Al Qaeda and a North Waziristan-based terrorist group “Brigade 313” have reportedly planned to launch an attack on the 19th Commonwealth Games, which are due to be held in New Delhi from October 3 to 14.
“Brigade 313” comprises the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and allied extremist group members, including the Lashkar-e-Tayyaba and Karachi-based Jandullah, and is headed by Ilyas Kashmiri, the Daily Times reported.
Kashmiri, who is a former rogue SSG commando, will be heading the whole operation to carry out this terrorist plot in New Delhi, the paper added.
The intelligence has originated from Kabul where a western military source confirmed the plans of terror strike in India, saying, “We intercepted certain conversations that gave us the impression that the attack on an important sporting event is due in India.”
It has also been confirmed that some of the information in this regard originated from a 36-year-old German national — Ahmed Siddiqui — who was caught in Kabul under suspicion of carrying out a terrorist plot in the West. The intelligence about such an attack had also been passed on to India, the paper disclosed.
The Pakistan interior ministry, along with various security establishments in the country, is reportedly in a “state of panic” following the news of another terrorist plot originating from Pakistan.
“We are seriously investigating and taking all precautions that we could, and have been extra-vigilant. Surely another 26/11 or a high-profile terrorist incident now in India would definitely be a major blow, something that none of us want,” said a senior ministry member.
However, the Pakistan Foreign Office’s spokesman declined to comment on the story, terming it “baseless”. A Western diplomat in close contact with security officials said, “This is what we fear the most… we all have our fingers crossed on this one, but if such an incident does take place, we will be packing our bags.”
Previously, some “stateless actors,” as described by the Pakistan government, had attacked various targets in India’s financial hub, Mumbai, which further strained the tumultuous relations between the two countries and brought them on the brink of war.
Meanwhile, India has raised the security levels for the 19th Commonwealth Games being organised in New Delhi, and deputed more than 100,000 security officials, including elite commandoes, for providing security to the participants.