Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI had links with Mumbai attack co-accused Tahawwur Hussain Rana and David Headley, the prosecution submitted during the trial of Rana that opened in the US on Monday.
During opening statements at Chicago’s Dirksen Federal Building, assistant US attorney Sarah Streicker said that Rana, a Pakistani-Canadian, told Headley, an American of Pakistani origin, after the Mumbai carnage, which killed 166 people in November 2008, that the “Indians deserved it”.
Streicker said Rana provided cover for his longtime friend Headley, who took photos and videos of targets in Mumbai before the attacks, and that Rana led Headley to pose as a representative for his Chicago-based immigration businesses.
Rana, 50, has pleaded not guilty but Headley, 50, his old friend from military school in Pakistan pleaded guilty. Charlie Swift, Rana’s lawyer, said Headley was Rana’s good friend and the Pakistani-Canadian was duped by him.