UK launches probe to find Briton's role in Srinagar blast

UK launches probe to find Briton's role in Srinagar blast
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

LONDON, DEC 30: Britain has launched an investigation to find out whether a man from Birmingham had carried out a suicide bomb attack in Sringar on Christmas day killing at least nine people including six Indian soldiers.

``The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is in touch with the Indian police authorities in Sringar through the British high commission in New Delhi to confirm the report,'' an FCO spokesman said last night.

He said they were unable to confirm the details of the dead man, but were liaisoning with the Indian authorities.

Media reports prominently claimed here that a "bomber from Birmingham", 24-year-old Mohammed Bilal operating under the nom de guerre

Abdullah Bhai, rammed into an Indian security post with a maruti-load of explosives in Srinagar killing himself and six Indian soldiers.

Three kashmiri students returning home to celebrate Eid-ul-fitr were also killed in the blast.

``Abdullah Bhai was named by Jaish-E-Mohammed, a Kashmiri militant group. We are in touch with the Indian police and we are waiting for the results of their investigation. It is for the Indian police to investigate,'' the spokesman said.

Referring to the forthcoming anti-terrorism act that might come into force from February 2001, the spokesman said the uk government was serious in curbing terrorism and that is why it is expanding the scope of terrorism laws and will punish those who incite terrorism "wholly or partly" outside Britain.

The terrorism act 2000 will also take stock of weapons training and recruitment in Britain for terrorism purposes abroad, he said.