Pakistan witness identifies one accused in Mumbai attacks case

ISLAMABAD: A witness today identified one of seven Pakistani men charged with involvement in the 2008 Mumbai attacks as the person who had bought inflatable boats used by the terrorists involved in the assault on India's financial hub.


Prosecutors said the witness, whom they did not name for security reasons, had identified accused Shahid Jamil Riaz during proceedings conducted behind closed doors at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi by anti-terrorism court Judge Chaudhry Habib-ur-Rehman.

The witness told the judge that Riaz and 10 other people had bought 11 inflatable boats, saying they were to be used for fishing. The witness further told the judge he had never seen these persons returning from sea with any fish.

A total of four private witnesses testified during the hearing.

Another witness told the judge that he had sold the accused a Yamaha boat engine for Rs 1.6 lakh and yet another witness said he had sold the accused six pumps, prosecutors told PTI.

The witnesses also identified 10 men, including Amjad Khan and Atiqur Rehman, who were allegedly involved in planning and executing the Mumbai attacks on November 26, 2008 that left 166 people dead.

These 10 men were earlier declared "proclaimed offenders" or fugitives by the anti-terrorism court.

"The 10 proclaimed offenders were either trainers or facilitators of the accused who launched the attacks in Mumbai," chief prosecutor Chaudhry Zulifqar Ali told PTI.

One witness told the court that Amjad Khan had obtained from him a "port clearance certificate" for Al-Hussaini, a fishing boat used by the terrorists.

Amjad Khan was also involved in purchasing the inflatable boats, another witness said.

Though Chief prosecutor Ali identified the four private witnesses as Hamza Bin Tariq, Muhammad Ali, Mohammad Saifullah Khan and Umer Draz Khan, he refused to go into details of their individual testimony for security reasons. All the witnesses belong to the port city of Karachi.

Additional Director Altaf Hussain of the Federal Investigation Agency, who played a key role in probing the Mumbai attacks, was present during the hearing but the judge did not allow him to testify as a defence lawyer argued that Hussain should record his statement after the private witnesses.