‘Indians deserved it. Terrorists should be honoured with Nishan-e-Pakistan’: Read what Tahawwur Rana told David Headley after the Mumbai 26/11 attack
In a significant move nearly 16 years after the devastating 26/11 Mumbai attacks, the US Department of Justice on Thursday called the extradition of Tahawwur Rana a “crucial step in the pursuit of justice” for the six American victims and scores of others who perished in one of the deadliest terror strikes on Indian soil.
Rana, a 64-year-old Canadian citizen of Pakistani origin, was flown from the United States to India aboard a special aircraft on Wednesday and touched down in Delhi by Thursday evening. He stands accused of aiding his childhood friend, Pakistani-American terrorist David Coleman Headley—one of the key conspirators behind the 2008 attacks that paralyzed Mumbai for days.
The Justice Department also revealed chilling details from intercepted conversations following the attacks. Rana allegedly told Headley that the Indian victims “deserved it.”
In a shocking display of praise for the attackers, Rana reportedly lauded the nine LeT terrorists killed during the assault, saying they “should be given the Nishan-e-Haider,” Pakistan’s highest military honour awarded posthumously for battlefield valor.
The 26/11 attacks were executed by 10 heavily armed operatives from Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistan-based terror group. While nine were neutralized by Indian security forces during the siege, one—Ajmal Amir Kasab—was captured alive, tried, and hanged in 2012.
Rana’s alleged involvement went beyond words. He is accused of helping Headley—born Daood Gilani—pose as a legitimate businessman to scope out Mumbai’s vulnerabilities.
Acting as a front, Rana’s immigration firm supposedly enabled Headley to travel freely and conduct reconnaissance on potential targets, including the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel and Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus. Once a military doctor in the Pakistani army, Rana moved to Canada in 1997 and eventually settled in the United States.
In Chicago, he launched multiple ventures including a law firm and a meat processing plant. Despite Headley’s complete lack of experience, Rana allegedly opened a Mumbai branch of his business and installed him as its head—an act prosecutors say was meant to mask terror surveillance under the guise of legitimate enterprise. Now back in India, Rana is expected to face trial for his role in an attack that continues to haunt memories and completely upended India’s approach towards dealing with Pakistani terrorism.
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