Pakistan vows to go after terrorist who attacked Mumbai

CNN:

As investigators work to unmask the group responsible for the Mumbai terror attacks which have killed at least 183 people, police and soldiers continued to search the Taj Mahal Hotel room by room Saturday to make sure all trapped guests have left and no terrorists remain hidden.

Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zadari pledged his country's full cooperation with the investigation and vowed to take "the strictest action" if it is found the terrorists were based in Pakistan.

However, investigators probing the attacks said they found cell phones and a global navigational device on an abandoned boat floating off the coast of Mumbai, CNN's sister station CNN-IBN reported.

The television station showed photographs of a phone's log which showed calls had been placed to Jalalabad in Pakistan.

The boat, intelligence officials told CNN-IBN, had been hijacked. Four crew members who had been on board were missing. The captain was found dead, lying face down with his hands bound behind his back.

Indian authorities have previously said that the gunmen came from Pakistan. Islamabad has again disputed the claim.

President Zadari -- whose wife, Benazir Bhutto, was assassinated a year ago -- said he was "as committed as can be" to wiping out the terrorist because they also threaten him and his country. "I have a threat by these same forces," he said.

"They may not be the same individuals, but they are definitely the same forces with the same mindset." Zadari said Pakistan's cooperation with Indian investigators will be present "without any hesitation, whatsoever, no matter where it may lead."

"As the president of Pakistan, let me assure you, if any evidence points to any individual or group in my part of the country, I shall take the strictest of action in light of the evidence and in front of the world."

...

I think this is a smart political move for Zadari and Pakistan. It gives him another reason to g after the terrorist within Pakistan. Pakistan has become the source of most terrorist acts recently, although they are probably not sponsoring those acts.

The one thing that Pakistan needs to do that it has not done yet is allow outside forces more access to fighting these terrorist. Its refusal to allow US special forces in to hunt al Qaeda and Taliban leadership targets is a big mistake. They could also help Pakistani forces become more effective at fighting the terrorist the way US forces have taught the Iraqis.

There is little doubt that the terrorist in Mumbai were from Pakistan. They had their roots in the Kashmir region and they may have been troubled by Zadari's moves to reach a settlement in that dispute with India. It is likely hat hey hoped to provoke a war with India that would scuttle any hopes of settlement. It is also possible they were working with Taliban elements who hoped that such a war would relieve pressure on their forces on the border with Afghanistan.