FBI becomes the SABI (South Asia Bureau of Investigation:-)

I just came across this lecture by FBI Director Robert F. Mueller III which he delivered at the Council on Foreign Relations. Probably because this was just a few days before he was to wing his way to Delhi, he began his remarks with reference to the Mumbai attacks and the involvement of the FBI.

The FBI figures quite frequently in the news coverage of the aftermath of the Mumbai attacks on 26/11 but he did have some interesting tidbits to offer; “Agents and analysts conducted more than 60 interviews, including that of the lone surviving attacker. Our forensic specialists pulled fingerprints from improvised explosive devices….They recovered data from damaged cell phones, in one case by literally wiring a smashed phone back together.”

Muller called for closer co-ordination between various intelligence agencies to counter terrorism. That is a call that will be increasingly heeded as terrorist acts become even more transnational, being hatched in one country, financed by nationals of another country and perpetrated by nationals of other countries. In fact till very recently, India would have rejected any offers of help with the response that its investigative agencies were competent enough to conduct the investigation. In fact the first time, an FBI Director visited India was only in 2000, after the Kandahar hijacking when India allowed the FBI to open a liaison office in New Delhi. Though cooperation on counterterrorism began around that time, it progressed only in fits and starts, partly because of the reluctance to share information by the US because of sensitivities towards Pakistan. That now seesm to be changing, with the deteriorating situation in Pakistan, and not a moment too soon.

Investigative agencies on the sub-continent have been neutered by their political and bureaucratic leadership over the decades. They are no longer seen as being able to carry out their duties in an impartial and professional manner. While Pakistan President Zardari’s appeal to the UN Secretary General for an investigation to be carried out by the UN into Benazir Bhutto’s assasination was initially received with sniggers of disbelief on the sub-continent, the trend has continued with Mumbai and now Bangladesh where Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina  has requested the FBI’s assistance in the massacre of army officers by the Bangladesh Rifles personnel.

End Note: When visiting the FBI About US page, I notice that the two representative pics of FBI employees are that of a woman in a saree and a sardarji in a turban. Just wondering if the pics are rotated based on IP location….