The extremist group believed responsible for the terrorists killings in Mumbai wrote a manifesto just months earlier warning it would launch "massacres" against Indian government and civilian targets.
Accusing the Indian government of "anti-Muslim" behavior, the document warns, "We warn you to end this hypocrisy or get ready for a bloody slaughter." It adds, "We are watching you and our ground-work to gun you down has already begun."
The little-noticed warning was signed by the "Indian Mujahideen in the Land of Hind." Indian and U.S. intelligence officials believe this group is actually a coalition of Pakistan-based Islamic terrorists that includes Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT). Its suicide operatives killed nearly 200 in Mumbai last week in one of the worst terror attacks ever in South Asia.
"Almost all terror groups change their names for several reason," said Bart Bechtel, a former CIA operations officer. "One is to deflect responsibility to avoid retaliation. Another is for deception. It makes things appear as though their are numerous groups fighting for the same cause, whatever that cause is. In this case, LeT tried to make it appear that the attackers were homegrown Indian Muslim fighters."
The manifesto was written in the summer of 2008 and was provided to HUMAN EVENTS by a military intelligence officer who said the document was verified as authentic by his Indian contacts.
This source said it shows that Indian officials were in possession of clear evidence that LeT planned a wave of horrendous attacks, but the document provides no specific places or dates. The Indian press and government are now debating why more was not done to protect possible LeT targets and why the plot itself was not foiled since LeT had made its intentions known.
LeT operates training camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-controlled Kashmir on the Indian border. Like al Qaeda, a sister organization, LeT is vehemently anti-Hindu. It vows to bring down India's democracy, as well as other governments in South Asia, and replace them with harsh Muslim rule. India's one billion population is 80 percent Hindu; 13 percent Muslim.
Among the manifesto's passages:
- "We call you, O Hindus, O enemies of Allah, to take an honest stance with yourselves lest another attack of Ibn-e-Qasim sends shivers down your spines, lest another Ghrauri shakes your foundations, and lest another Ghaznawi massacres you, proving your blood to be the cheapest of all mankind .... Take heed before it is too late." (The names are of prominent Muslims in history.)
- "This message is a declaration of hostility towards all those who fight Allah, his messenger and his religion. While hoping for the help and victory from Allah we declare that such and more severe attacks shall continue irrespective of what the blamers blame us for."
- "Come, O Muslim Youth. Make your preparations with whatever you have. Join our ranks and help us, the ranks of the Indian Mujahideen to strengthen the jihad against the Hindus. Get ready with all the weapons you have. Plan and organize your moves. Select your targets."
The manifesto goes on to list a number of grievances against the Indian government, accusing them of harassing the country's Muslim population.
"You agitated our sentiments and disturbed us by arresting, imprisoning and torturing our brothers," it says.
The document is entitled: "The Rise of Jihad, Revenge of Gujarat."
It is a reference to Hindu-Muslim riots that ignited in the western state of Gujarat in 2002 that left thousands dead, mostly Muslims.
About the time the LeT circulated its manifesto last summer, 16 bombs went off around Gujarat, killing over 40.
LeT was founded over 20 years ago in Afghanistan. It moved its base to Pakistan, where it operated freely in the 1990s. But after the September 11, 2001 attacks by al Qaeda, Pakistan banned the group. The U.S. added LeT to its list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO), allowing it to take steps to cut off its funding and restrict access by American citizens.
Al Qaeda and Taliban operatives joined LeT and helped them train recruits, intelligence sources say.
