various places in Mumbai on November 26, 2008 killing 166 people, had planned to carry out the attack twice earlier — in September and October — but the attempts failed. Once their boat hit a rock in the seas, because of which they lost all the arms and ammunition and had to go back to Pakistan.
“I used to treat India as my enemy. Hafiz Saeed and LeT operative Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi also saw India as their enemy,” he said in his deposition which began at 7 AM.
He said he had joined the LeT after getting “influenced and motivated” by the speeches of “Hafiz Saeed Sahab”.
Headley, who described himself as a “true follower of LeT, said he took his first “course” with the outfit in 2002 at Muzaffarabad and had also attended a ‘leadership course’ which was led by Saeed and Lakhvi.
He said he underwent 5-6 training courses in LeT camps for about two years. “Daura-e-sufa is a study course and is held in Muridke in Lahore while ‘Daura-e-aam’ is a preliminary military training course held in Muzaffarabad in ‘Azad Kashmir’ (PoK),” Headley said.
In ‘Daura-e-Khas, which is a more advanced training, he was taught to handle weapons, arms, explosives and ammunition, the LeT operative said.
He said he was also given ‘Daura-e-Ribat’ training, an intelligence course in which setting up of safe houses and reconnaissance are taught. The center where it is taught is in Mansera, 40 miles from Abbottabad, a place in Pakistan where former Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden was killed by the US.
Headley said he had wanted go to Kashmir and fight Indian troops but he was told that he was “too old” for that. “Lakhvi told me that they would use me for some other purpose,” he said, adding it was to be more “adventurous” than Kashmir.
Talking about his travels to India, Headley said, “Before the first visit here, Sajid Mir (his LeT handler and an accused in the case) gave me instructions to make a general video of Mumbai.”
He said he visited Mumbai seven times before the 2008 terror attack and Delhi once after the attack in March 2009.
To enter India, he said he changed his name from Dawood Gilani to David Headley in 2006 so that he could travel here with an American identity and set up some business.
“I applied for change in name on February 5, 2006 in Philadelphia. I changed my name to David Headley to get a new passport under that name. I wanted a new passport so that I could enter India with an American identity.
“After I got a new passport, I disclosed it to my colleagues in LeT of which one of them was Sajid Mir, the person with whom I was dealing with. The objective for coming to India was to set up an office/business so that I can live in India,” he said.
Headley said he had applied for business multiple-entry visa with the Indian embassy so that he does not have to apply for Indian visa repeatedly.
“My office was established in Mumbai so that I could take cover in India,” Headley told the court, adding he wanted the cover so that his real identity would not be known.
He said while applying for the Indian visa, he cooked up a story that he was an immigration consultant and had furnished all wrong information to protect his cover.
“I had discussed it (cover story) with Sajid Mir and Major Iqbal of ISI, and they were very happy to see my Indian visa,” Headley told the court.
He said he knew Major Iqbal of ISI and had met him in Lahore after one Major Ali (also from ISI) introduced him to the former.
Special prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam, who examined Headley and will do so again tomorrow, said, “I am absolutely satisfied with what Headley had revealed in today’s deposition. Headley has given certain sensational revelations during his deposition. He confirmed that he met Hafiz Saeed and he identified his picture as well.”
He said, “He (Headley) revealed a lot about Major Iqbal and Major Ali, both of them were there in ISI. It was Major Iqbal who trained him and he also unravelled names of few LeT trainers before the court.”
Nikam said Headley had “joined a leadership course where both Sayeed and Lakhvi used to come and give speeches against India. He completed his education from Hasan Abdal Cadet College in Pakistan but left for America at the age of 17.”
Headley’s lawyer’s Mahesh Jethmalini said he has confessed that he had joined LeT after being influenced by Hafiz Saeed.
Headley wanted to fight actively in Kashmir against the Indian Army but LeT commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi stopped him, saying something more “adventurous” was in store for him.
Giving details about the deposition of Headley which began at 7 AM here, Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam told reporters here that the terrorist said he wanted to fight against the Army deployed in Kashmir.
However, Lahvi told Headley that they have something “more adventurous” for him. (PTI)
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