Headley says Major Iqbal is 'Chaudhery Khan', 26/11 mastermind

From Lalit K Jha and Himani Kumar
Chicago, May 25 (PTI) The mysterious Major Iqbal, who
India suspects is a Pakistani army officer in ISI, has now
been identified as 'Chaudhery Khan' by Mumbai terror accused
David Headley who said he is the mastermind of the 26/11
attacks plot.
50-year-old Headley also told a Chicago court during
the trial of 26/11 co-accused Tahawwur Rana that an attempt to
take the attackers to Mumbai in the western Indian state
Maharashtra, in September 2008 failed as a boat in which they
were to sail was lost.
He said before the jury that according to Major Iqbal,
in September they lost the Pakistani boat which was supposed
to take the attackers to sea for some distance after which
they were to be shifted to an Indian fishing boat.
Iqbal also told Headley that they had lost 12 life
jackets meant for the attackers.
Headley, a Pakistan-American, said that Major Iqbal,
whose name keeps cropping up in the testimony, used the ID of
'Chaudhery Khan', made key decisions and was indeed the
mastermind of the 26/11 plot.
The federal prosecutors presented to the court
additional evidences linking strong connection between
Headley and the ISI officials.
Through records of several emails exhibited in the
court federal prosecutors established beyond doubt that
Headley was in constant contact with ISI officials, in
particular Major Iqbal, and his handlers in Pakistan.
In an email dated April 23, 2008, Headley sends
Chaudhery Khan information on commercially available spy
cameras and pen spy cameras. Headley also conceded that he met Major Iqbal several
time before the Mumbai attacks during which he issued specific
instructions on every step right from establishing an office
in Mumbai, to recruiting retired military personnel, making
surveillance, giving list of targets and closing the Mumbai
office.
"Major Iqbal told me the Chabad House would be added
on whatever list (of targets) there was because it was a front
office for the Mossad" - Israel's intelligence agency, Headley
said, adding that Major Iqbal "seemed upset the (Mumbai)
airport was not included" as a target.
Headley also testified that New Delhi-based National
Defence College is on the hit-list of terrorists as another
26/11 plotter Illiyas Kashmiri believes in this way he can
kill more Indian brigadiers than what the Pakistan Army could
not do in four wars with India.
Within a few months of the Mumbai strikes, Kashmiri,
who also has emerged as a mastermind of 26/11, met Headley and
asked him to go to India again to do surveillance of the
National Defence College in New Delhi and a number of Chhabad
Houses in various cities of India.
When Headley, accompanied by Major Abdur Rehman Pasha
- one of his handlers, went to see Kashmiri in Waziristan in
February 2009, he among the Lashkar-e-Taiba circles had
emerged as a "surveillance expert" thus a key element of the
planning of the terrorist attack.
Pasha told him that if "we were able to conduct"
attack on NDC then "we will be able to kill more Brigadiers
than Pakistan has done in the four wars" with India.
Apprehending his arrest after the Mumbai attacks
during his India visit, Headley wrote a will and emailed it to
Rana, as to what should be done to his wives and children in
the event of his death or arrest.
During his stay in Mumbai, Headley wanted to make
friendship with Rajaram Rege, whom he described as Shiv Sena
PRO, so as to gain access to the party.
Rege was apparently also looking to gain intimacy with
the Mumbai terror accused to bag some multi-billion Indian
contracts for US companies.
"If anybody from USA or any country wants a venture or
invest in India I am the ideal person for them. Projects worth
Rs 10,000 crores sanctioned by government are with me. Are you
getting my point????" Rege wrote in an email to Headley on May
19, 2008, according to a copy of the email produced in the
court by federal prosecutors.
Rege went ahead to lure Headley to get him big
contacts in India because of his strong political connections.
"As you know that I am politically and socially very
well connected here in Bombay (Mumbai), Gujarat and Delhi.
Delhi is the place here central govt of India (Prime Minister
India) rules. I have very strong personal relations with
people ruling Mumbai (Maharashtra), Gujarat and Delhi," he
wrote.
Headley told federal prosecutors that he sought
guidance from his handlers in Pakistan as to how to respond to
Rege's email.
Rege, he noted, was considered by them an entry point
into Shiv Sena, whom they considered as a terrorist outfit and
had hatched plans to assassinate its leaders.
On May 23, 2008, Headley responded to Rege's email
asking the latter how projects would be financially beneficial
to him.