Possible Suspect in "Broad Spectrum of Society" Train-Bombing

This is just wild speculation at this point, but this dude does seem as likely as any.

On March 12, 1993, a series of explosions ripped through the streets of Mumbai, killing 257 Indians and injuring 713. The serial attack, presaging Al Qaeda's coordinated-bombing modus operandi, involved nearly simultaneous detonation of car-bombs across the city in crowded bazaars and near major hotels and Mumbai's stock exchange. While India is no stranger to political violence, the attack has been retroactively dubbed "India's 9-11" for its shock and devastation.

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[Dawood] Ibrahim, the alleged mastermind of the 1993 bomb plot, is possibly the closest thing to a real-life Keyser Soze, the legendary mastermind of The Usual Suspects. Counterfeiting, assassination attempts on rivals in Bangkok, extorting Bollywood film studios, gunrunning to Africa, large-scale heroin smuggling to Europe -- Ibrahim and his violent "D-Company" gang do it all, all across the world. Despite fleeing India after the bombing, he is still alleged to control much of the subcontinent's underworld from exile.

But Dawood Ibrahim is more than just a sinister criminal and narcoterrorist; he is also a supporter of Al Qaeda. On October 17, 2003, the U.S. Treasury Department declared him a terrorist and froze his assets. According to Treasury, Osama bin Laden and his organization use Ibrahim's smuggling routes for a fee. (Treasury does not reveal exactly what Osama smuggles along those routes.) Furthermore, Ibrahim is a financial backer of the Pakistan-based terrorist organization Lashkar-e-Taiba, which continues horrific attacks inside India, including the December 2001 assault on India's parliament. When al Qaeda bigshot Abu Zubaydah was arrested in Faisalabad, he was hiding in a Lashkar-e-Taiba safehouse.

Drug-smuggling, couterfeiting, extortion, assassinations, mass murders, assassinations... but remember, they invented algebra.

posted by Ace at 01:36 PM

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