Like in the world of computers and video games, there’s always something new and improved about to come out. Could that be true in the terrorism world? Is the India terror group, Lashkar-e-Taiba, the new and improved al Qaeda?
BY JAMES GORDON MEEK
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
WASHINGTON – U.S. intelligence was caught off-guard by Lashkar-e-Taiba’s “highly sophisticated” Mumbai terror strikes last month, which top spies now consider the debut of a new “brand name” to rival Al Qaeda.
The Islamist group was formed with Pakistani government help decades ago, but U.S. officials admit underestimating Lashkar’s shift from waging a minor conflict in the Kashmir region to threatening Westerners and Jews.
“There is real concern over the fact LeT has raised its profile,” a U.S. counterterror official told the Daily News. “A lot of people are watching closely now to see if they’re plotting new attacks.”
The group is as mainstream in Pakistan as its ally Hamas is in the Palestinian territories.
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