Hafiz Saeed's brother-in-law Abdul Rehman Makki-a conduit between LeT and Taliban

[Mad Indian]

Hafiz Saeed’s brother-in-law Abdul Rehman Makki is a conduit between Lashkar-e-Taiba and Taliban - The Times of India

NEW DELHI: While JuD chief Hafiz Saeed has become the most visible symbol in India of terror emanating from Pakistan, his brother-in-law Abdul Rehman Makki (64) is seen as an equally dangerous and rabid anti- India face of terror by Indian agencies. Government sources say that one of the main reasons for the US announcing a reward of $2 million for Makki is said to be his proximity to none other than Taliban supreme commander Mullah Omar and al-Qaeda's Ayman al-Zawahiri.

According to Indian authorities, Makki had regularly participated in meetings along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border that also featured Omar and al-Zawahiri and in which it was decided to attack Indian interests in Kabul, including its embassy.

Former chief of joint intelligence committee and deputy national security adviser S D Pradhan said Makki became a significant threat for the US after it realized that he was acting as a conduit between the Taliban and the LeT. "One such meeting in which he participated took place in 2005. Then there was another meeting in 2007 to target Indian interests in which he was also involved. Later, he became the person, who facilitated training of Taliban operatives in Lashkar training camps," said Pradhan.

Indian agencies had warned their US counterparts about a surprise and sudden visit by al-Zawahiri to Islamabad in mid-2007, even suggesting that it could be linked to Osama bin Laden's whereabouts, and it is Makki who is said to have facilitated this visit at the behest of Hafiz Saeed. US security expert Bruce Riedel, who is known to be close to the Obama administration, has said that Saeed was in touch with Osama himself through a courier right until his death last year.

Born at Bahawalpur in Punjab, Makki now effectively functions as LeT's number 2 man, after Saeed. It is interesting that he is not a named accused in any case against India. His name doesn't even figure in the list of India's most wanted that has been given to Pakistan. This, though, is looked upon by Indian authorities as a red herring.

"There was very credible information about him in 2008 which suggested that he was in direct touch with Major Sameer Ali, a Pakistan army officer accused in Mumbai attacks. Ali is in India's most wanted list," said a source. The first time Indian agencies heard of Makki was just before the Parliament attack in 2001. While LeT denied any role in carrying out the attack, Indian officials say that he was then spotted regularly in a training camp at Bahawalpur where some of the perpetrators trained.

Makki is known for his hate speeches against India, especially on Kashmir Solidarity Day, but his speech in 2010 is counted as among the most disturbing. Eight days ahead of the German Bakery blast in Pune, he had said at Muzaffarabad that three Indian cities, including Pune, were likely to be targeted.