The United States has said that it wants to see justice and accountability for the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, and has made its concerns clear to Pakistan that it wants the nation to go after all the terrorist groups operating from its soil.
The US State Department Deputy Spokesperson, Mark C. Toner on Tuesday said that Washington has always pushed for greater counter-terrorism cooperation between Pakistan and India, which also includes sharing intelligence information about the Mumbai terror attack.
"We've been very clear that we want to see accountability and justice in the case of the Mumbai attacks, and as you noted, there were American citizens who lost their lives in that – those terrible attacks. We've long encouraged and pushed for greater counter-terrorism cooperation, and that includes the sharing of intelligence between India and Pakistan in that regard," Toner said, while addressing a press briefing.
Ever since the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, India has been asking Pakistan to bring the perpetrators of the attacks to justice. However, Islamabad has been delaying the verdict claiming that New Delhi has not provided them with sufficient evidence to proceed further.
Toner also said that the US is working with Pakistan and has made it clear that Pakistan needs to eradicate the terror groups seeking safe haven on its soil. "We want to see full accountability for these terrible attacks. We're working with Pakistan, we're making our concerns clear that they need to go after all the terrorist groups that are operating or seeking safe haven on their soil. And that's been our clear objective for a long time now. We've seen progress, but we need to see more," he added.
Toner also suggested that the US may not impose any kind of sanctions against Pakistan for letting such terrorist organisations cultivate in its nation. "I don't think we're even at that point. I mean, we continue to have, as I said, conversations with the highest level of the Government of Pakistan. And our basic point in all of these conversations is that Pakistan must target all militant groups, including those that target Pakistan's neighbours, and eliminate all safe havens."
The State Department Deputy Spokesman also said that Pakistan has responded to the US and has assured that it will take actions against such groups.
The mastermind behind the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed, continues to live safely in Pakistan even though the United Nations has declared JuD a terror organisation and has designated Saeed as a terrorist. The Mumbai terror attack on the Taj Mahal hotel and several other areas of the city in November 2008 ended up claiming 166 lives.
