Spain arrests: No connection with Mumbai attacks, Sources

New Delhi, Dec 5 (PTI) The six Pakistanis and an African
national arrested in Spain do not appear to have any links
with the Mumbai terror attack and they are suspected to have
indulged only in a racket of supplying fake documents.
Sources in the India's Home Ministry quoting preliminary
information coming from Barcelona, where the seven persons
have been arrested, said that as per a communication the group
is however believed to have connection with terror outfit "Al
Qaeda" though no evidence has surfaced so far.
The presumption of the Spanish police seems to be merely
on suspicion and no documents suggest that they used to work
for terror outfit Lashker-e-Taiba(LeT), a group which was
responsible for carrying out the terror strike in Mumbai in
2008 that left 166 people dead.
India had sought information from Spain on the arrest of
six Pakistanis and one Nigerian who were alleged to have
provided forged passports to LeT and groups linked to
al-Qaeda.
The information about the busted terror cell, the
arrested men, their activities and photographs had been sought
from Spain through diplomatic channels.
Indian intelligence agencies had been told to be in
touch with their international counterparts to get information
about the activities of the arrested men.
"Our primary objective was to get the identities of
these men established and then find out their precise roles in
terror activities and if they had any hand in 26/11 Mumbai
terror attacks," an official said, adding, however, there
seems to be no evidence to link them with the carnage.
The six Pakistanis and a Nigerian were arrested recently
in the Spanish city of Barcelona for their suspected role in
providing forged passports to LeT and groups linked to
al-Qaeda.
Three others -- two Pakistanis and a Thai national --
were held in Thailand as part of the same Operation Kampai.
Two Pakistani nationals -- 60-year-old Mohammad Yaqub
Janjua and his son 31-year-old Aamer Yaqub Janjua--were
arrested by the Italian police last year for allegedly
transferring money for the Voice over Internet Protocol
(VoIP).
The two were arrested in Brescia and were accused of
aiding and abetting international terrorism as well as illegal
financial activity. The Madina Trading agency, which operated
on the Western Union money transfer circuit, was searched by
police in Italy.
However, they were released on bail and are believed to
have been deported even before Indian security officials could
come and question them. PTI SKL
MHM