In some forward movement in the investigation into the 13/2 bomb attack on an Israeli diplomat, the intelligence agencies are focusing on two calls made to a cellphone in New Delhi — both suspected to be from a satellite phone in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar. One was on the day of the attack, the other a week earlier, on February 5.
Sources said this cellphone has been switched off since February 13 evening. The cell tower which picked up the February 13 call at 4 pm was in Outer Delhi’s Jaffarpur Kalan area; while the February 5 call was picked up at Seelampur in Northeast Delhi. Night-long raids were conducted in the two localities.
Intelligence sources say the satphone from which the two calls originated belongs to a HuJI operative on the agencies’ radar for some time. He is suspected of being a coordinator between outfits like HuJI, Lashkar-e-Tayyaba and Indian Mujahideen.
The agencies are now almost sure the attack was by a local terror outfit. “There is a strong possibility it was masterminded by Lashkar, using logistical support from IM,” an intelligence official said.
What triggered suspicion was that in every terror attack operatives get only incoming ISD calls on their mobiles. It was found while the mobile was operational since February 1 it got only two calls from a “suspicious number” — the second one minutes after the attack — and was then switched off. The officials also suspect the module behind the attack may still be in New Delhi.